Greenbox Christmas Party and Awards

Party and Awards!

Date for your diary: Keep Thursday 13th December free, because we have our annual network Christmas Party coming up. This year we are starting early, to give people a chance to get away at a reasonable hour if they so decide. We are also presenting a range of Greenbox awards, the details of which are below. All in all it should be a great night.

Here’s all the details:
Venue: Blacklion golf club, Blacklion, Co. Cavan.
Cost: €30/£20 per head
Booking: is highly recommended, as the venue is limited in capacity. Book through the Greenbox office: info@greenbox ie, 071 9856898 or greenbox, park road industrial estate, Manorhamilton, Co. Leitrim.
Timeline:
4.00-4.30 National Certificate in Ecotourism class graduation
4.30-5.00 Starter Canapés, juice, tea/coffee and prosecco. (Ambience provided by a photo exhibition of winning pictures and jazz musicians)
5.00-6.30 Spectacular seasonal meal, with an emphasis on local, seasonal and organic food. Plenty of veggie options.
6.30-8.00 Greenbox awards: Leave No Trace awards, Greenbox photo competition, Greenbox people of the year!
8.00-late Music with highly acclaimed musicians…bring your dancing shoes!

Awards: because there were so many people to give awards to, we decided to compress them all into one awards ceremony night. The Ecotourism class are the second set of graduates from Ireland’s only national certificate in Ecotourism. Leave No Trace is an outdoor ethics code for the sensitive use the rural space; the Greenbox has recently facilitated the first formal training of a class of LNT trainers, who are now qualified to teach LNT to others. We have also been running a photography competition over the year, and the best 12 will be both on display and receiving their awards on the night. Finally, we are having our own awards for network members.

The categories for Greenbox people of the year are:
Most active member of the year
Most innovative member of the year
Most ecologically sound member of the year
Best website of the year
Best new member
Network’s choice: network member of the year

We want to hear your nominations for these categories. Send in your nominations by Friday 30th November at 5, by post phone or email. This latter award, network’s choice: network member of the year, is your chance to pick the person from the greenbox network who has done the most to interact with you, help you, inspire you, motivate you and so on. (Note: staff not included!) . The network’s vote will be what decides this category! Again, just send in your choice to info@greenbox.ie , ring 071 9856898 or post to Greenbox, Park Road Industrial Estate, Manorhamilton, Co. Leitrim. One entry only per person, and closing date for entries is Friday 30th November at 5pm

The Guardian

Another article featuring the Greenbox. See link below:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/travel/2007/sep/30/escape

"Keeping You Informed" Newsletter Publishes Article about Ireland Ecotours

Local entrepreneur Jerome O’Loughlin has recently launched his own tour company, Ireland Eco Tours which is part of the Greenbox initiative, offers visitors to the North West the chance to tour the area in an eye-catching green bus which runs on rapeseed oil, therefore producing 'carbon neutral' emissions which are re-absorbed by rape seed crops the following year. Jerome outlined his philosophy: "The concept for Ireland EcoTours emerged from years of wandering through the lake-strewn green landscape of Fermanagh and Leitrim. "I was born in this delicate land, I have a bond with it and I want to share it with like-minded souls who appreciate nature and who strive to preserve it for future generations". He said he wanted people to feel 'this untouched place' with its millennia of history, to love it as he does and to give while taking only the minimum during their visit here.

Jerome has spent the last three years working as a tour guide on independent tours all over Ireland, so he knows all the'must-see' destinations for visitors to the country. One tour which he is currently developing is one based around the recently extended Marble Arch Caves European Geopark. Although it is in the early stages of planning, Jerome is enthusiastic about this tour which he hopes will include some mountain biking in Lough Navar. Recently Jerome took out his first tour, a group of German journalists, around the Greenbox area, and he described the feedback as extremely positive. With his tentative first steps taken in business, Jerome is positive about the future. He knows he has unique idea and is keen to market it. "I am the only tour company offering a uniquely 'Eco' tour from start to finish", he stated.

As well as his bio-bus, Jerome has backed up his plans with his own credentials. He is a member of theGreenbox, and is well on his way to getting some of his tours certified by the group, he has obtained a National Certificate in Ecotourism and has recently qualified as a 'Leave No Trace trainer’. For Jerome he is delighted to be achieving his dream, and this is reinforced by the fact he is giving something back:
"The eco side of the project was always important. Absolutely. It was there when I started looking at this idea at the very start. It's what it's all about really."

While building up his tours, Jerome is realistic in his approach to
business and as such is making his minibus available to business and organisations in Fermanagh who may want to hire an environmentally friendly minibus and driver, a move which can help them meet their 'green' credentials.

Web Coverage for the Greenbox

Hi Everyone

Karen here. Three links below showing some web coverage that the Greenbox has received lately:

http://www.hippyshopper.com/2007/10/ecotourism_holi.html

http://canadiantravelgal.blogspot.com/2007/04/integrated-ecotourism-destination.html

http://kampala-search-engine-swicki.eurekster.com/Eco-Tourism

enviro-solutions

hello again guys
Ollie here. If you want to keep up with technology and developments in the green area, then the enviro-solutions website is a great place to start. Their mailouts are especially informative. Recently, I learned about eco-housing,
passive housing - is it the future in a climate change and peak oil senario? There's a seminar to discuss the topic coming up soon. This event, called 'See the Light 2007' is organised by Sustainable Energy Ireland's Renewable Energy Information Office (SEI REIO) - in association with the Royal Institute of the Architects of Ireland (RIAI)and will take place at The Ash Suite, Croke Park, Dublin on Wednesday 31 October, 2007.
(Note - some greenbox network members do have passive homes and rave about them - passive homes have almost no heating bills, due to their design). Click here for more
Their daily news page is always worth checking out - new green business schemes tend to feature heavily. Featured at the moment include the greening of a selection of hotels, and the casha nd environmental savings that ensued, Sustainable Energy Ireland (SEI)'s Incubator Programme for emerging green business opportunities in the sustainable energy sector, and more.....see here

what's on, events, courses and more

Hi guys, Ollie here. Today, I have a mixed bag of events for you'll to have a goo at: Tax, birds, art and business........

Art and health If you are popping along to the newly reopened Ard Nahoo, then you'll see the wonderful paintings of Monica Corish from this Saturday onwards.

A really useful business course in Leitrim for just €20:

Online Tax Returns
Thursday 25 October 2007
see here for more, or use the following web address:
http://www.improvethroughchange.com/events/8/

Also on Thursday 25th October:
RSPB Fermanagh Local Group – talk ‘Conservation Projects in Northern Ireland’ by James Robinson (Conservation Manager RSPB) Cathedral Hall, Enniskillen 7.30pm. Further details from Doreen Morrison On 028 6632 6654

Women in Business: Click here , or go to this site http://nwed.typepad.com/ for the national women's enterprise centre's upcoming national women's enterprise day in Mullingar in November.

ecotourism events: apples, organic living, web-marketing, walking and more

hi guys
here is a short selection of some interesting upcoming events:

walking festival in fermanagh: go!

apple day in the organic centre

a taste of organic living (contact WON for details)

ecoevents in the gyreum (also contact them directly re volunteering for sustainable landscaping

interested in web-marketing? maybe consider this: esymposium here