http://www.communitywetlandsforum.ie/, https://www.heritageweek.ie/event-listings/butterflies-of-irish-wetlands

Community Wetlands Forum, Dromahair (2026)

17/08/2026

CWF Webinar: Wetland Birds & What Communities Can Do to Protect Them, with Owen Murphy (Breeding Waders EIP)
18 August, 11am – 12pm (online). A Community Wetlands Forum webinar with Owen Murphy (Senior Project Manager, Breeding Waders EIP) for National Heritage Week 2026.

Wetland bird species are part of Ireland’s wetland heritage. In this CWF webinar, Owen Murphy, Senior Project Manager of the Breeding Waders EIP will talk about what community groups that are engaged in managing, restoring and protecting Ireland’s wetlands can do to help protect the bird species at risk.

Community Wetlands Forum’s mission is to promote, develop, and support community-led wetland conservation for the public benefit in Ireland, and to provide a representative platform for community-led wetland conservation groups. Our approach and values are based on the principles of community development (empowerment, participation, inclusion, self-determination, and partnership).

For more information or to find out how to become a member of the CWF, please visit our website: communitywetlandsforum.ie.

FREE EVENT

TO REGISTER: send an email to [email protected]

17/08/2026

Dear members, please share in your groups! The CWF National Heritage Week guide is also available as a pdf to download:
15th August: Explore Clara’s Industrial Heritage Route
Clara Heritage Society................................................................4
16th August: Heritage and Nature Day on Knockirr Bog
Carbury Trust ..................................5
17th August: The Bog of Small Things - Their Hidden Beauty
Creative Cavan .......................................6
17th - 20th August: Bréidín na Bóinne - Hand Weaving Natural Wool
Scohaboy Bog SAC......................................................7
17th August: Kicksampling Workshop at the River Grainey
Lough Grainey Nature Sanctuary ..........................................................................8
18th August: Between the Three Bridges
Scohaboy Bog SAC.......................................................9
19th August: Butterflies of Irish Wetlands
Community Wetlands Forum...............................................................................10
20th August: Tales from the Riverbank
Scohaboy Bog SAC................1
20th August: Pilgrim Walking in Ireland And Spain
Cabragh Wetlands.............................12
21st August: Water Heritage Day
Cabragh Wetlands....................13
22nd August: Exploring the Hidden Life of the Ballyfinboy
Scohaboy Bog SAC.................14
22nd - 23rd August: Comparing the Two Sister Bogs - Cloncrow & Toar
Everything Tyrrellspass Has On Show....................15
23rd August: Protecting Our Local Rivers and Streams
Kilteevan Tidy Towns................................16

05/08/2026

18.08.26 (11am - 12pm)

Online CWF Webinar, National Heritage Week:

Wetland Birds and What Communities Can Do To Protect Them,
with Owen Murphy

Where: online

Wetland bird species are part of Ireland's wetland heritage. In this CWF webinar, Owen Murphy, Senior Project Manager of the Breeding Waders EIP, will talk about what community groups that are engaged in managing, restoring and protecting Ireland's wetlands can do to help protect the bird species at risk.

For more information please visit the CWF website:

https://communitywetlandsforum.ie/event/webinar-wetland-birds-what-communities-can-do-to-protect-them/

To register send an email to [email protected]

27/07/2026

Happy International Bog Day!

🌱In the spotlight: Cornafulla Micro Reserve, a Community Wetlands Forum member

🌱For International Bog Day, we’re delighted to share a glimpse of the work taking place at Cornafulla Bog.

🌱Cornafulla Micro Reserve is a community-led organisation working with local landowners, researchers and the wider community to understand, protect and communicate the natural, cultural and ecological heritage of Cornafulla Bog.

🌱Their current work includes ecological recording, peat-depth mapping, exploring the bog’s hydrology and restoration potential, documenting wildlife, and creating opportunities for people to learn directly from the landscape.

🌱This summer, hosting the Bog Bothy has enabled them to programme a wide range of events for groups large and small, young and old.

