Analysis of over two thousand submissions received during the 4-month public consultation on the development of a new national heritage plan - Heritage Ireland 2030 - reveals very high levels of heritage awareness and strong demands for greater investment in Ireland’s heritage.
The Minister for Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht, Josepha Madigan TD, has announced the release of a detailed analysis of submissions received during the recent Heritage Ireland 2030 public consultation.
The report on the Analysis of Submissions Received through Public Consultation on the new heritage plan, Heritage Ireland 2030, is published on the Department’s website.
The Heritage Ireland 2030 public consultation ran from November 2018 until March of this year. The consultation attracted huge interest with over 2,100 written submissions received by the Department. In addition, over 70 consultation events and workshops were held nationwide facilitated by key heritage stakeholders including the Heritage Council, the Heritage Officer Local Authority Network, the OPW, the Royal Irish Academy and ICOMOS Ireland.
In May 2019 a Heritage Ireland 2030 Information Session was hosted by the Department in Dublin Castle. At this event, attended by over 280 people and streamed live on social media, the initial findings of the consultation were presented. Guest speakers also debated heritage priorities under the three themes of national leadership and heritage, heritage partnerships, and communities and heritage, alongside contributions from key partner organisations and members of the public.
Over recent weeks, the consultation team has completed its detailed analysis of submissions received. As detailed in the report published today, the nationwide engagement on Heritage Ireland 2030 has enabled important discussions on Ireland’s heritage. It has illustrated a very high awareness of built and natural heritage and strong feelings about the need to better protect our heritage for future generations. Hundreds of practical proposals were submitted for consideration under the future Heritage Ireland 2030 policy. Climate change, biodiversity, heritage education, enhanced protection for our built and cultural heritage and the need for greater heritage funding were amongst some of the commonest issues raised by the submissions.
Informed by the submissions received through the public consultation, Department policy makers have begun drafting Heritage Ireland 2030 and meeting with colleagues in other Departments to identify areas where Heritage Ireland 2030 might embrace and enhance their own policies and strategies. The Department is continuing to work closely with the Heritage Council, OPW and other key stakeholders in the drafting of the Heritage Ireland 2030 policy document which the Department hopes to publish over the winter.
Commenting on today’s publication, Minister Madigan said-
The level of interest shown by the public in our Heritage Ireland 2030 consultation has been tremendous. The immense level of engagement bolsters our resolve to lead in doing all we can to protect that heritage, to support communities and to ensure that our heritage in all its forms is cared for and made as accessible as possible.
I want to thank all those who engaged with us throughout the consultation process. Our heritage lies at the very heart of our nation’s identity and our drafting of Heritage Ireland 2030 is inspired by the many ideas sent to us. One of the core objectives of Heritage Ireland 2030, which will be published in the coming months, will be to to enable all those wonderful heritage ideas and actions, tangible and intangible, detailed in this report published today, to become real.
The Minister added:
Climate change and biodiversity loss featured strongly in the public’s concerns. Climate change is predicted to accelerate biodiversity loss; and our monuments and historic buildings, while standing for centuries, are not immune from the impacts. As I have said before all of these actions will require collaborative support across government and society. Every one of us must be part of the solution Heritage Ireland 2030 will embrace and be informed by my Department’s recently published Climate Change Adaptation Plans and our Biodiversity Action Plan
The Analysis document can be found on the Department’s website at https://www.chg.gov.ie/app/uploads/2019/11/report-on-heritage-ireland-2030-public-and-sectoral-meetings.pdf along with other information about the Heritage Ireland 2030 process and plan. Press queries should be directed to press.office@chg.gov.ie.