Write a commentAs part of the city’s efforts to become the regions leading eco-city, over 100 delegates gathered in Newry for a milestone conference on Sustainability. The conference was opened by Regional Development Minister Conor Murphy MP MLA and delegates from across Ireland engaged with the worlds stars of sustainability from Whistler, Canada; Helsingborg, Sweden and Morbegno in Italy.
The Mayor, Cllr Michael Murphy welcomed the delegates and stated that “Newry and Mourne District Council realises that it has a moral, statutory and environmental duty to lead by example and to ensure, that where possible, all its actions and the services that it delivers protect and enhance the sustainability of our local and global environment. As such we seek to learn about how this can be done and how it works in other parts of the world”.
Mayor Ken Melamed from Whistler, Canada said “The level of understanding about the importance of sustainability planning impressed me, I was also impressed by the strong desire from the people who attended to be advocates to finding new and creative approaches to address the challenges for Newry and Northern Ireland. We had a very productive exchange and dialog and I think everyone came away with a better understanding of the challenges we face and the solutions that are possible”.
At the Conference Newry and Mourne District Council, along with colleagues in Louth County Council where able to clearly demonstrate the significant steps already taken in a shared objective to promote the Newry Dundalk Twin City region as an exemplar for sustainable development. For several years both Councils have co operated on a cross border basis on a range of initiatives culminating in the declaration earlier this year of the Newry City Low Carbon zone. Newry is already on the path to sustainability with a pioneering Low Energy Zone with up to 30 local partners taking actions to reduce the use and impact of energy on the City
