Síolta Glasa is a Citizen Innovation Lab collaboration between Limerick City and County Council, University of Limerick, Mary Immaculate College, Ballyhoura Development, Fab Lab Limerick and mentors Javier Buron Garcia and Dr. Veronica Santorum. The project will support community-creative partnerships to build capacity around decarbonization in Limerick city and county. 

This project builds on the successful implementation of the Creative Climate Action collaborative project Decarbonizing Together delivered in Limerick in 2022 by lead partner Limerick City and County Council (LCCC).
Síolta Glasa brings together community groups from across Limerick city and county, with creative partners, to work creatively and collaboratively to examine decarbonization in their communities, identify an aspect that matters to them and
explore and enable localized behavior change. Professional creatives and scientists will be at the core of the process, contributing to a positive cycle of collaboration, which builds capacity in communities, enabling a just transition.
Síolta Glasa uses creativity to empower communities to take   climate actions by making carbon reduction activities relevant, actionable and relatable to people’s lives and communities. When supported by Local Authorities and other stakeholders,
creative climate conversations/explorations increase understanding and create ‘buy in’, forming the basis for significant individual behavior change and the initiation of carbon reduction projects at community level under a variety of themes. 

Síolta Glasa has the potential for long-lasting community impact in the context of the development of the Local Authority Climate Action Plans and the launch of the Community Climate Action Fund.

The collaborations will support learning and doing together, and will use, as appropriate, Limerick’s Citizen Innovation Lab as a collaboration platform to create impact through empowering communities in decarbonising Limerick by 2050, with citizen  creativity placed at the core of the process. A scientific evidence-based approach to creative practice in climate projects is an important aspect of Síolta Glasa. A scientific basis for the activities carried out and behaviour changes encouraged is key. In order to develop a dialogue between the scientific and creative communities all collaborations will be supported by a Science Advisory Group convened by the Mary Immaculate College Geography Department. The Science Advisory Group will provide advice and links to scientific expertise and knowledge within their organisations that will underpin the decarbonisation journey of the collaborations based in science and ensure there is sound data and evidence to inform the projects.

The importance of sharing and amplifying the community creative stories to inspire other communities is an important aspect of Síolta Glasa. Mentored by the School of Journalism in UL, a Storytelling and Data Visualization Pillar has been incorporated into the project to create a holistic narrative of the collaborations in partnership with the community and creative industry/creative arts practitioners. This resource will collate collaboration stories and create content that can be used to amplify the project      locally, nationally and internationally. They will use the Citizen Innovation Lab digital space, which will be further developed as a repository for creative community climate stories.