🌱Walks, talks, workshops and discussions have explored peatland ecology, hydrology, birds, archaeology, biodiversity, writing, heritage and environmental decision-making, while bringing local knowledge, scientific research and community conversation together on the bog.

🌱Pictured here is peatland ecologist David Fallon during Deep Peat Bog Restoration Potential: Case Study Cornafulla Bog. David introduced people to sphagnum pools and the plants growing in and around them.

🌱The group also took part in a peat-depth measurement and learned how the probing equipment is used.

🌱The Bog Bothy programme continues until 9 August, and CMR’s work will continue beyond it through research, public engagement and regular opportunities to visit and learn about the bog.

🌱Full programme: https://www.cornafullamicroreserve.com/schedule.html

15/07/2026

A Community Wetlands Forum walk and talk with the Irish Peatland Conservation Council at the Bog of Allen Nature Centre will take place on

Wednesday, August 19th, 3pm - 5pm.

Community Wetlands Forum are delighted to invite CWF members and the general public to the Butterflies of Irish Wetlands walk and talk with the Irish Peatland Conservation Council.

During this walk we will talk about the various species of Irish butterflies that can be found in wetlands environments, and specifically the butterflies present at the Lullymore Bog and the larger Bog of Allen.

This will be an opportunity for the existing CWF members to meet, network, and learn about the great work of the IPCC on wetland butterfly conservation.

It will also be an opportunity for members of the general public to find out more about the work of the Community Wetlands Forum and the Irish Peatland Conservation Council.

Community Wetlands Forum’s mission is to promote, develop, and support community-led wetland conservation for the public benefit in Ireland, and to provide a representative platform for community-led wetland conservation groups. Our approach and values are based on the principles of community development (empowerment, participation, inclusion, self-determination, and partnership).

Community Wetlands Forum
Irish Peatland Conservation Council
Heritage Week

Link in bio

06/07/2026

🌱In the spotlight: Kilteevan Tidy Towns, Co. Roscommon (Community Wetlands Forum member)🌱
🌱Kilteevan Tidy Towns run a variety of village projects including biodiversity walks, talks and trails to raise awareness about the beautiful biodiversity of their area.
🌱They created the Cloonlarge Bog Loop walk, an example of a community-led transformation, turning a former peat-cutting area into a tranquil oasis of peace centered on biodiversity, art, and heritage.
🌱The trail features the Lilliput Way and a variety of unique sculptures including the sculpture of Gulliver.
🌱The award-winning walk is part of the Lough Ree Special Area of Conservation and is used to monitor rare species like the Marsh Fritillary butterfly and various moth species. 🌱The group have been recording local butterfly species for the past 10 years.
🌱They have also lobbied for a bog restoration project that is starting in their area.

For more information about Cloonlarge Loop and Lilliput Way please visit Kilteevan Tidy Towns page.

25/06/2026

The Inaugural Voice for Wetlands Award for Outstanding Contribution to Conservation of Ireland’s Wetlands was presented to Jim Ryan, Wetland ecologist and chair of the Community Wetlands Forum Technical Advisory Committee, by the Irish Ramsar Wetlands Committee at the Voices and Vision for Ireland’s Wetlands conference on Tuesday, June 23, hosted by the Irish Ramsar Wetlands Committee and Tóchar Midlands Wetland Restoration.

Congratulations Jim, well deserved!

The beautiful image of the Emerging Sundew was created by Irish nature photographer, Tina Claffey.

16/06/2026

🌾In the spotlight:
Shannon Town Community Wetlands (member of Community Wetlands Forum)🌾
Shannon Town Community Wetlands began when a committee came together from different organisations within the town of Shannon, including representatives from Shannon Tidy Towns, Dúchas na Sionna, Shannon Archaeological & Historical Society, Shannon Men's Shed and Club na Sionna.

🌾They work with a five-acre site within Shannon town that was identified as a wetland site in Clare County Council Green Infrastructure Plan for Shannon. This land was drained in the 1960s and 1970s and planted with Sitka spruce conifers to further drain it at that time.

