The Galway Volunteer Centre and the Mayo Volunteer Bureau will receive funding as part of a national allocation from the Department of Rural and Community Development of €3.5 million.

Galway West TD Seán Kyne today confirmed the funding from his Department to support volunteer centres in 21 counties as well as a number of national organisations such as Volunteer Ireland and the Young Social Innovators.

He commented that volunteering positively impacts every community across every city and county in Ireland with people contributing on a regular basis in all sorts of ways.

“The funding from my Department under the Supports for the Community Voluntary Programme is designed to strengthen and foster volunteerism in Ireland with a support structure that develops volunteering locally.

“At a local level the volunteer centres, such as Galway Volunteer Centre and the Mayo Volunteer Bureau, play an essential role in facilitating volunteering by publicising opportunities and providing information and advice to volunteers and organisations. I’m pleased to be able to approve €2.68 million to support the network of volunteer centres across the country.

“I am also pleased to be able to approve an increase allocation of core funding for Volunteer Ireland up €33,800 to €351,800. Volunteer Ireland provides a number of important supports to volunteer centres including the I-VOL national volunteering database. A further €100,000 is being allocated to support the Volunteer Information Services which operates in counties not currently served by volunteer centres, said the Fine Gael TD.

Could you go plastic-free?

High profile Galweigans are taking on the challenge of living ‘plastic free’ for a week, as part of Plastic Free Week starting on 5 February in Galway City.

Participants include Mayor of Galway City Pearce Flannery; Jake Heenan, Flanker for Connacht Rugby; JP McMahon, of Michelin-star restaurant Aniar; Hannah Kiely, Chief Executive of Galway2020; Dr Peter Heffernan, Chief Executive of the Marine Institute; and a number of well-known faces from the cast of Ros na Rún, among others.

NUI Galway, Galway Mayo Institute of Technology and schools across the city will also participate in the initiative, which aims to reduce the use of single-use, disposable plastic products, through action, education and example.

Easy tips to reduce plastic include switching to reusable bags, takeaway cups and water bottles; carrying a ‘spork’ instead of using disposable cutlery; and ditching plastic straws.

Speaking about the initiative, Mayor Pearce Flannery said, “Plastic is a very flexible and useful material that plays many important roles in our lives.

“However plastic is causing unprecedented environmental problems due the sheer volumes we use, some of which is unnecessary. Participants in Plastic Free Week in Galway are acting to change this situation, by challenging how we use plastic, and finding alternatives where they exist.

“I would like to commend all participants for raising awareness of this very significant issue.”

Schools, businesses and other organisations are invited to participate in the week, by encouraging their community to reduce their plastic use, and by sharing their experiences using the tags #plasticfreeforaweek #plasticfreegalway and @galwaygreenleaf.

The Plastic Free Week poster is available from Galway City Council, contact 091 536 400.

Also participating in Plastic Free Week are Mayor Anna Tenje, of Vaxjo, Sweden, and Mayor Carlos Manuel Antunes Bernardes, Torres Vedras, Portugal.

Torres Vedras was the first European Green Leaf city in 2015, and Vaxjo are the 2018 European Green Leaf city.

(Photo-  Aengus McMahon)

Two researchers at the School of Psychology at NUI Galway have received prestigious awards for their areas of research.

Dr Elaine Toomey and Dr David Mothersill received the awards from the Irish Canadian University Foundation and the Royal Irish Academy.

Dr David Mothersill received the ‘Royal Irish Academy Charlemont Grant’ for his research in Cognitive Neuroscience, as part of the Centre for Neuroimaging and Cognitive Genomics (NICOG) led by Professor Gary Donohoe.

Dr Elaine Toomey from the Health Behaviour Change Research Group, led by Professor Molly Byrne, received the ‘Irish Canadian University Foundation James M Flaherty Early Career Researcher Award’.

Dr Toomey received the award to conduct further research on the adaptation of ‘Football Fans in Training’ (FFIT), an effective health behaviour change intervention that used Scottish professional football clubs to engage with overweight and obese men.

