People in Mayo urged to nominate areas worthy of Ireland's greenest place award

The final countdown is on for entries to Ireland’s Greenest Places 2025 with only days remaining for people to submit their nominations. To enter all you have to do is write a short submission outlining the contribution the special place or project you’re nominating makes to a genuinely greener environment.

But you’ll have to act fast to be in with a chance to claim the title for the place you select, as the closing date of July 19 is fast approaching.

The initiative which has been launched by The Irish Times, in association with Electric Ireland, will see each nominated place judged on specific criteria including its beneficial environmental impact, level of ongoing collective engagement by the community and evidence of behavioural change by people.

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To date, Mayo has had seven nominations which is the joint fourth highest in the country alongside Wicklow. The Mayo entries have come from a variety of locations including Achill, Louisburgh, Kiltimagh, Inishturk, Castlebar and Ballina.

The Chair of the Judging Panel, Irish Times Features Editor Mary Minihan said they are looking for places which offer a vision of a more sustainable future.

“We chose a place because it’s a deliberately broad term. People can nominate a suburb, village, town or community such as a peninsula, island or other distinct area anywhere on the island. The key will be how it measures up against the criteria outlined above as well of course as care for nature and the local environment.”

“Over the next couple of months our judges will draw up longlists and shortlists based on the submissions, visit the front-runners, choose winners in each category and eventually choose an overall winner. We are delighted to have seven entries already from Mayo and we are looking forward to getting some more to help us identify Ireland’s Greenest Places 2025. But people are asked to submit your short nomination, up to 300 words, as soon as possible, as the closing date is July 19.”

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Former Green Party leader and Minister for the Environment Eamon Ryan, who is one of the judges, said one of the key objectives of the competition is to showcase the contributions people and communities are making to a greener Ireland.

"We know that Irish people care about climate change and that they are concerned about its effects on their lives. We also know that place-based solutions deliver climate actions that really work because they are developed and underpinned by community ownership.”

“With this initiative we want to celebrate what’s happening in so many locations around the country, share those learnings as widely as possible and encourage more people to get involved in making their community a better place to live now and into the future."

Joining Mary Minihan and Eamon Ryan on the judging panel will be Lisa Browne from Electric Ireland, Irish Times Environment Editor Kevin O’Sullivan and Senior Features Writer Rosita Boland.

If you know a place in Ireland that deserves recognition for its contribution to a greener future, visit https://tinyurl.com/GreenestPlaces to submit your nomination.