Ireland's major environment conference
THURSDAY 9 OCTOBER 2025 ∙ CROKE PARK, DUBLIN
Organised by
Sponsored by
PROGRAMME
Conference programme
THURSDAY 9 OCTOBER
08:15 AM
Registration, exhibition viewing and morning coffee
Environmental policy
09:00 – 11:00 AM
Chair
Kevin O’Sullivan, Environment and Science Editor, The Irish Times
Ministerial address
Darragh O’Brien TD, Minister for Climate, Energy and the Environment (Invited)
Northern Ireland environmental policies
Senior Representative, Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs
Towards zero pollution for air, water and soil
Veronica Manfredi, Director, Zero Pollution, Water Resilience & Green Urban Transition, DG Environment, European Commission
Evidence, scrutiny and accountability in protecting the environment
Professor Robbie McDonald, Chief Scientist and Chief Insights Officer, The Office for Environmental Protection, UK
Questions and answers / panel discussion
11:00 – 11:30 AM
Networking coffee break and exhibition viewing
Parallel session: Climate
11:30 AM – 01:15 PM
Chair
Cara Augustenborg, Assistant Professor, Environmental Policy, University College Dublin (Invited)
Making the transition to a climate neutral economy
Barry Quinlan, Assistant Secretary, Head of Climate and Environment Policy, Department of Climate, Energy and the Environment
Legal action for climate change
Danielle Conaghan, Partner and Head of the Environment and Planning Group, Arthur Cox
Delivering a just transition for Ireland
Ali Sheridan, Chair, Just Transition Commission
The impact of climate change on peatlands
Professor Gill Plunkett, School of Natural and Built Environment, Queen’s University Belfast
Perceptions of climate change and policy in Ireland
Lucie Martin, Research Officer, Behavioural Research Unit, Economic & Social Research Institute (ESRI)
Questions and answers / panel discussion
Parallel session: Sustainability and ESG
11:30 AM – 01:15 PM
Chair
Kevin O’Sullivan, Environment and Science Editor, The Irish Times
Common data space and digital twins for Ireland
Venkatesh Kannan, Associate Director, Irish Centre of High-End Computing (ICHEC)
Developing sustainable supply chains
Laura Morrison, Head of Responsible Business, Business In The Community Ireland
Delivering a sustainable energy future
Sharon McManus, Group Head of Sustainability, ESB (Invited)
Questions and answers / panel discussion
Parallel session:
Biodiversity
11:30 AM – 01:15 PM
Chair
To be confirmed
European biodiversity policy
Evelyn Underwood, Head of Programme, Biodiversity and Ecosystems, Institute for European Environmental Policy (IEEP) (Invited)
Addressing Ireland’s biodiversity crisis
Professor Jane Stout, Vice President for Biodiversity and Climate Action, Trinty College Dublin
Protecting nature: the cornerstone of safeguarding against biodiversity loss
Ciara Cabery, Director, National Parks and Wildlife Service (Invited)
Empowering communities to take action in ecological restoration
Maura Brennan, CEO, Acorn Project
Questions and answers / panel discussion
01:15 – 02:00 PM
Networking lunch and exhibition viewing
Parallel session:
Circular economy and resource management
02:00 - 04:00 PM
Chair
Claire Downey, Chief Executive Officer, The Rediscovery Centre
Packaging waste in a circular economy
Tom Gaynor, Chief Operations Officer, REPAK
Developing a circular economy for Northern Ireland
Heidi Redmond, Circular Economy Adviser, Strategic Investment Board
Delivering on circularity’s transformational potential
Geraldine Brennan, Director of Circular Economy Innovation, IMR and CIRCULÉIRE
Implementing a circular economy strategy
Mark Coyne, Global Sustainability Lead, Kerry Group (Invited)
Questions and answers / panel discussion
Parallel session:
Water
02:00 - 04:00 PM
Chair
Dr Susan Hegarty, Associate Professor, DCU
Protecting Ireland’s water resources
Eimear Cotter, Director of the Office of Evidence and Assessment, Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
Protecting Freshwater Quality and Biodiversity in a Changing World
Professor Mary Kelly-Quinn, School of Biology & Environmental Science, University College Dublin
The role of stakeholder engagement in achieving better water outcomes
Matt Crowe, Chair, An Fóram Uisce
Protecting Ireland’s water resources: investing in waste water treatment infrastructure
Steve Seymour, Head of Asset Management, Uisce Éireann
Questions and answers / panel discussion
Parallel session: Planning and the environment
02:00 - 04:00 PM
Chair
Hendrik W van der Kamp, Planning Consultant (Invited)
Planning for the environment and climate
Paul Hogan, Assistant Secretary, Head of Planning Division, Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage (Invited)
SEA in Ireland, 20 years on, making an impact
Tadhg O’Mahony, Senior Scientific Officer, Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
Supporting local government planners in protecting the environment: the UK experience
Richard Crawley, Programme Manager, Planning Advisory Service UK, Local Government Association
Engaging communities in planning on environment issues
Paul Roberts, Chief Executive, Community Places
Questions and answers / panel discussion
Ossian Smyth TD
Florika Fink-Hooijer
Antoine Oger
Laura Curtis-Moss
Anthony Costello
Anja Murray
Niall Ó Donnchú
Mike Savage
Brian Carroll
Claire Downey
Oisín Coghlan
Stephen Onakuse
Kevin O’Sullivan
Susan Hegarty
Hendrik W van der Kamp
Philip Nugent
Adrian Smyth 
Ainhoa Gonzalez Del Campo 
Geoff Dooley 
Clare Pillman 
David Greenfield
Danielle Conaghan
Peter McEvoy
Triona McGrath
J Owen Lewis
Gavin Smith
Imelda Hurley
Lucy Gaffney
Dr Venkatesh Kannan
Kevin Hegarty
Eimear Cotter
Aditya Arora
Patric Child
Eleanor Roche
Andy Bleasdale
Andrew Muir MLA
Chris Hewitt
Francesca Racioppi
Danielle Conaghan
Christopher Hammond
Laura Díaz Anadón
Lorna McAdoo
Conor Murphy 
Mark Horton 
Niall McLoughlin 
Zoe Kavanagh
Niall Ó Donnchú
Venkatesh Kannan
David McGee
Anna Rose
Paul Hogan
