2022

Limerick Comhairle na nÓg’s theme for 2022 is Sexism and Consent.

2021

Limerick  Comhairle na nÓg were working on Gender Equality, including LGBTQ+ awareness, in 2021. In March 2022 they will be launching their videos on their LGBTQI+ work and are due to reveal their new mural.

European Youth Event 2021
8 members attended the Europe Youth Event in Strasbourg, France in October where they talked about their work in Limerick and participated in workshops on a wide range of topics including climate change, gender equality, voting, and the future of Europe. They also had fun at the many cultural events that were organised

Irish Heart Foundation
Aoife Ni Riain, the Limerick National Executive Officer for 20-21, was a key note speaker at the Irish Heart Foundation National Conference. She spoke about their work on Not Around Us, the WHO award (more on this below) and support for the Tobacco 21 mandate – which seeks to bring the legal age for tobacco purchase in Ireland up to 21

WHO Award for Limerick Comhairle na nÓg

Limerick Comhairle na nÓg have been awarded a Gold Medal by the World Health Organisation as part of the year’s World No Tobacco Day Awards, for their participation in #NotAroundUs, a campaign that promotes no-smoking around young people. The prestigious award is recognition of the youth council’s involvement in developing the #NotAroundUs campaign with Healthy Limerick, the HSE and Limerick City & County Council, which aims to create a tobacco free generation and make it is easier for those who smoke to quit by making public areas smoke-free zones. The Minister for Health, Simon Harris TD has led the praise for Limerick Comhairle na nÓg saying ‘it is so encouraging to see young people playing such an active role in the development of the #NotAroundUs campaign


What they’ve been up to during lockdown:

Quarantine Diaries: Limerick Comhairle na nÓg have released a series of videos that promote some positive ways to stay active and healthy during the current Covid-19 restrictions. the short videos feature Comhairlí sharing their experiences of building jigsaws, baking, cooking and more via Instagram  – click here to watch.

The group are trying to organise an Eco-UNESCO workshop for European Greenleaf. They had planned to do it differently before Covid-19, but looking at doing it virtually now

Previous Topics:

Limerick  Comhairle na nÓg number one topic for 2021 was Mental Health.

In 2019, Limerick Comhairle na nÓg worked on the theme of ‘Youth Homelessness in Limerick’, focusing on three objectives across 12 months:

1. To educate themselves on the services available in Limerick & what they do.
2. To deliver a meaningful activity for Homeless Young People
3. To raise awareness and funds

They achieved all of the above, linking in with Tusla, Limerick City & County Council, HSE, Novas & The Simon Community. They ran a 3 day summer camp for homeless young people (aged 6 to 12) in August 2019 which was attended by 21 children. They ran a fundraiser in December for Novas.

2019 AGM Review:

Please… Not Around Us! Limerick  Comhairle na nÓg is currently involved in this initiative, lead by Limerick City and County Council, in partnership with a range of other stakeholders – HSE,  Limerick Children and Young People’s Services Committee, Limerick Childcare Committee, Healthy Ireland and ASH Ireland, Council of the Irish Heart Foundation.

The campaign was launched by Limerick City and County Council and Healthy Limerick to promote a Tobacco-Free society and encourage those who smoke to get help to quit. Launched to coincide with World No Tobacco Day on Fri 31 May, Not Around Us is about promoting an environment where it is easier for those who smoke to quit and remain smoke free and helping to de-normalise smoking for the next generation.

The purpose of Not Around Us is to:
• Help protect children and young people from second hand smoke exposure
• Contribute to the denormalisation of smoking for children and young people
• Reduce environmental nuisance, cost of cleaning and damage that discarded tobacco products create
• Signpost the HSE Quit services

2018:

Limerick Comhairle have been working on the topic of Cyber Education since 2018, with a particular focus on the four areas below:

  • How to protect yourself online
  • Social Media Education
  • Cyber bullying Prevention
  • The positive aspects of social media

Here are the four areas they hope to progress under that in 2018:

  • Workshops in schools, a Comhairle Roadshow (How to protect yourself online – learn about what’s out there first)
  • Video about safety when social networking (Social Media Education/ Cyber Bullying)
  • Comhairle running information nights with students & parents (Social Media Education)
  • Work with other young people to deliver workshops (Social Media Education)

Previous topics: 

Limerick Comhairle focused on the topic of Politics and Civic Engagement in 2017, working in partnership with the Politics Department in University of Limerick. We want to encourage civic engagement in young people and to find out why so many young people lack interest in politics: statistics show very low engagement in the 18-25 year old age bracket when it comes to voting.

In early 2017, three young people from our Comhairle , Megan McMahon, Christopher Cummins, and Keith Allen, visited Boden, in North Sweden as part of an Eramus+ programme called ‘The Key.’ Young people from Sweden, Malta and Ireland were all involved in a week-long programme centered on entrepreneurship and creativity – all in snowy, -15 degree surroundings just outside the Arctic Circle.

Limerick Comhairle’s primary topic for 2016-17 was the Education System. We developed facilitated sessions on this theme and worked with the ETB in addressing a project on Restorative Practice in the classroom.

Limerick Comhairle completed work on the topic of mental health in 2015, with a specific focus on mental health issues facing young people living in Direct Provision, and those who are homeless. In relation to this, they examined the living conditions of those living in Direct Provision, and those experiencing homelessness.

Here is our video from our AGM 2015, which also incorporated our #LetsGoMental2015 event – to read more click here:

Limerick City and Limerick County Comhairle were operating as two separate Comhairle until the Local Authority merger in 2014, and up to this point were working on separate topics.

Limerick City Comhairle completed a mental health resource booklet, Promoting Mental Health in Limerick City: A guide for young people by young people, which was launched at a special event in the city. The Comhairle worked closely with the creative learning charity Bluebox, running a number of workshops around understanding mental health, and the influencing factors which can contribute to either positive or negative mental health.

In 2014 we worked on the topic of Cyber-bullying. We wrote and recorded an original song titled Rock Me to raise awareness of the topic. We held an awareness night for parents to educate them about the issue. Forensic psychologist and University College Cork associate lecturer Dr Maureen Griffin spoke at the event on social networking and internet safety.

In 2013 Limerick County Comhairle set out to raise awareness around sexual education in schools across the county. We carried out a campaign in which wristbands were sold to raise awareness around the importance of talking about sexual health. The slogan on the wristband was ‘Let’s Talk about Sex’. As a result of surveys carried out in local secondary schools, a report was carried out and presented to the Regional SPHE Manager Brian Murray.