Last month the CANN project partners visited Islay for a series of workshops and meetings. ACT was delighted to be hosting representatives of the project partners who regularly meet up at different locations throughout the project areas in Ireland, Scotland, and Northern Ireland.

Workshops and field trips

The visit started with a foraging tour and talk from James Donaldson, professional forager for Bruichladdich Distillery. James led the group on a trip through Bridgend woods looking for plants that flavour Botanist gin. The following day the group had a series of workshops and informative talks from individual project partners and guest speakers. Speakers included Hazel White, Peatland Action project officer with Scottish Natural Heritage, who gave an informative presentation on bog restoration and experimental methods of bank re-profiling and ditch damming. This was followed by Fiona MacGillivray from Islay Natural History Trust who spoke about the Trust’s involvement with species monitoring at the CANN project sites on Islay. In the evening, group members were joined by local SNH staff for a visit to Duich Moss for a bird identification session led by Dr Marc Ruddock of the Golden Eagle Trust. The final day was a project progress meeting held at the Gaelic College in Bowmore.

Project partnership

ACT is one of eleven partners in the Collaborative Action for the Natura Network project (CANN) consortium working to save peatlands and wetlands across Ireland, Northern Ireland, and Scotland.

The CANN project team is a collaboration of leading scientists, researchers, local authorities, charities, and community organisations led by Newry, Mourne & Down District Council. The other project partners are ACT, Agri-Food and Biosciences Institute, Armagh, Banbridge & Craigavon Borough Council, East Border Region, Golden Eagle Trust, The Institute of Technology Sligo, Monaghan County Council, Scottish Natural Heritage, Ulster University, and Ulster Wildlife. 

For more information about the CANN project and partners go to the CANN project page and our CANN news article from earlier this year.

Hazel White gave a presentation on bog restoration.