Environment - News & Events | Trinity College Dublin

The weeds shall inherit the Earth

Human land use is now comparable to climate in driving global patterns of plant occurrence, with new research showing that species are not affected equally; slow-growing plants like trees are less able to cope with more intensive human land use than disturbance-tolerant species like grasses.

4 Jul 2023

Environment|Research|Science|Sustainability

The tide of medicinal plants and natural products is rising: conference hears

Trinity hosts the 71st GA2023 conference to explore the opportunities of unlocking nature’s pharmacy

3 Jul 2023

Environment|Health|Innovation|Research|Sustainability

No Mow May gives life to rare orchid

A rare orchid has appeared on Trinity's campus as an unexpected outcome of its decision to allow wildflowers bloom in the month of May. Trinity stopped mowing several formal lawns across campus for the month of May as part of the international No Mow May initiative. This allowed wildflowers like clovers and daisies to bloom and provided food for pollinating insects, which are currently in decline.

3 Jul 2023

Environment|Sustainability

Trinity tree of the month - Black Walnut

This month we are bringing you another gorgeous tree from Trinity College Botanic Gardens – Juglans nigra, or Black Walnut. This Black Walnut is 25 metres tall, has a girth of 2.62 metres and stores an estimated 2,617 kilograms of carbon. It can store up to 6,000 kilograms when it matures.

21 Jun 2023

Environment|Sustainability

Reframing active travel planning is key to creating more cycling and walking-friendly towns and cities

Researchers from the Centre for Transport Research analysed a sample of 150 public consultation submissions opposing redistributive active travel measures put forward as part of an ‘Active School Travel’ scheme in Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown.

21 Jun 2023

Environment|Research

Cryo conservation – a cool solution to saving species from extinction

In the face of the biodiversity crisis, and alarming data showing a 69% decline in global animal populations since 1970, researchers are banking on a cool solution to help save species from extinction.

20 Jun 2023

Environment|Research|Science

National economies recover faster when countries are powered by renewable energy

Researchers from Trinity looked for patterns in data from 133 systemic economic crises that affected 98 countries over a 40-year span en route to their main finding, which has profound implications for global energy policy.

14 Jun 2023

Business|Environment|Research|Science|Sustainability

Trinity renovation project to create innovation hub in Silicon Docks

Portal is financed through a combination of government support, philanthropy and university investment. The hub in a former warehouse will link industry with Trinity's pioneering research.

7 Jun 2023

Business|Environment|Innovation|Research

Green Pearse Street campaign officially launched

Jane Stout, Vice President for Biodiversity and Climate Action, and The Lord Mayor of Dublin, Caroline Conroy, officially launched the Green Pearse Street campaign in partnership with several businesses in the area. The objective of Green Pearse Street is to ‘green’ the street, improve air quality, create a health and biodiversity corridor and to add more social space.

6 Jun 2023

Environment|Sustainability

What's next for Ireland’s Biodiversity?

Professor Jane Stout will deliver a free public lecture in the National Botanic Gardens on 28th May

25 May 2023

Environment|Sustainability

Trinity's wildlife pond

In the heart of Dublin’s city centre, Trinity’s historic campus has some new residents. In a recently created wildlife pond, in the enviable location of the grounds of Number 1 Grafton Street (better known as the Provost’s back garden), tadpoles and other aquatic beasts are starting to flourish. Visible from the Nassau Street entrance to Trinity, the wildlife pond was created in late 2022 as part of Trinity’s ambition to increase biodiversity on its campus.

24 May 2023

Environment|Sustainability

Trinity Tree of the Month - Sessile Oak

This month we are bringing you another of our Native Tree Species, Quercus petrea or Sessile Oak, which was declared Ireland’s National Tree.

23 May 2023

Environment|Sustainability

Lifelong learning for climate justice focus of new €2.4m Trinity-led research project

The establishment of a national network to connect stakeholders in Ireland working on climate justice will be explored at a public consultation in Trinity Long Room Hub this week.

16 May 2023

Environment|Research|Society|Sustainability

Bridge to College Leadership Project 2023: Sustainability

Bridge to College is one of Trinity Access Programme’s initiatives which aims to help Transition Year students develop key skills and give them the experience they need to advance and thrive in third level education. Over 370 students from mainly DEIS schools are represented in this years showcase and have worked in teams to complete the student-led and managed leadership project on sustainability.

11 May 2023

Environment|Students|Sustainability

Trinity raises Green Flag for commitment to sustainability

Last week, Trinity once again raised a Green Flag in recognition of our increasing effort to reduce our impact on the environment. When presenting the flag, An Taisce emphasised Trinity’s student involvement, green labs programme, sustainable procurement initiatives, retrofitting projects and Provost’s strong commitment to sustainability as key factors in their decision to renew the flag.

