Tánaiste announces €1 million in funding for 35 cross-border projects under the Shared Island Initiative

The Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs, Micheál Martin TD, today announced a list of organisations awarded funding from the Department of Foreign Affairs Shared Island Civic Society Fund.

Selected from across the civic society sector, north and south, 35 projects were granted funding. Each of these projects have a strong cross border dimension and will facilitate the development of new links and strengthen existing relationships on issues of common concern for civic society groups on both sides of the border.

Announcing the grants, the Tánaiste said:

“I am delighted to announce funding for 35 new projects, amounting to €1 million. These projects are in a broad range of sectors and themes, including in the areas of climate and the environment, community development, heritage, social enterprise, charitable and voluntary work, and sports.

“I established the Shared Island Initiative in 2020 with a positive vision for the future of our island – a vision of a more confident, inclusive, and prosperous island for everyone, North and South.

“The Shared Island Civic Society Fund promotes practical cooperation and interaction in civic society on this island. This latest round of grants will promote North South cooperation and enhance cross-border civic, economic, cultural, and community links across the island.”

The Tánaiste also spoke of the Department of Foreign Affairs’ plans for future funding calls under the Shared Island Civic Society Fund:

“There has been huge interest in the fund, following its launch last year, which clearly illustrates there is a real and growing appetite across the island for increased cross-border cooperation. People and communities are reaching out to each other, identifying areas of common interest, and agreeing ways to work together to address joint concerns.

“This is the essence of the Shared Island Initiative. Communities working together for the betterment of the island for everyone who calls this place home. And we can do more.

“I am pleased to confirm that we will be making increased levels of support available through the Shared Island Civic Society Fund in a further round that will open for applications in the coming months.”

ENDS

Notes to Editors:

- The Shared Island Civic Society Fund is a €3 million initiative, which promotes practical North South cooperation and engagement, across a range of sectors and themes, consistent with the objectives and commitments of the Good Friday Agreement. The Shared Island Civic Society Fund is part of the Government’s Shared Island initiative and supported through the Shared Island Fund.

- Further information on the Shared Island Civic Society Fund is available at: Shared Island Civic Society Fund

- A full list of organisations supported in this round of the Fund is below.

Applicant	Partner	Project title	Amount
Accidental Theatre	Smock Alley Theatre	Shared Cultures Across Borders	€50,000
All Ireland Institute of Hospice and Palliative Care	Foyle Hospice	Compassionate Communities in Palliative and End of Life Care – Inaugural in person island of Ireland community-centred conference	€26,698
Association of Irish Local Government (AILG)	Northern Ireland Local Government Association (NILGA)	Importance of Leadership at Local Level and Civility In Public Life	€15,000
Centre for Democracy and Peace Building	IMMA	Arts and Culture Collaboration Lab	€15,250
Common Purpose Ireland	Common Purpose Charitable Trust	All-Island Legacy	€49,994
Compass Advocacy Network Ltd (CAN)	Ability West	Best Buddies Beyond Borders	€9,000
Cooley Connect Well	Yellow Road Wellbeing Centre and Social Farm	Growing Social Garden for Nature /Gardening South Gardening North	€14,500
Co-operation Ireland	N/A	Connecting for Change: Promoting Sustainable Community Engagement on an All-Island Basis	€21,485
County Donegal Railway Restoration CLG	North West Learning Disability Centre	Railway Connections	€8,100
Create	ArtsEkta	Intercultural Dialogues	€25,000
Development Trusts NI	Carmichael Centre for Voluntary Groups	Community: Enterprise, Ownership, Wealth Building & Well-Being in Ireland (North & South)	€50,000
Falls Community Council	Youth Work Ireland	Civic Visions: Inspiring North-South Cooperation	€28,508
Falls Women's Centre	Ronanstown Women’s Community	Constitutional Challenges: A Voice for Grassroots Women (pilot project)	€9,663
Feasta	North West Play Resource Centre T/A The Playhouse	Cultural Creatives - Transformation Catalysts for a Well-being Economy	€25,000
Football Association of Ireland	NI Football League	2024 All-Island Cup	€50,000
Girl's Allowed	Belturbet Hens' Shed	Women on the Border	€10,000
Humanist Association of Ireland	Northern Ireland Humanists	Shared Island Humanist Conference	€9,000
Inishowen Development Partnership	The Rural Area Partnership in Derry	Networking Community Collaboration for Environmental Stewardship	€24,000
Irish Association for Cultural, Economic and Social Relations	N/A	A Vision for the Future of North South Cooperation?	€30,000
Irish Youth Opera (t/a Opera Collective Ireland)	Newry Chamber Music	The Walk from the Garden by Jonathan Dove- A Church Opera in One Act	€42,800
Lifestyle Development Group CLG	Rural Health Partnership	Shared Roots and Routes	€31,075
Meitheal an Iarthair	Dún Uladh	Ceol na nÓg Folk Orchestra	€9,990
Mother Tongues	ArtsEkta	Exchanging Intercultural Practices: A journey for change	€25,000
National Forum of Family Resource Centres	National Forum of Family Resource Centres	Healthy Living Centre Alliance	€31,050
Northern Ireland Union of Supported Employment	Kare	Mind the Gap - Employment Gap of Disabled People on the Island of Ireland	€48,550
Portlaoise Family Resource Centre	Colin Neighbourhood Partnership	Stepping Stones to Resillience	€44,900
Redemptorist Community	Scala	Justice and Peace Animators	€15,250
Royal British Legion ROI District	Royal British Legion NI District	The RBL 'Battle of Somme' Ceremony	€6,000
Social Enterprise Republic of Ireland (SERI)	Social Enterprise NI	Capacity Building for Income Generation (C-BIG)	€25,000
St. Patrick’s Festival	Belfast Summer School of traditional music t/a Belfast TradFest Belfast – Dublin	St. Patrick’s Festival Partnership	€50,000
The John Hewitt Society	Irish PEN	Freedom to write	€33,240
The Nerve Centre	Spraoi Agus Sport	Film Skills NW	€47,950
The Wheel	NICVA	iCommunity Amplifying Youth Voices and New Partnerships for a Shared Future	€49,886
Trinity College Dublin	Queens University	Shared Island Innovation Challenge	€25,000
University College Dublin	Queens University	A Shared Island Forum for Nurturing Secure Climate Futures through Cybersecurity and Environmental Resilience Education	€25,000