GREEN OFFALY

CALL FOR VOLUNTEERS Take action over violence against women

Singing is one way to protest and singer/songwriter Lisa Murray from Meath launched a new single 'Woman in a World' in November with all funds going to Women's Aid. Her song was one of hundreds of actions taken as part of the 16 Days of Action campaign.

The campaign runs annually from November 25th (UN Day For the Elimination of Violence against Women) until December 10th.

If you wish to take part in a long-term action, Women's Aid is recruiting for its volunteer team for the 24hr National Freephone Helpline (1800 341 900).

For more on the campaign, or to volunteer, visit: https://www. womensaid.ie advice and technical support around community-owned energy schemes.

They are currently working with Community Power, an energy provider that buys renewable electricity from small hydro and wind generators across Ireland, to write guides for communities interested in establishing a community-owned energy project.

When asked if enough is being done at Government-level to support a just transition in local communities, Rebekah said: “I think there’s a disconnect between government policy and what is happening on the ground, and the reality of delivering on that. It’s a whole new arm of community development and it needs to be resourced as such, it needs to be a national programme. You can’t expect volunteers to do this.

“People have to address their social and economic needs before they even have the luxury to think about climate change. Electric vehicles, retrofits, they’re prohibitive to the majority of the population.”

She recalls a phrase she heard at a recent Local Futures conference in Cork: “‘We’re not faced with a series of problems, because problems have solutions. We’re faced with a series of predicaments’. From that perspective, it’s not so much about climate action, it’s about resilience. It’s about communities being food secure, energy secure, economically secure, those are the things that are really important.”