Coffee, Cake & Catchments: SpongeWORKS
Rescheduled SpongeWorks launch in Aughrim: an informal evening on community action, nature-based solutions, flooding & biodiversity.
Please note that this event has been rescheduled from Tuesday, 27th January, due to the significant impacts of Storm Chandra on the Aughrim community. We sincerely thank the community for their resilience and continued partnership.
In this regard you are warmly invited to the launch of the SpongeWorks Project in Aughrim —☕ Coffee, cake and chat provided — come along for an informal, friendly evening of learning and conversation.
An evening of information, exploring how working with nature (Nature-based Solutions, NBS) can help us manage water, protect biodiversity, and build climate resilience in our local landscapes.
The EU Horizon project 'SpongeWorks' focuses on helping landscapes act more like a sponge — slowing, storing and filtering water naturally through soils, wetlands, woodlands and river systems.
This nature-based approach can reduce flooding, improve water quality, support wildlife and create healthier, more resilient catchments for communities, farming and nature alike.
The evening will explain what the SpongeWorks Project is and why it matters, and why Wicklow County Council, East Wicklow Rivers Trust, Wicklow Uplands Council and LAWPRO all got involved.
We will hear from Dr Mary Bourke a lecturer in Geography at Trinity College Dublin, an engaging expert on Earth (and Planetary) Geomorphology with expertise in extreme environments including flooding.
An important part of the evening will be shared insights, and to discuss how our Aughrim Catchment Community can be involved.
This is a relaxed and accessible event open to everyone — landowners, farmers, anglers, community members, engineers, environmental enthusiasts, anyone curious about how nature-based solutions can support both people and place.
We look forward to welcoming you.
Rescheduled SpongeWorks launch in Aughrim: an informal evening on community action, nature-based solutions, flooding & biodiversity.
Please note that this event has been rescheduled from Tuesday, 27th January, due to the significant impacts of Storm Chandra on the Aughrim community. We sincerely thank the community for their resilience and continued partnership.
In this regard you are warmly invited to the launch of the SpongeWorks Project in Aughrim —☕ Coffee, cake and chat provided — come along for an informal, friendly evening of learning and conversation.
An evening of information, exploring how working with nature (Nature-based Solutions, NBS) can help us manage water, protect biodiversity, and build climate resilience in our local landscapes.
The EU Horizon project 'SpongeWorks' focuses on helping landscapes act more like a sponge — slowing, storing and filtering water naturally through soils, wetlands, woodlands and river systems.
This nature-based approach can reduce flooding, improve water quality, support wildlife and create healthier, more resilient catchments for communities, farming and nature alike.
The evening will explain what the SpongeWorks Project is and why it matters, and why Wicklow County Council, East Wicklow Rivers Trust, Wicklow Uplands Council and LAWPRO all got involved.
We will hear from Dr Mary Bourke a lecturer in Geography at Trinity College Dublin, an engaging expert on Earth (and Planetary) Geomorphology with expertise in extreme environments including flooding.
An important part of the evening will be shared insights, and to discuss how our Aughrim Catchment Community can be involved.
This is a relaxed and accessible event open to everyone — landowners, farmers, anglers, community members, engineers, environmental enthusiasts, anyone curious about how nature-based solutions can support both people and place.
We look forward to welcoming you.
Good to know
Highlights
- 2 hours
- all ages
- In person
Location
Aughrim Tidy Towns Pavilion
Rednagh Road
Aughrim
How do you want to get there?
Agenda
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Welcome & Introduction
Jim Callery is Climate Action Officer with Wicklow County Council. He is an environmental scientist with over 20 years experience working in environmental awareness and climate action.
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TBC
Professor Bourke is an Earth and Planetary Geomorphologist with expertise in extreme environments on Earth and Mars. She has published over 90 manuscripts on landscapes in Antarctica, Australia, Namibia, Mars and Ireland. She currently works on the impact of climate change on the river and coastal systems of Ireland. She received her BA and MA in Geography from University College Dublin. She undertook her Ph.D. at the Australian National University investigating catastrophic floods in the Central Australian deserts, for which she received the university prize for outstanding postgraduate research in Earth Sciences. In 1998 she moved to Washington DC to take up a post-doctoral position at the Smithsonian Institution where she researched Martian landscapes. She then took up a lectureship in the School of Geography, University of Oxford followed by a Senior Scientist position at the Planetary Science Institute, Arizona where she worked for nine years on NASA projects until her return to
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Coffee, Cake & Comfort
We will have coffee, tea and juice and homemade goodies available. Take this opportunity to refresh yourselves and meet others.