Shared Island Initiative Newsletter
This newsletter provides subscribers with updates on the Government's Shared Island initiative that was launched by Taoiseach Micheál Martin TD in October 2020 to enhance cross-border cooperation, connection and mutual understanding, engaging with all communities and traditions on the island to build consensus around a shared future, underpinned by the Good Friday Agreement.
In this edition you will find details on the allocation of €70.4 million to new Shared Island projects; and the latest reports from the Shared Island Dialogue series; updates from the ESRI, IRC and NESC research programmes.
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If you missed our last Newsletter, it can be read here.
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Government approves over €70 million for Shared Island investments
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The Government on the 4 July, allocated €70.4 million from the Shared Island Fund to deliver 5 new cross-border and all-island initiatives. These are:
- €5 million for a Shared Island Local Authority Development Funding Scheme
- €3 million for a Shared Island strand to the Community Climate Action Programme
- €15 million for a Shared Island Electric Vehicle charging infrastructure scheme
- €7.4 million for Shared Island Arts investment projects
- €40 million contribution for delivery of Phase 3 of the Ulster Canal restoration
The Shared Island Fund was established by Government in Budget 2021, and provides ring-fenced capital resourcing for delivery of the all-island investment commitments and objectives set out in the Programme for Government and the revised National Development Plan 2021-30 (NDP).
The projects will be taken forward by Ministers working through all-island partnerships:
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Shared Island Local Authority Development Funding Scheme
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The Minister for Housing, Local Government Heritage announced a call for applications under the Shared Island Local Authority Development funding scheme in April 2022. The €5m scheme will make grants of up to €250,000 to be made to cross-border Local Authority partnerships to bring new joint investment cooperation projects through feasibility or pre-planning stages.
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The scheme is designed to generate a pipeline of well-developed cross-border local authority projects that will be in a position to secure funding for subsequent construction/implementation stage from both jurisdictions, including through the Shared Island Fund. There has been a strong response from cross-border Local Authority partnerships to the call for proposals and funding awards are due to be announced in the autumn.
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Shared Island strand to the Community Climate Action programme
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The Minister for Environment, Climate and Communications will announce a Shared Island dimension to the government’s Community Climate Action Programme (CCAP).
The Shared Island dimension will operate alongside Strand 1 of the CCAP, to support Local Authorities to step up climate action, in partnership with communities.
The €3 million from the Shared Island Fund will support cross-border or all-island projects which have a clear North/South basis and impact in contributing to climate and energy targets on the island of Ireland. Projects will include at least one partner in Northern Ireland and at least 50% of awarded funding will be for project delivery in Northern Ireland.
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Shared Island Electric Vehicle charging infrastructure scheme
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This project will deliver publicly accessible EV charge points in sports clubs and centres on an all-island basis by providing grant funding via National Sports Governing Bodies.
The scheme will enable the installation of interoperable EV charging infrastructure on both sides of the border, with up to 90 rapid EV charging points delivered in sports locations across the island, funded through the €15m Shared Island Fund allocation.
The scheme will contribute to the implementation of the government’s EV Charging Infrastructure Strategy for installation of EV charging points at destination and residential locations. It will also support the requirement under the strategy to promote the parallel development of aligned standards and the use of interoperable technologies and digital systems on the island.
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Shared Island Arts investment projects
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A number of new Shared Island arts capital projects will be progressed by the Minister for Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media.
Up to €7.4 million from the Shared Island Fund will support the delivery of a suite of new Arts capital investment projects on the island. These are being developed in consultation with the Arts Council and the Arts Council of Northern Ireland.
The two Councils frequently work together to co-fund Arts programming and have identified a number of projects including residential and studio spaces for cross-border writer artistic and traditional music collaborations; and digitisation and curation of film, music and architectural archives on an island-wide basis.
These projects will be finalised and announced in the coming months.
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Phase 3 of the Ulster Canal
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Phase 3 is central to delivery of the commitment under the Programme for Government and the New Decade New Approach agreement to complete the Ulster Canal restoration from Clones to Upper Lough Erne.
