Last week students from schools in Northern Ireland, across Belfast, Antrim and Derry, gathered with teams from Donegal, Louth and Monaghan at Belfast City Hall to ‘speak out’ on the social issues that concern them as part of the Young Social Innovators’ ‘All Island Speak Out’ tour.  Young people were welcomed to City Hall by…

After a successful six months, the Pope John Paul II Award pilot programme in the Diocese of Waterford & Lismore held a gathering of 124 students and staff in the Majestic Hotel, Tramore recently. The award was one of the last initiatives introduced by Bishop William Lee before his retirement last October, and encourages young…

Children across Ireland are getting ready to raise some roots in their school gardens with the launch of the annual Incredible Edibles initiative by Agri Aware, the agri-food educational body, which teaches children where their fruit and vegetables come from and helps them to grow their own. The programme is now in its sixth year…

Tomi Reichental, a Holocaust survivor of Bergen-Belsen concentration camp, accepted an invitation to speak in St Philomena’s Church in Palmerstown on Saturday, March 22, drawing people in large numbers to hear his strong message of hope. In his book I Was a Boy in Belsen Tomi gives an account of his life story, from capture,…

Pope Francis has appointed the Bishop of Killaloe, Kieran O’Reilly SMA (pictured) to the Vatican Congregation which is responsible for religious orders and apostolic societies. Bishop O’Reilly served twice as congregational leader of the Society of African Missions, working in Rome for 12 years, before being ordained Bishop of Killaloe in 2010. He will now…