We’re delighted to launch Shared Island & Ocean — a new 12-month, all-island initiative funded by the Shared Island Civic Society Fund — and we’re bringing it to your coast.
In collaboration with Queen’s University Belfast (QUB), we’re hosting five co-creation and community dialogue events connecting communities, civil society organisations, researchers, and marine stakeholders across the island.
Marine Identity is our starting point: the idea that our shared connection to the ocean can be a foundation for real dialogue and collaborative action.
Where we’re headed
- Portaferry, Co. Down (29 April)
- Strandhill, Co. Sligo (12 June)
- Ballycastle, Co. Antrim (September)
- Tramore, Co. Waterford (8 October)
We’re also partnering with Údarás na Gaeltachta for an Irish language event in Gaoth Dobhair in the Donegal Gaeltacht on 23 April.
The year wraps up with a final Cross-Border Shared Island & Ocean Event in the Foyle area (November), bringing together learning from across the island and identifying what we do next.
All events are co-created with our Members, which means we need to hear from you about key regional marine issues and potential local partners or venues! Fill in our (very) short form and help shape what happens at the events.
About Shared Island & Ocean
The Government’s Shared Island initiative aims to harness the full potential of the Good Friday Agreement to enhance cooperation, connection and mutual understanding on the island and engage with all communities and traditions to build consensus around a shared future.
The Shared Island Fund was announced in Budget 2021, with initial €500m in capital funding available between 2021-25, ring-fenced for investment in collaborative North/South projects.
The revised National Development Plan (2021-2030) sets out an ambition for collaborative all-island investment to create a more connected, sustainable and prosperous island for all.
This is backed by unprecedented all-island investment commitments through the Shared Island Fund and other funding streams. The new Programme for Government agreed in January 2025 commits a further €1 billion to the Shared Island Fund up to 2035 to foster reconciliation, mutual respect and growth and sets out a range of new investment and cooperation commitments.
The “Shared Island & Ocean” project is a collaborative initiative by the Irish Ocean Literacy Network (IOLN), an all-Island network, in partnership with Queen’s University Belfast (QUB). The primary objective of the project is to facilitate dialogue to help strengthen cross border understanding, strengthen relationships and increase collaborative actions between marine and maritime stakeholders across the island of Ireland through exploring the unifying concept of ‘Marine Identity’.