2 May 2023

Environment|Sustainability

360-million-year-old Irish fossil provides oldest evidence of plant self-defence in wood

An international team of scientists, co-led by Dr Carla J. Harper, Assistant Professor in Botany in the School of Natural Sciences at Trinity, has discovered the oldest evidence of plant self-defence in wood in a 360-million-year-old fossil from south-eastern Ireland.

21 Apr 2023

Environment|Research|Science

Pesticides detected in pollen and nectar may pose a long-term hazard for pollinators

Pesticides have been detected in flowers not targeted with the chemicals that could be an additional, underestimated threat to pollinators according to new findings by Trinity and DCU, published in the Science of the Total Environment.

6 Apr 2023

Environment|Research|Science|Sustainability

Rare 14-ft smalltooth sand tiger shark washes up on Wexford shore

A huge 14ft smalltooth sand tiger shark washed up at Kilmore Quay, Co. Wexford, this weekend. Scientists believe it to be the first official record of the species being found in Ireland’s waters.

4 Apr 2023

Environment|Research|Science

Health & Sports Week launch event celebrates free contraception for women aged 17-26

Healthy People, Healthy Planet is the theme of this year’s Health & Sports Week which kicked off with a celebration of the new government scheme which provides free contraception for women between 17 and 26.

27 Mar 2023

Culture|Environment|Health|Students

Introducing Trinity tree of the month - the Ginkgo

This month we are featuring our two Ginkgo biloba trees, commonly known as Ginkgo which were planted in Library Square in 2019. The north side Ginkgo is 45cm wide and 9 metres tall while the south side tree is 47cm wide and almost 8 metres tall. When these trees are mature, they will store up to 4,954 kilograms of carbon.

23 Mar 2023

Environment

We used to think diamonds were everywhere. New research suggests they’ve always been rare

Emma Tomlinson, Assistant Professor in the School of Natural Sciences, co-authored this piece about what her collaborative research is teaching us about the formation of diamonds throughout time.

16 Mar 2023

Environment|Research|Science

Trinity researchers compete in Sustainable Development Goals Challenge

The researchers, who aim to recycle heat from meat production in Zambia, have secured funding as one of six teams that will compete to chase a first prize of €1 million in the Sustainable Development Goals Challenge (SDG).

10 Mar 2023

Awards and Funding|Environment|Innovation|Research|Sustainability

Minister Malcolm Noonan announces €1.5 million in funding to transform Trinity’s herbarium

The funding will enable Trinity to transform, digitise and safeguard its herbarium by providing physical infrastructure and enable the digitisation of 400,000 specimens, some of which are centuries old – making them easily accessible to the international research community as well as the public.

8 Mar 2023

Awards and Funding|Environment|Research|Science

Bees’ pesticide risk is species and landscape-dependent

In a new study, ecologists have shown that bees' pesticide exposure depends upon their interaction with the environment, meaning different species face different risks in any given environment.

2 Mar 2023

Environment|Research|Science|Sustainability

Scientists synthesise cerium mineral which holds promise for biomedical research

Trinity geoscientists have developed a cheap and environmentally friendly method for the synthesis of the rare earth mineral which holds promise for the treatment of diseases associated with inflammation, including cancer.

1 Mar 2023

Environment|Health|Research|Science

Ireland has lost almost all of its native forests – here’s how to bring them back

Martha O'Hagan Luff, Associate Professor in Trinity Business School, explains why it is important that we re-establish native forests in Ireland and how we can do it in this piece first published by The Conversation.

27 Feb 2023

Environment|Science|Sustainability

School of Engineering has six projects shortlisted for national climate challenge fund

The six teams were short-listed among a group of 26 teams for their exciting proposals to create real-world solutions to support Ireland’s drive towards climate neutrality by 2050.

16 Feb 2023

Awards and Funding|Environment|Research|Science

Majority of tourism visits have no identifiable impact on environment

New research from the School of Natural Sciences suggests the “Conservation versus tourism” narrative is false.

7 Feb 2023

Environment|Research|Science

Size matters! Flock numbers and new faces are important in boosting flamingo populations

Flocking flamingos in groups of 50 or more and introducing new faces to a population may hold the keys to encouraging successful reproduction, according to a study published this month in Zoo Biology, which was led by Trinity zoologists.

26 Jan 2023

Environment|Research|Science

Bees exposed to EU’s most common weedkiller via wildflower nectar

Bees may be at risk from exposure to glyphosate – an active ingredient in some of the EU’s most commonly used weedkillers – via contaminated wildflower nectar, according to new research from Trinity and DCU scientists.

17 Jan 2023

Environment|Research|Science|Sustainability