The ‘Hockey Fit’ intervention was recently developed by Dr Rob Petrella and Dr Dawn Gill in Western University, Ontario to adapt the FFIT project to ice-hockey, within a Canadian context.

Dr Toomey’s award will enable her to visit Western University and explore the Canadian ‘Hockey Fit’ intervention with a specific focus on how FFIT components were adapted to suit a different sporting and cultural context, and inform how this might be used in an Irish context.

Speaking about her award, Dr Elaine Toomey said: “I am delighted and incredibly honoured to receive this award. As well as facilitating my own learning and development, this award will enable me to establish new collaborations between the Health Behaviour Change Research Group at NUI Galway and researchers from Western University, as well as strengthening existing relationships between our group and Ottawa Hospital Research Institute. It will also enable Canadian expertise in obesity research and knowledge translation to be disseminated to an Irish audience.”

Dr Mothersill received the award for research where he is currently developing a novel computerised test to examine social cognition in individuals with schizophrenia that will be useful in predicting real world social skills.

Social cognition refers to the ability to understand the perspectives and emotions of other people. Deficits in social cognition are a core feature of people with schizophrenia.

However, current tests designed to examine social cognition are limited by unrealistic stimuli and dependence upon an examiner.

Dr Mothersill’s award will allow him to take the computerised test he is developing and bring it to Queen’s University in Kingston, Ontario, where he will receive expert feedback from Professor Christopher Bowie, a leading expert in assessment and treatment of cognitive deficits in schizophrenia.

On receiving his award, Dr David Mothersill at NUI Galway, said: “I am delighted to receive this Charlemont Award. It provides me with an excellent opportunity to travel to Queen’s University, Ontario, and collaborate with one of the leading experts in assessment and treatment of cognitive deficits in schizophrenia, Professor Chris Bowie. This project will also strengthen existing collaborative ties between the Centre for Neuroimaging and Cognitive Genomics at NUI Galway and the Cognition in Psychological Disorders Lab in Canada.”

23million euro has been allocated for regional and local roads in Galway, it has been announced.

The announcement today by Hildegrade Naughton TD and Transport Minister Shane Ross TD is part of the 2018 regional and local roads grant allocation.

Delighted to welcome a significant increase in funding this year for regional and local roads in Galway. €23 million announced today as part of 2018 regional and local roads grant allocation. pic.twitter.com/Dba6DCFnpU

— Hildegarde Naughton (@1Hildegarde) January 29, 2018

Shane Ross TD said that the increase in funding had a safety focus in some areas, including the L2119 Bawnmore realignment in the County.

The Transport Minister said: “I am especially pleased that the 2018 grant allocations include important initiatives in the area of Community Involvement Schemes and Drainage.

“While local authorities were able to use general grants for such schemes in recent years, this year ring-fenced funding is being provided.

“These are two areas where I have very much wanted to take action and I am very glad to be able to do so this year. There needs to be an increased focus on measures to improve the resilience of the road network in the face of climate change.”

Gardaí have used social media to appeal to the public to help them identify a body which was found in September 2014 in Barna.

In a Facebook post this morning, Gardaí posted pictures of the man (with facial reconstruction) and his belongings, and gave a detailed description.

“Gardaí at Salthill are appealing for your assistance in identifying the body of a man found in Rusheen Bay Woods, Barna, Co. Galway on the 27th September 2014.

“Rusheen Bay is a coastal area adjoining Galway Bay on the West Coast of Ireland. Gardaí are nottreating the death as suspicious.

“The movements of the deceased prior to his discovery are unknown to Gardaí. However, the deceased may have travelled within Ireland and may have stayed in rented accommodation, B&B’s, Hotels, Hostels etc. He may have left personal belongings behind him in his temporary accommodation,” the Facebook post read.

They gave the following is a description of the deceased: male, approximately 43 – 48 years’ old, dark hair colour, 6ft, broad/strong build, with a distinctive gap between upper front teeth.

