Overview of the BOLD Climate Action Dialogue and Action series

In this blog Carol-Anne O Brien and Patricia Devlin share some reflections on the BOLD climate action event series for older people that we have been supporting over the last few months

Gathering with other like-minded older people to explore various climate issues and solutions through the dialogue and action events held over the past five months has been nothing short of empowering. It was inspiring and reinvigorating to hear so many different ideas and perspectives from Dublin, Kildare, Leitrim, Wicklow and other counties. Over these four dialogue and action events, we collectively navigated our way through topics such as energy access and affordability; just transition and equality; global climate justice; and working in solidarity in action. 

Over the course of the series, we heard from some incredible speakers from different organisations such as: Age Action Ireland, Friends of the Earth, Talamh Beo, The National Women’s Council of Ireland, Eco Congregations and Grandmothers against Racism. We also heard from some older people from their own activism in climate and social movements. This wealth of knowledge and experience ignited discussions and debate, and offered us a foundation for further exploring our own ideas and actions.

We tapped into our collective creativity through painting banners to show ‘Older People in Solidarity with Youth Activists’ for the youth “End Fossil Fuels” march on September 15th, as well as to highlight the Elephant in the Room at COP 28 to ‘Kick Polluters Out of COP’ on November 29th outside the Dáil. 

 

At our last event, we took time to discuss what’s next for BOLD Climate Action. Many ideas were circulated and shared. There was certainly appetite from those in the room to continue to engage with BOLD Climate Action in the lead up to the elections. There was interest for us to find ways to harness our collective power — perhaps into the development of a manifesto along with many other exciting activities to maximise our impact towards transformative change.

This dialogue and action series has just scratched the surface. It’s only the beginning. We are going to continue to come together to find ways to strategize towards taking collective action, to continue to engage in peer education and learning, and to offer mutual support to one another amidst this climate crisis. 

We’re organising a planning meeting for the next stage of BOLD Climate Action on Tuesday February 13th from 11-2pm, in the MACRO Community Resource Centre in Dublin. Come join us! Bring your ideas, your enthusiasm, and even your frustrations — we’ll channel our energies to help shape BOLD Climate Action and the work we do over the coming months. To change everything, we need everyone! 

For more information don’t hesitate to reach out to us - Carol-Anne and Patricia: bold.climate.action@gmail.com

BOLD Climate Action was set up by older people for older people as both a space for coming together to take climate action collectively, but also importantly a space for mutual support and empowering older people through peer learning and engagement. Read more about BOLD Climate Action here.

This BOLD dialogue and action series is part of a wider Global Citizenship Education project, ‘Collaborating to help build an inclusive and diverse movement with the knowledge and skills to be active global citizens committed to a fairer and more sustainable future for all.’ Funded by Irish Aid and Concern, supported by Friends of the Earth.