Writes Leo McMahon
There was an overflow attendance on a memorable night at the theatre in Tracton Arts and Community Centre, Minane Bridge recently for the launch by the President of University College Cork, Professor John O’Halloran of the booklet ‘Tracton – Waters, People and Precious Places’ co-authored by members and friends of the local Biodiversity Group.
‘Welcome to this celebration of community and achievement and a moment to be proud of. More than anything it is a celebration of our kinship with and love of the natural world,’ said Helen O’Dowd, chairperson of Tracton Biodiversity Group (BDG) in an inspiring address.
‘The idea for this booklet was inspired by our seeing what other communities were doing with the help of StreamScapes (publishers), to build local awareness, connection, and a deeper relationship with the web of wildness that surrounds us and which gives us our life. This book, created by the community and for the community, gives our community a voice and sends a powerful message - that having a healthy, thriving, beautiful, wild and diverse world around us, matters to us.
The sciences now confirm what our ancestors and indigenous peoples have known all along, that a healthy environment is essential to our life, to our well-being, happiness, sense of belonging and to our future. It is important that what we value is heard and respected and used as a foundation for decisions about our future and the world we are leaving to our children. ‘This book is full of different voices. Is exemplifies the amazing diversity and uniqueness of our individual
relationships with the environment around us and how we experience, interpret and connect with it.
Yet there is also very clear common ground. That is a profound love and respect for the natural world and an unending curiosity to learn and understand more, along with a palpable sadness for what we have already lost and what we are in danger of losing. Our hope is that in the sharing of our stories, knowledge, musings and memories, stronger bonds will be created in our community and a deeper understanding of each other’s perspectives will emerge. We believe that this is fundamental to preparing for the road ahead, in what is a deeply uncertain ecological and climatic future, where the unpredictable is becoming more predictable than the predictable,’ said Helen.
‘So where to from here?’, continued Helen.
‘Martin Luther King said ‘Courage is an inner resolution to go forward despite obstacles’. The first seanfhocal in our book is ‘Ní neart go cur le chéile’ – ‘There is no strength without unity’. Nothing will happen until people come together in a spirit of kinship, respect collaboration and wide open hearts. We human beings are wired to work together. We can’t do it alone. We are at our best in service to one another, in a spirit of trust and with a common understanding, compassion and purpose. Our invitation tonight is to come together now, to co-author our future. Magic can happen when a group of diverse people come together with open hearts and minds and share their stories knowledge and skills. An opening happens… We just need to make the decision to do so and navigate any confusion and darkness there might be along the way with courage, until the light eventually shows through . Because it is the only thing to do. Enjoy the book as a reminder of our connection with one another and with all of life.’
Helen thanked all contributors to the book, all supporters and/or sponsors including Streamscapes, Local Authorities Waters Programme (LAWPro), students and staff at UCC and also expert walk leaders, guest speakers and SHEP Choir; members of TBG and the local community ‘who value the wildness of the world with all your hearts, who are proud to say you love the Earth, its soil and its waters, the landscape and the beautiful creatures with whom we share this planet.’
Prof O’Halloran, in launching and sumarising the booklet said it was ‘an extraordinary piece of work for which TBG should be very proud’ and the stories told really important. ‘Diversity begets stability’, he went on, and the synthesis achieved by TGB was hard to beat, describing its area as ‘a hare’s corner’ for wild habitats. ’Head of a college (UCC), with 25,000 students and 3,500 staff, he said he was incredibly optimistic that young people would find solutions.
Ellen Murphy, community water officer with LAWPro, said it was a privilege to work with TBG in implementing the water framework directive. The beautiful booklet was very practical and should be on kitchen tables and bar counters all over Cork to highlight among other things, the huge importance of looking at water quality. It bounded together and gave communities hope and urged it be used as a tool for giving to local politicians because there was quite clearly a movement and change.
Maggie McColgan on behalf of NGO and publishers StreamScapes congratulated TBG on its incredible work and publication. Some of the contributors to the booklet also spoke including Dr Dara Fitzpatrick who interestingly pointed out that TGB served an area from ‘Haven to Haven – Crosshaven to Oysterhaven’. Other speakers were Tony Nagle and Rodney Daunt.
A wonderful evening concluded with a rousing singalong performance by the choir SHEP from the Social and Health Education Project in Cork conducted by Pat Sheehan-Corbett. There were also short videos including the new TBG documentary ‘The Moth Man’ plus excellent refreshments.
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