The post continued: “(1) Gardaí are now seeking the assistance of the public including the tourism industries i.e. proprietors of Hotels, B&B’s, Hostels, tour companies, coffee shops etc., together with private landlords, in identifying the deceased and in tracing the movements of the deceased from June 2014 to September 2014.

“(2) Gardaí are seeking the assistance of the general public in identifying the deceased.

“(3) Gardaí are appealing to the public who have family and friends living in the UK, USA and Canada to circulate the facial reconstructed image of the deceased via social media platforms.

“Anyone with information in relation to the deceased is asked to contact Salthill Garda Station on 091 514720 or the Confidential Garda Line on 1800 666 111.”

Midlands North-West MEP Matt Carthy has said the Fine Gael Government has effectively abandoned rural Ireland, and in particular, western counties.

The Sinn Féin MEP demanded an end to the closure of vital services in rural towns and villages, saying that rural Ireland must be made a sustainable place to live and work and that this required a fundamental change in Government policy.

Speaking at the meeting at Maam Cross in Co. Galway, which was also addressed by Sinn Féin’s Galway West representative, Cllr Mairéad Farrell,  he said that rural Ireland is under attack as never before.

“Rural schools, Garda stations and post offices have been closed at an alarming rate.

“Meanwhile small and medium business have been starved of credit and neglected by the Government so that many rural towns are simply dying on their feet.

“Successive governments have made living in rural Ireland more difficult. They have cut rural transport programmes, raised costs for private car users and inflicted cuts on Bus Éireann and Iarnród Éireann.

“There is now a major threat to 800 more post office branches across the state. This cannot continue,” commented Matt Carthy.

Calling for a fundamental rethink of government policy, Carthy said all parties had to recognise the need for significant investment in rural counties:

“Crucially, this means thinking big for rural Ireland and for the West. There is no reason why parts of many rural counties haven’t got decent broadband, no prospect for international investment or why so many young people continue to leave home in order to get jobs.

“There is no reason other than the fact that Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael governments haven’t and won’t invest adequately in the infrastructure and services we need.

“Sinn Féin has a vision for the west of Ireland Ireland. A vision to make it a sustainable place to live and work. A place where the quality of life is matched by the quality of public services.

“This includes a policy commitment to keep rural post offices, libraries and Garda stations open and to maintain services that connect people with their local towns.

“The West needs to become a place where young educated graduates have the opportunity to stay and build their future and a place that welcomes back emigrants including those forced to leave over recent years.

“Unfortunately, Government policy continues to prioritise the east coast. But there is no economic justification for this – all of Ireland would benefit from balanced regional development.

Sinn Féin believes that fair recovery must mean a balanced recovery – it must mean a recovery in the West,” he added.

CÚRAM, the Science Foundation Ireland Centre for Research in Medical Devices based in Galway, has formalised an agreement to collaborate with with representatives  at the Korea Institute of Industrial Technology (KITECH).

The NUI Galway based centre will now cooperate with the Biomedical Manufacturing Technology Centre (BMTC) at KITECH.

The joint Memorandum of Understanding will see KITECH and CÚRAM establish a programme to jointly organise conferences and workshops on topics of mutual interest and to exchange faculty and students for limited periods of time for the purpose of education and research.

Commenting on the agreement, Professor Abhay Pandit, Scientific Director of CÚRAM at NUI Galway, said: “Both organisations have significant mutual interests that include advanced material research, biomedical technology and the development of efficient manufacturing processes for tissue applications, chronic wound management applications and therapeutics for various diseases.

“I’m delighted to have progressed this relationship and look forward to the benefits of sharing expertise and training opportunities for our researchers.”

It is expected that the first researchers from KITECH will visit Ireland and CÚRAM in mid-2018.

The agreement provides an excellent forum to create and develop synergistic academic projects that will benefit both countries.