This is the major blueway stage of the restoration project, connecting a 10km cross-border route between Castle Saunderson and Clonfad and linking the town of Clones by navigable waterway to the Erne System and onward to the wider waterway network of the Shannon-Erne Waterway, Shannon Navigation and the Royal and Grand Canals. The feasibility and pre-development work of this phase was enabled by an allocation of €1 million from the Shared Island Fund in December 2020.
3 of the 4 sub-sections of this phase are now ready to be progressed:
- Phase 3.1 (2kms) Castle Saunderson to Gortnacarrow
- Phase 3.2 (0.5kms) Gortnacarrow to the Border
- Phase 3.4 (3.75kms) New canal navigation between the border at Derrynure and the border at Clonfad
These works will bring the restored canal south of the border from Fermanagh and extend it further to the West from Clones. The sub-phases involve substantive infrastructure, including new road bridges and layouts, a marina and restored heritage architecture.
More detail on the funding structure and roll out of Phase 3 works will be made available in the autumn.
The final Phases 4 and 5 of the Ulster Canal restoration project are greenways which are also progressing, supported under the EU INTERREG programme.
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The Shared Island Dialogue series was launched in October 2020 to foster constructive and inclusive civic dialogue on all aspects of a shared future on the island.
The series is intended to provide a focus for people to engage on an inclusive basis on a shared future on the island, which can be a starting point for broader and deeper discussions in civil society.
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Identities on a Shared Island - new generations views
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Taoiseach Micheál Martin addresses the Shared Island Dialogue on Identity. Young people from across all communities, regions, identities and backgrounds, North and South, came together in St. Columb’s Hall in Derry on 28 June 2022 for the latest Shared Island Dialogue, Identities on a Shared Island – new generation views.
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The eleventh Dialogue in the Shared Island Dialogue series took place on Tuesday 28 June, on the theme "Identities on a Shared Island – new generation views" held in St. Columb's Hall in Derry.
Taoiseach Micheál Martin TD delivered an online opening address and over 150 young people participated in the Dialogue.
Young civic representatives from a range of communities and backgrounds, North and South, came together to discuss how we can better acknowledge and accommodate diverse community, cultural and personal identities on the island in the years ahead.
There were lively panel discussions on “Cultural identities on a shared island - can we move from acceptance to celebration?” and on “Personal identities - better representing diverse identities on the island of Ireland” looking at how aspects of personal identity – including race, ethnicity, sexuality, gender, ability, socio-economic background - are accommodated in society, North and South.
A report on the Dialogue will be published in the coming weeks on www.gov.ie/sharedisland/dialogues.
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Enabling Rural and Community Development on a Shared Island
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Minister Heather Humphreys TD opened the Shared Island Dialogue - Enabling Rural & Community Development on a Shared Island
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The tenth Dialogue in the Shared Island Dialogue series was held on 24 May on the theme "Enabling Rural and Community Development on a Shared Island” at a Connected Hub in Drumhowan, Co. Monaghan.
Over 200 people from rural and community groups, business organisations, social enterprise coordinators and Government agencies North and South came together in Drumhowan, Co. Monaghan to discuss linkages and cooperation in rural and community development on the island of Ireland.
Minister for Rural and Community Development Heather Humphreys TD delivered the opening address which is the first of the regional Dialogues in 2022.
There were two panel discussions as part of the Dialogue, a panel discussion on Social Enterprise for Thriving Communities heard from people working in communities and social enterprises along the border, in an all-island capacity and internationally, on the role of social enterprises in rural communities and how collaboration and co-operation can be enhanced on a regional and island-wide basis.
A second panel on the Transformational Potential of Rural Hubs, focused on the potential for rural hubs to support economic development and employability in rural areas North and South.
The Dialogue also featured a guest address from from Mary McKenna MBE, Serial Tech Entrepreneur, Angel Investor and Awaken Hub co-founder outlined opportunities for social enterprises to collaborate with state agencies to look to the future with the next generation of entrepreneurs with a focus of digitisation and creating a network of hubs as the future of working.
A report on the Dialogue will be published shortly at www.gov.ie/sharedisland/dialogues.
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Mary McKenna MBE, Serial Tech Entrepreneur, Angel Investor and Awaken Hub co-founder addressed the Shared Island Dialogue
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