The 2023 Green Flag Awards were announced today by An Taisce Environmental Education, acknowledging Ireland’s best public parks and gardens.
The Green Flag Award for Parks was awarded to 101 parks, gardens, grounds and wildlife sanctuaries around the country. The award benchmarks excellence in the management of green spaces which are open free the public. 150 parks were awarded flags today around Europe, with Ireland leading the way.
The Green Flag Award is the international quality benchmark for the public green space sector – now operating in 17 countries around the world. Running for over 25 years, the programme uses eight key criteria headings, with an emphasis on environmental management, for assessments. Both a management framework for each site and an annual condition inspection is conducted through a network of qualified judges.
Emlyn Cullen – Programme Manager for An Taisce Environmental Education Unit, who run the Award in Ireland said:
“The continued success of the Green Flag Award is due to the love staff members have for their green spaces, and the hard work they put in to maintaining them. They do a phenomenal job every day making their parks and gardens beautiful, safe spaces for the public to enjoy.”
Pollinator Award
Three of the 2023 applicants were given a special award for their work supporting pollinating insects. The Pollinator Award is jointly run by An Taisce Environmental Education and the National Biodiversity Data Centre, assessing pollinator-friendly management of parks and community spaces against the recommendations of the All-Ireland Pollinator Plan, which is implemented by the Data Centre. This year Green Flag Pollinator Awards went to:
Tralee Bay Wetlands Eco & Activity Park, Co. Kerry (Overall winner and best Town Park)
Castletown House & Parklands, Co. Kildare (Best Country Park/ Demesne)
Ballyglunin Station, Co. Galway (Best Community Garden)
Three further parks were highly commended for their work: Tymon Park in South Dublin, Ballycroy Visitor Centre, Wild Nephin National Park in Co. Mayo, and St. Anne’s Park in Dublin City.
Kate Chandler, Community and Engagement Officer for the All-Ireland Pollinator Plan, said: “We’re so thrilled to see the extensive work taking place for pollinators in this year’s Green Flag Pollinator Award. The winners and highly commended parks are shining examples of how these important green spaces can be managed for the benefit of pollinators and people. We’d like to thank all the applicants for leading the way with their inspiring work and look forward to seeing how it develops in the future.”
Find out more:
An Taisce Green Flag for parks homepage