Aedín has a scientific background with a Ph.D. in Cancer Research. She also has Diplomas in Education, Community Development and Peacebuilding, Lifelong Learning and Facilitation, and a certificate in EcoTourism. She was a Science and Biology teacher for many years while raising her family of four children, then decided to go out on her own. As a consultant, she has been engaged as Project Coordinator and Development Officer for many projects, mainly cross-border, funded by EU Programmes, including HORIZON, PEACE and INTERREG. She also has been commissioned by Government Departments and statutory organisations as a researcher, project design officer and expert report writer.
Aedín has extensive experience in the Community and Voluntary Sector in Ireland and Northern Ireland dealing with community development, people empowerment and reconciliation. In 2012, she became a founder member and Director of 1GEAI, and in 2018 took up the position of CEO.
Aedín heads up and is spokesperson for the GEAI team responsible for the strategic planning of GEAI projects and activities, for sourcing and applying for funding, and for supervising the work of our ESC volunteers. She lives in Ballinaglera and is hugely interested in all local activities as well as being a Nana to her 10 grandchildren!

 

• Involved with Green issues since the early eighties.
• Previously worked with International, Danish and my own companies in Ireland.
• Member of the Marketing institute of Ireland
• Communication Director roles
• Past president of Les Centres Nautique des Glenans, Eco Tourism Bases
• Member of CII Environmental committee
• Friends of the Earth member
• Leitrim Tourism Network strategist
• Founder of Leitrim Environmental Network
• Involved with Green politics and activism

 I retired to Ireland from the UK in 2002 at the end of a long career in healthcare.

 

• Facilitator trainer, project and programme management with a specialist organisational development role around change management; participatory research and planning; multi-stakeholder consultation and needs based assessments; institutional development and capacity buildfing; strategy and policy development; policy analysis; public speaking and troubleshooting.
• BA LLB – University of KwaZulu Natal, Pietermaritzburg, South Africa (1985-9) Hill sheep farmer in Dromard, County Sligo (sheep, ponies and bees)
• 2019 Farming for Nature Ambassador https://youtu.be/D9GBYqj0uZk
• 2021 Project Manager “Talamh Beo Soil Biodiversity Literacy and Enhancement EIP”

Areas of Focus: Differing forms of land use, tenure and management, in particular communal property regimes; land use and natural resource management; land use change, ecosystems approach to agriculture (agroecology / regenerative agriculture); ecosystem services; climate change in agriculture; sustainability and rural development; forestry and sustainability.

I bring a dedicated focus on Women, and a ground-based approach using direct / lived experience and acquired knowledge to research, the development of policy and implementation frameworks relating to land use, tenure, institutional arrangements and governance / management.

 

This is Tony’s second placement with GEAI, having taken part in an earlier Tus contract.

Tony has experience in office administration from both the public and private sector as well as previously running his own business. Tony also has an interest in environmental matters especially those in the area of renewable power generation.