Civically Engaged Activity

Dublin Diaries began in September 2024, sparked by conversations in Unit18’s Digital Skills for Older Adults programme. People there spoke passionately about wanting to share stories drawn from long lives spent in and around the city. At the same time, a Community Advisory meeting with CBS Westland Row revealed something striking: many local teenagers struggled to identify landmarks in their own neighbourhood. Put together, these moments pointed to a simple truth: that older adults carry a deep, textured knowledge of Dublin’s geography and history, while younger people are looking for ways to make sense of the place they call home.

A monthly storytelling group soon emerged. Instead of maps and markers, participants chart Dublin through memory. They trace vanished cinemas, well-worn routes to work, and the social worlds that once defined whole streets. It’s a reminder that place-making and wayfinding is more than a Maps app; it is cultural, emotional and social, built from the stories we choose to pass on.

Neuroscientist Shane O’Mara notes that conversation strengthens brain health and allows our memories to live beyond us. At the same time, research from TILDA shows how social connection protects older adults from loneliness, cognitive decline and poorer health. Dublin Diaries nurtures these connections, offering community as much as culture.

This project is about expanding Dublin Diaries through a six-to-eight-week co-created storytelling programme, supported by a public history intern. The project will culminate in a public exhibition at Unit18, featuring portraits, mapped memories and a growing community map. Elements of the exhibition will remain permanently on site, with a concluding event at the Trinity Long Room Hub.

The programme will feed into Culture Night 2026, produce an education pack with local schools and youth groups, and continue offering meaningful ways engagements for Public History Masters students.