The Farming Rathcroghan EIP project gives advice and support to farmers in the local area on how to farm in an historically important landscape, to look after and improve the landscape, while protecting bio-diversity, carbon sequestrationThis is where you do things like planting or keeping bogs that take CO2/carbon out of the air and improving water quality. The project is funded to date under two successful project delivery streams as the European Innovation Partnership EIP 2019-2023 and as the Just Transition Fund 2024-2026, the project has now expanded to 60 farmers within radius of 3.5 km of the central Rathcroghan Mound This is important because farmers need to work with forms and rules while at the same time make a living. As a farmer in the project says: ‘Being a member of Farming Rathcroghan has meant that I have the support that I need to farm on a heritage site. it’s made my farming more sustainable and meaningful. ‘
Where?
Rathcrogan, Tulsk, Co. Roscommon
Who started this action?
This was a bottom up, locally led a partnership between farmers, farming experts, heritage and archaeology experts, and the local community that began in 2018
Some quick facts about the project
The project works to:
- Look after the landscape to sustain a good livelihood for the farming community.
- It promotes and conserves the area’s history as well as its nature heritage.
- It Improves the water quality as well as the biodiversityanimals and nature in the area.
- It tells people about the best ways to farm in archaeological sensitive area.
- It makes and designs plans for public access to historic places on farming lands
- It grows awareness and recognition of how important the area is as a farmed historic place
- It highlights just how important farming here is for looking after land sustainably.
Highlights Click toggle ⊕ to see these
The project: tests and develops a way of meeting the farming, biodiversity and heritage needs altogether working with farmers.
- It tests and develops new ways of managing to sustain a farming economy that makes a living and at the same time works with the cultural heritage of the area.
- It develops and carries out the best ways to farm and look after archaeology in an environmentally friendly way.
- It can bring experts to the local farming that are needed to support the care of the culture in the landscape.
Lots of local people supported the project and applied to take part in it.
Over 75% of farming in the core area of the Rathcroghan is directly managed by Farming Rathcroghan farmers. These all put into practice the best standards for preserving and conversing the built heritage, biodiversity and water quality.
You can see many of these practices at THIS LINK
Why this matters
The Rathcroghan Archaeological Landscape near Tulsk in County Roscommon, Ireland, is one of Europe’s most significant archaeologicalhistorical things that are in the ground from many hundreds of years ago and mythological complexes. It survives not only as a centre of rich tangible and intangible heritage, but also as a working agricultural landscape. Rathcroghan forms part of a serial nomination for consideration for UNESCO World Heritage Status, as part of The Royal Sites of Ireland collective.
The project reflects a collaborative model led by the local farming community, and involving archaeologists and heritage practitioners in its design, delivery and evolution through time. It has integrated sustainable agricultural practices within a broader framework of landscape preservation, cultural continuity, and rural development.
The cooperation and support of the local farmers have been instrumental and crucially important to this success. It has looked at how to care for and preserve different historic monuments in the area. This is done at the same time as improving the living standards of the farming community and is now a best example of how to do this.
SDG Alignment & Keywords Click toggle ⊕ to see these
- SDG 12: Responsible Consumption and Production,
- SDG 13: Climate Action,
- SDG 14: Life below water,
- SDG 15: Life on Land,
- Partnerships for the goals
Keywords: Biodiversity, Conservation, Heritage, Water Quality, Climate Change, Resilience, Roscommon
Find Out More about the project
Website: Farming Rathcroghan EIP – Farming Rathcroghan
Contact: richie@farmingrathcroghan.ie
In Rathcroghan, the community realised they had two very important assets: their farming, and their history. Often, we just need to look around us to see the opportunity for sustainability work. Carol and the people in Mulranny Mayo did something very similar. Listen to our podcast to hear the full story and learn how you could do the same
Use what's in your community to develop it sustainably
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