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Thinking Global . Acting Local
"Just as we need climate scientists to present the facts, we need the arts and culture to help us think and feel and talk about the climate crisis at all levels"_ Brian Eno, Cop 26
As the environmental crisis accelerates, the issues facing our planet take us beyond the usual human scale of our day-to-day lives, relationships and worries. Are the arts essential in helping us to feel the urgency of those challenges? To pay attention? To care? Can art be the bridge between the cold hard facts, and the emotions we need to feel to actually take action?
Join us for our third Art(s) of Climate Action event, Water Ways: a screening of Aoife Desmond's film Bury Our Hearts At The Bend Of The River followed by a panel discussion featuring: Artist Aoife Desmond, Maggie McColgan CEO of StreamScapes Bantry, Paul McCulla of Clochán Uisce Clonakilty, and Chloe Grant Youth Activist for Lough Hyne. Curated and moderated by Róisín Foley.
Film:
Bury our hearts at the bend of the river spans the River Lee through a split screen journey combining traces of walks, boat journeys and improvised performances. Three female performers including the filmmaker physically map this landscape witnessing and moving along the river from apparent wilderness to industrial zones. A pure and primal connection with river as self runs through the film complicated through the continuous meeting of interruptions in the forms of dams, wind farms, pharmaceutical plants, power generating stations etc. Privatisation of land make a continuous journey of the river banks from source to sea almost impossible. Further less visible contaminations to water quality are apparent.
The voiceover and singing switch between Irish and English language, referencing the significance of the valley at the source of the river as a retainer for the Irish language and the histories of colonisation linked to land use and ownership across the entire territory.
Panel Discussion:
Aoife Desmond: Aoife Desmond is a filmmaker, visual artist and performer. In her work she prioritises embodied knowledge and explores materiality, site and human/non-human relationships. She works in response to environmental crisis and rupture with an emphasis on restorative practices. Based in Cork, Aoife works locally, nationally and internationally both on solo and collaborative projects. Her current work involves collaboration between local community groups with the River Bandon through River Guardians, a project under the Bandon Flood Relief Scheme Residency Public Art Commission managed by Cork County Council, and funded by the OPW.
Maggie McColgan: Maggie McColgan is the CEO of StreamScapes, an environmental NGO that explores the deep connections between Ireland’s natural heritage and cultural identity. StreamScapes empowers communities to understand, protect and celebrate their local ecosystems, with a strong focus on aquatic biodiversity. Through experiential education and hands-on projects, the organisation has engaged hundreds of schools and community groups across Ireland. Its programmes continue to foster environmental stewardship and inspire lasting connections to the natural world.
Paul McCulla: Paul McCulla is a clean rivers advocate, environmental and social activist, horticulturalist, river ecology workshop facilitator, and one of the founding members of West Cork rivers group Clochán Uisce.
Clochán Uisce advocates for clean healthy rivers. Our ethos is that all rivers have the right to run clean and unobstructed from source to sea with a thriving ecosystem along its course. We promote community river interaction through citizen science workshops, 'To Know a River ' school education workshops and as a rivers hub and data collectors for international NGO Drinkable Rivers.
Chloe Grant: Chloe Grant is a passionate young advocate for science and the
environment, deeply rooted in the landscapes and waters of West Cork. Having lived in urban areas, spent time abroad in California, and now residing by Ireland’s only marine nature reserve at Lough Hyne, Chloe brings a broad perspective to local sustainability challenges. She believes that education and awareness are vital to building a more sustainable future. An avid rower on the Ilen River, she experiences the local environment firsthand and is committed to protecting it for future generations.
environment, deeply rooted in the landscapes and waters of West Cork. Having lived in urban areas, spent time abroad in California, and now residing by Ireland’s only marine nature reserve at Lough Hyne, Chloe brings a broad perspective to local sustainability challenges. She believes that education and awareness are vital to building a more sustainable future. An avid rower on the Ilen River, she experiences the local environment firsthand and is committed to protecting it for future generations.
Róisín Foley: Róisín Foley is a creative, curator, writer and permaculturalist who works across many disciplines. She is interested in strengthening local connections and building pride of place through creative ecological means. Projects include a reading group within a native tree nursery, curator with Capacity Ireland and Backwater Artists Group, an experimental casting workshop with artist Helle Helsner at The National Sculpture Factory, and curating an environmental film club. She is a co-director of BioFest West Cork, a member of The Glitter Heap Collective, and a regular contributor to VAN Irelands national arts newspaper. In 2025 she will begin a Masters of Arts, Art and Environment through TU Dublin based on Sherkin Island.