There are now hundreds of CLTs in the United States as well as in Canada, Australia, the UK and Belgium. While ‘Land Trusts’ exist in Ireland, a Community Land Trust model has yet to be established here in Ireland, although there is a growing community who are working towards its possibility.
The People’s Land Trust art project is creating a ‘Radical School’ as a way to bring interested people together and to grow a new community with shared know-how. ‘Radical Schools’ are an alternative space for learning that has its roots in 1960’s South America. The thinking behind them is that learning can happen in an equal participatory way with everyone’s experience being valued and shared. In The People’s Land Trust School people will come together to learn about the Community Land Trust model and use their shared understanding to imagine how it could be adapted for Cork.
This Autumn/Winter, the People’s Land Trust School will be running a short course in the northside of the city. Questions to be explored include; how do we as a community imagine approaches to collective stewardship and ownership of urban land? How do we leave a legacy of care for the land we live on for future generations? How do we take into account our changing world, work/life balance, and the sharing and enjoyment of outside space? What practical actions can we take to address climate change and the need to cultivate bio-diversity? Activities will include walks/field trips, screenings, map-making, talks by local experts, discussions and creative workshops drawing on the history of land use in Ireland, local folklore, ecology and ‘future imagining’.