🌾The group came together in 2016 with view to return the site to its former wetland status. With support from Clare County Council, LAWPRO, the Heritage Council, Shannon Municipal District and the Flags West fund they set about clearing the conifers from the interior of the site and identifying the lowest and therefore wettest area of the site.

🌾They created a network of four interconnected ponds, upgraded the perimeter path network and created two natural bunds to give access to the interior of the site. They used the logs from the felled conifers to create a seating area.

🌾Since 2021 they have been running Biodiversity Workshops for local schools during Biodiversity Week, Heritage Week and World Wetland Events each year.

🌾The group engage with local businesses through their CPR programmes and regularly welcome volunteers to help maintain the site.

🌾They are currently developing a management plan for the future of the Shannon Wetlands site and are focusing on ways to further develop their educational offerings.

🌾If you’d like to learn more about Shannon Town Community Wetlands please visit their Fb page and website.

🌾Community Wetlands Forum’s mission is to promote, develop, and support community-led wetland conservation for the public benefit and to provide a representative platform for community-led wetland conservation groups. For more information about CWF please visit our website.

10/06/2026

🌾In the Spotlight: ETHOS (Everything Tyrrellspass Has On Show)
In honour of World Peatlands Day that took place last week we will be highlighting some of the wonderful projects that the Community Wetlands Forum members are working on, including community-led projects focusing on rewetting bogs and restoring wetlands, creating walking trails for the local community, protecting biodiversity, offering nature education, and taking climate action.

🌾ETHOS (Everything Tyrrellspass Has On Show) are one of the 50+ community group members of the Community Wetlands Forum.

🌾CLONCROW BOG BOARDWALK: The boardwalk that the group created in Tyrrellspass, Co. Westmeath, is a unique, community-led bridge connecting a historic, planned village directly to an ancient, biodiversity-rich, and largely untouched raised bog.

🌾Installed by local volunteers in 2023, the 3.5 km loop trail—which includes the boardwalk over Cloncrow Bog—transforms a "vanishing" habitat into an accessible, educational, and ecological experience.

🌾Cloncrow Bog is an NHA that remained largely private and un-mechanised, offering a rare look at a 10,000-year-old habitat. The boardwalk allows walkers to traverse this "10-meter deep" wilderness without damaging it.

🌾It connects the bog directly to the heritage village of Tyrrellspass. It links the natural world with local history, starting at Tyrrellspass Castle and featuring educational QR codes along the route.

🌾The Boardwalk is the most used part of the Heritage Trail – serving as a popular walk for locals and an outdoor classroom for schools and ecologists.

🌾If you'd like to learn more about the voluntary work of ETHOS and their projects you can visit their website:
https://www.tyrrellspasstrail.ie/cloncrow-bog/

🌾For more about the Community Wetlands Forum, please visit our website, communitywetlandsforum.ie

Photographs courtesy of Eugene Dunbar

03/06/2026

June 2nd marks World Peatlands Day, a day when peatlands are celebrated globally. Peatlands are a remarkably important type of wetland ecosystems, where partially decomposed plant material accumulates over thousands of years.

Peatlands are havens for unique biodiversity and home to many of Ireland’s protected species including the Curlew.

Healthy peatlands are vital for biodiversity, water quality, and climate.

Did you know that peatlands are a vital long-term store for carbon?

Peatlands cover about 3% of the earth’s surface, but contain over 30% of the earth’s carbon.

They are massively important carbon sinks when in a healthy state.

We have a special relationship with peatlands in Ireland. The main types of
peatlands are bogs and fens.

Bogs are an ancient part of the landscape and have sustained communities for generations by providing a local source of fuel.

Given their importance from a climate and biodiversity perspective, now it is time for us to sustain them to ensure they continue to provide benefits for future generations.

Community Wetlands Forum is a network of community groups across Ireland, its goal is to promote, develop and support community-led wetland conservation for the public benefit in Ireland. We provide a representative platform for community-led wetland conservation groups.

If you would like to find out about benefits of CWF membership and to become a community group member or individual member please visit our website, link in bio.

Community Wetlands Forum

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