According to Dr Woo Jong Lee, head of the Biomedical Manufacturing Technology Centre, Ireland will be an excellent partner and gateway for the Korean team to the EU market.

“We at KITECH and BMTC, are delighted to be able to establish this collaborative partnership with CÚRAM, a world leading biomedical research centre, based on the Memorandum of Understanding signed in December 2017. We believe this Agreement will be a cornerstone for establishing collaborative relationships in the future between the biomedical ecosystems of our two countries,” he said.

Iarnród Éireann has advised customers that bus transfers will be in operation on the Limerick to Galway service for the coming weeks.

The bus transfers will be in place between Limerick and Ennis from tomorrow, Saturday 27th, until further notice, with the train service continuing from Ennis to Galway.

The change to the schedule is due to flooding at Ballycar, an area which has seen a number of significant flood events in recent years.

The bus transfers are expected to continue for a number of weeks.

Sixmilebridge Station will have bus transfers to/from Limerick and Ennis, but at a reduced frequency.

Hi, all services from Saturday 27th will be affected until further notice.

— Iarnród Éireann (@IrishRail) January 26, 2018

Iarnród Éireann said it will monitor flood levels which are continuing to rise, and advise customers on likely service restoration dates when flood levels begin to recede.

They apologised for the inconvenience caused.

Employers in Ireland are being urged to implement clear and effective policies on workplace ill-treatment.

A new survey, led by the Health Promotion Research Centre at NUI Galway, reveals the scale of the issue for the first time in Ireland.

The survey reveals that more than two in five people say they have experienced a form of ill-treatment at work, while one in 12 have experienced and/or witnessed physical violence – despite most organisations having policies in place to prevent it.

The survey of 1,500 people, interviewed in their own homes, is the first study of its kind in Ireland and found that:

43% of respondents reported having experienced ill-treatment, while 47% said they had witnessed it and 17% stated they had perpetrated it.

37% reported having experienced unreasonable management, 42% stated they had witnessed it and 14% stated they had perpetrated it.

3% reported having experienced incivility or disrespect, 38% said they had witnessed it and 9.5% stated they had perpetrated it.

6% reported having experienced physical violence, 5% said they had witnessed it and 0.5% stated they had perpetrated it.

New guidance has now been produced by IOSH to help employers ensure their staff do not suffer the effects of ill-treatment.

IOSH Vice-President Louise Hosking said: “It is alarming to see the amount of people who felt there was nothing to be done, even if they reported an issue. Everyone has the right to be respected at work. Any form of ill-treatment is completely unacceptable.

“It can have a huge impact on an individual and the team around them, causing stress and tension which ultimately has an effect on the business as a whole. Ill-treatment at work is linked to physical and mental health issues, which in turn affects the decisions people make and increases risks to themselves and those around them. Together with the guide, we hope we can support businesses to create healthy work environments in which their people can feel supported and the business can in turn thrive.”

The survey also revealed that:

Public sector employees are five times more likely to experience violence than employees in other sectors.

Women are significantly more likely to experience ill-treatment on two or more occasions per day, with the perpetrator often being another woman.

There is a correlation between ethnicity and ill treatment: workers of black, mixed or Asian ethnicity have the highest levels of experiencing and/or witnessing violence; Asian workers are seven times more likely to experience violence at work than white workers; ill-treatment of black and Asian workers is usually perpetrated by individuals of the same ethnicity.

Some workers believe reporting an issue would not help and could even worsen their situation. They believed middle managers were either unable or unwilling to act on complaints, or that policies were too complicated.

Dr Margaret Hodgins, lead researcher of the survey from the Health Promotion Research Centre at NUI Galway, said: “This research is extremely important to Ireland.

“The Health and Safety Authority has previously conducted research into bullying in Ireland (bullying is defined as repeated inappropriate behaviour, which a reasonable person would regard as undermining an individual’s right to respect and dignity at work).

“However, the Irish Workplace Behaviour Survey goes much further, looking at the prevalence of unreasonable management, incivility or disrespect and violence and aggression.”