Jimmy Deenihan TD, Minister for Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht, will travel to California as part of the Government's St Patrick's Day 'Promote Ireland' programme.
This year, 27 representatives of the Government will travel to 23 countries across Europe, the Americas, the Middle East and Asia for a series of trade, investment and tourism-focused programmes. Whilst in California, Minister Deenihan will undertake a number of engagements including business, film, cultural, diaspora and ceremonial events.
As part of the ongoing drive to encourage more film investment into Ireland, Minister Deenihan will visit Los Angeles and will take part in a number of film-related engagements including meetings with Universal and Comcast Corporation and an event hosted by actress Fionnuala Flanagan in cooperation with Disney and the LA Irish Film Festival. Last year, the Irish film industry was worth €168m to the economy, a 42% increase since 2011.
Minister Deenihan will also visit Silicon Valley where he will tour the Google campus and attend Irish Technology and Leadership Group (ITLG) events. Minister Deenihan will also undertaken business events with the IDA, Irish Dairy Board, Aer Lingus, Tourism Ireland and Enterprise Ireland.
Minister Deenihan commented:
"St. Patrick’s Day presents Ireland with an unrivalled opportunity to promote our country abroad. At this time of year, the world is our stage. The promotion of Irish culture, and of Ireland as place to do business, is of paramount importance in all of the Government engagements that take place across the globe.”
"Ireland and the USA have deep, longstanding links. It is both an honour and a privilege to represent Ireland in California on our National Day. I will be using this trip to promote business in Ireland, and to especially encourage further investment from Silicon Valley and the film industry in our country. Film in Ireland has increased by 42% since 2011, a great step forward and one we want to build on."
Minister Deenihan's itinerary includes approximately 32 events, meetings and engagements including:
· Business events with the IDA, Enterprise Ireland and the Irish Dairy Board
· Engagements in Silicon Valley including a visit to Google and opening of new Silicon Valley Global Offices (Irish Technology and Leadership Group), Los Gatos
· Events sponsored by Aer Lingus and Tourism Ireland in advance of commencement of direct services from Dublin to San Francisco
· Cultural events including a visit to the Bowers Museum, Orange County and Bing Concert Hall, Stanford University
· Film industry events including at Universal Studios, Comcast Corporation, and an event with Irish in Film, hosted by Fionnuala Flanagan, in co-operation with Disney and the Irish LA Film Festival
· St. Patrick’s Day Services, San Francisco including attending the 163rd annual parade, and engagement with the local community
· Engagement with Broadcom, the American Ireland Fund, Comcast Corporation, and local GAA organisations.
· Engagement with the Irish Network Bay Area and the Hibernian Newman Association
· Promotion of Project Tara (STEM – Science Technology Engineering and Maths initiative) linking Irish and Californian students through astronomy
In addition to the Minister’s trip, the Department of Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht, through the Culture Ireland programme, has allocated funding of approximately €250,000 to over 40 events taking place in 18 countries on or around St Patrick’s Day.
There will be a special focus on several key cities including Beijing, Moscow, and Paris, while the US, UK, Canada, Australia and New Zealand have been identified as priority destinations where there are major English language markets.
Please click here to view projects funded by Culture Ireland.