From Department of Rural and Community Development
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Minister for Rural and Community Development, Heather Humphreys, today welcomed the latest event in the Rural Ideas Fora series, which focused on the new Ghaeltacht Ghlas Strategy.
The event, which was the first event in the series held in-person, took place in An Cheathrú Rua, Co Galway, in partnership with Údarás na Gaeltachta, who are developing the An Ghaeltacht Ghlas Strategy, which is a clear commitment in Our Rural Future.
Minister Humphreys said:
“Gaeltacht areas play a hugely important role in Irish life and culture and the Ghaeltacht Ghlas Strategy offers huge potential to develop their economic and environmental sustainability. I want to thank Údarás na Gaeltachta for hosting today’s event, the first in-person Rural Ideas Fora event, and all those who attended and took part in what was a wide-ranging and valuable discussion.”
Rónán Mac Con Iomaire, Údarás na Gaeltachta Director of Regional Development, Community and Language Planning said:
“It was wonderful today to see the interesting, innovative projects already being undertaken by Gaeltacht communities, in areas such as renewable energy, biodiversity and the green economy. The Gaeltacht Ghlas strategy aims to capitalize on the opportunities for the Gaeltacht in these fields, harnessing our bountiful natural resources. We want to facilitate Gaeltacht communities so that they can be at the forefront of developments in the green economy. Údarás na Gaeltachta recognises the importance of a sustainable Gaeltacht in the widest sense; sustainable communities, a sustainable language policy, sustainability in employment and environmental sustainability.”
Our Rural Future is the whole-of-government policy for rural Ireland for the period 2021-2025. It represents a new milestone in the approach to rural development policy for Ireland and adopts a more strategic, ambitious and holistic approach to investing in and maximising opportunities for rural areas.
The Rural Ideas Fora are a series of events covering the range of policy areas in Our Rural Future. Attendees have the opportunity to hear from sectoral experts and stakeholders and to participate in workshop based discussions. Beginning in 2021, this is the fifth event in the series, with recordings of earlier sessions available.