Tell Us About Your Community’s Sustainability Story
It’d be great if you could tell us your own community’s story. Just fill in the boxes below. Don’t forget to put in your email because we will need to check everything so that you are happy with the story before it gets shared here.
See our GDPR Privacy Policy Here
Community Story Form
Our Latest Community Story
Kerry Earth Education Project’ (KEEP)
From a small organic farm in Ballyseedy a much larger inspirational education project has grown. Ian and Eileen spread the message of permaculturewhere you grow things not by digging and adding fertilizer, but by letting things grow more naturally
and sustainable farming. Their farm not only produces healthy food, it also gives spaces where nature can live and grow. They then show how others can follow this sustainable example that cares for people and nature.
Where is this?
Gortbrack Organic Farm, Ballyseedy, County Kerry, Ireland
Who started it?
Founded by Eileen Carroll, Ian McGrigor, and Niamh Ní Dhúill (who also founded Natural Wild Gardens).
Some quick facts about the project
- Gortbrack Organic Farm is a certified organic smallholding and educational/ecological centre. The farm was initially set up in 1991. It was established on what was originally a neglected 10‑acre plot overrun with rushes; the founders brought it back into a diverse habitatthe kind of natural place where something likes to live farm.
- The education branch, known as the ‘Kerry Earth Education Project’ (KEEP) was set up later to run environmental education and related projects.
- Raises awareness among community and children about biodiversityanimals and nature, local food, and sustainable living.
-
Gortbrack is an excellent example of the ecological value of ‘working habitats’.These include
-
Heritage Orchards
-
Flower-rich hay meadows
-
Managed woodlands including mixed-timber coppices and shelter belts.
-
Highlights Click toggle ⊕ to see these
- They work with other organisations, such as Irish Seed Savers and the Heritage Council.
- Their farm looks after diverse habitats, which include wild bog land, ponds, woodlands, native hedgerows, stonewalls, and ditches. These are all very rich spaces where nature can grow.
- The farm grows organic vegetables and herbs, where composting, reed‑bed systems replace the need for chemicals and artificial fertilisers.
- They have ‘Eco cabins’ for accommodation, using sustainable materials (solar panels, wood stoves, good insulation) for guests.
-
Working with donkeys, ducks and bees, Eileen and Ian show the value of integrating animals into vegetable production.
-
Every Thursday is a volunteer day on the farm, which includes social farming.
-
They host regular open days introducing people to a farm that demonstrates a scalable approach to agriculture, working with ecology, not compromising it.
They also give education and outreach courses: school garden programmes, training for teachers, guided tours, and nature trails.
Why this matters
Eileen and Ian became aware of the lack of connection between people (especially students) to food production, natural heritage, and ecosystems. They saw a need for education in organic methods, garden design, sustainability. They saw that showing how they created a functioning and well‑regarded organic farm with multiple habitatsthe kind of natural places where something likes to live and productive food gardens could be an example to others.
They went on to setting up educational programmes showing school garden projects, nature trails, and giving teacher training could inspire people and spread a sustainability message.
SDG Alignment & Keywords Click toggle ⊕ to see these
- SDG 2: Zero Hunger,
- SDG 4: Quality Education,
- SDG 12: Responsible Consumption and Production,
- SDG 13: Climate Action,
- SDG 15: Life on Land
Keywords: Regenerative farming, Education, Biodiversity, Sustainability, Community Engagement, Kerry
Find Out More about the project
Links open in other websites
The Activists Take-Away
Eileen and Ian knew that for us to meet the global challenges of climate change and the loss of biodiversity we need to bring many people along with us. That’s why they went from having their own organic farm to setting up an education program like KEEP.
To see how you can do this, in this podcast with Seán Carolan you can find out how the people in community projects use the best communications practices to make sure they build strong alliances within their community.
Sustainable development, and participative democracy.
Listen on…
Resources from Climate Connected that you can use to do follow this example in your area
Visit our library of community stories
Search Community Stories By Map
