Annual Grant Making
2022
Overview
2022 was the first full year of our Foundation’s operations. Together with our stakeholders and Community Foundation Ireland—who manage our Donor Fund—we set about identifying projects and programmes under each of our grant making pillars:
- Community Resilience—with a particular focus on the wellbeing of children and young people.
- Environment Sustainability.
- Overseas Development.
What we didn’t foresee was the breakout of the military conflict in Ukraine and the subsequent arrival of Ukrainian migrants to Ireland in significant numbers. Early in 2022, our Foundation decided to orient a significant part of its grant making towards supports for the new migrant Ukrainian community, and other asylum seekers, into the country.
Approximately half of our 2022 donations went towards the needs of these communities.
In all, our Foundation supported approximately 20 organisations in 2022, including nine projects as a co-funder of Rethink Ireland’s Impact Fund for Munster which addressed physical and mental health issues post COVID-19 across the Munster area.
Migrant Communities
Grants were provided in 2022 to the following organisations for the provision of a range of supports to Ukrainian and other migrant communities:
Sustainable Environment
A core belief of our Foundation is the desire to play our part in tackling the threats posed by climate change for people and nature. Support was provided in 2022 to the following:
- Burrenbeo Trust
Burrenbeo Trust was established to create greater appreciation for the Burren landscape. It works towards achieving a sustainable future for the Burren as well as developing models of best practice for community stewardship and place-based learning.
Our Foundation contributes to this work as a co-funder.
- All-Island Climate and Biodiversity Research Network (AICBRN)
This network brings together researchers across disciplines in climate and biodiversity. Our Foundation commissioned a gap study with AICBRN—see full study here—to analyse climate change and biodiversity research from institutions across Ireland.
- Irish Research Council—New Foundations Programme
This programme provides grants to post-doctoral researchers to disseminate their work through networks and partnerships.
The Foundation funded four projects in wild urban nature, biodiversity in peatland, crop health and bee biodiversity.
Overseas Development
Our Foundation aims to partner with a small number of overseas development agencies to support environmentally sustainable developments and empower local communities.
In 2022, we provided funds—as part of a three year support programme—to NGO Trocaire to construct community water points (boreholes) and install solar pumps to provide irrigation and safe, clean drinking water in the Matobo district of Zimbabwe.
Other Projects Supported
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SVP
Support provided to SVP Mid West Region to develop an Assessment of Need template and to provide staff/volunteer training in support of their work in identifying pathways out of poverty.
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University of Limerick Foundation
Two 4-year undergraduate bursaries provided as part of the UL Access Programme.