This was my first time organising something like this, a two-day event with an overnight for a big group of people. It was Madeline McKeever’s idea (of Brown Envelope Seeds) as to where we would hold it, she planted the seed…
CECAS (Centre of Excellence for Climate Action and Sustainability) is situated in a former convent building in Leap, West Cork and were perfect for what we needed. The event morphed from the culmination of my 2022 year-long training into the start of this year’s training as well. Why not get the two groups together along with trainers’ mentors and supporters and make a weekend of it?!
And make a weekend we did. We had a lovely two days of talks, networking, seed swaps, food, a trip to the pub and of course lots of tea and coffee. People really enjoyed the weekend and there was a nice buzz in the closing session from our “elders” who got everyone suitably motivated for the season ahead.
A nice end to the year, a chance for everyone to relax, meet up and build friendships that will hopefully grow over time!
The year long training in seed production for commercial growers is our main training programme and is both classroom and farm based. Find and contact your regional coordinator here for more information about the next start date.
Audio and photos by Ellie O’Byrne.
