World Environment Day

Students and Teachers from from Killinarden Community School in Dublin

On June 5th, World Environment Day, Ambassador Daniel Rooney presented a plaque to Deputy Lord Mayor Councilor Maria Parodi commemorating the tree planted in Herbert Park by Mrs. Lillian Carter in 1977.  

During the Ambassador’s remarks, he emphasized the important role that Herbert Park still holds in the life of the Embassy and the local community as a place of relaxation and recreation.  Councilor Maria Parodi highlighted the larger relationship between the U.S. and Ireland and the strong ties between the countries.

Participating in the ceremony were students from Killinarden Community School who recited Máirtín ó Direáin’s stirring poem ‘An tEarrach Thiar’ in Irish and English and Karen Kennedy, Executive Director of Habitat for Humanity in Ireland.  Ms. Kennedy noted the substantial contribution of former President Jimmy Carter and his wife Rosalynn in volunteering for her organization every year since 1984.  She also linked the work of Habitat in providing decent, safe, and affordable homes with the environment more widely.

Also attending were local TDs, city and park officials, and representatives of local residence associations.

Mrs. Lillian Carter’s initial visit to Ireland was to highlight an initiative of the Carter administration, the Friendship Force.  This program of exchange home-stays aims to create friendships across the barriers of nationality, language, religion, and politics.

For more information on 2012 World Environment Day, see http://www.unep.org/wed/theme/. This year’s theme is the Green Economy, which aims to improve human well-being by reducing environmental risks and tackling social exclusion.