Dundalk Institute of Technology (DkIT) recently hosted an agricultural sustainability workshop in conjunction with key stakeholders from the institute and agricultural industry.
The event was facilitated by DkIT’s Dr. Breda Brennan in collaboration with John Kelly, principal of Teagasc, Ballyhaise College.
DkIT
The purpose of the workshop was to inform and plan for the upcoming revision of the institute’s agriculture programmes to ensure that the theme of sustainability is up to date and strongly integrated.
Speakers on the day included:
- Gary Lanigan, research officer, Teagasc Crops, Environment and Land Use Programme, who gave a presentation on the abatement of greenhouse gas (GHG) and ammonia emissions from agriculture and land use;
- Rory Farrell and Niall McLoughlin, who provided an overview of the Lakeland Dairies’ strategic approach to sustainability and climate action;
- Noel McKenna from DkIT’s School of Engineering provided some thoughts on how climate change action is being approached in the building sector.
The second part of the event consisted of all attendees breaking into small groups to workshop how to embed sustainable agriculture into students’ education.
Staff from DkIT and Ballyhaise College were joined by the speakers and external colleagues from Louth County Council and the NE Bioeconomy Cluster.
All three pillars of sustainability (social, economic and environmental) were discussed across a number of thematic areas such as sustainable production, land use, natural resources, energy and sustainable development.
Sustainability in agricultural education
Dr. Breda Brennan, head of Department of Agriculture, Food and Animal Health at DkIT commenting after the event stated: “The workshop was a great success with the speakers setting the scene perfectly for the important workshop element.
“The purpose of which was to identify areas which will influence the programme into the future and ensure that graduates are attributed with the skills and knowledge needed to tackle the current and future challenges for this industry.”