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ABOUT THE GM-FREE IRELAND NETWORK | ||
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Currently organising local community discussions with screenings of the Future of Food film around the country. | |||||
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Organised the Green Ireland conference at Kilkenny Castle on 18-20 June 2006. Delegates from America, Asia and Europe attending this conference gave a strong warning that Ireland's world famous clean green image ‚ which provides a competitive advantage for our food, farm, and tourism industries ‚ will soon be lost if the Irish government and the Irish Farmers Association fail to resist pressure from the WTO and the European Commission to force the release of patented genetically modified (GM) animal feed, seeds, crops, trees, fish and livestock here. The event provided a historic opportunity for Irish policy makers and stakeholders to meet with key international experts to explore our democratic participation, legal rights and responsibilities for the future of food and farming ‚ and Ireland's brand recognition in a globalising world. | |||||
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Stopped the world's largest chemicals company BASF from conducting an open air experiment with 450,000 GMO potatoes in Co. Meath in 2006 through extensive lobbying of the EPA, Meath Co. Council and the local community. | |||||
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Organised a national press conference and protest outside the Dáil on 22 February 2006. | |||||
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Participated in the second annual European conference on GMO-free regions in Berlin in January 2006. Three delegates from the GM-free Ireland Network took part in this event organised by the European NGO Network on Genetic Engineering, the Assembly of European Regions and the Foundation on Future Farming, the event was attended by 250 politicians, farmers, food producers, food exporters, scientists and NGO delegates from around the world. Proceedings available a | |||||
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Participated in The Wide Angle international current affairs programme hosted by Karen Coleman on NewsTalk 106 FM on 5 June 2005. This live radio debate on GMOs featured Michael O'Callaghan (GM-free Ireland Network), Matt Moran (Bioindustry Association), Sakiko Fukuda-Parr (Harvard University), and Raymond O'Rourke (food liability lawyer). Eighty per cent of callers to programme said GM food is bad for your health. | |||||
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Attended the European Parliament Conference on Safeguarding Sustainable European Agriculture: Coexistence, GMO free zones and the promotion of quality food produce in Europe in Brussels on 17 May 2005. See www.gmofree-conference.org for details. | |||||
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Published the GM-free Ireland map on 22 April, Earth Day 2005 at a media briefing in Dublin. The event received positive coverage on TV, radio and the press, with positive articles in the Irish Times, Ireland On-line, the Irish Independent and the Irish Examiner. Michael O'Callaghan appeared on Ireland AM on TV3, and was interviewed by various radio stations. | |||||
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As of 10 June 2005, the GM-free Ireland Network includes 72 organisations representing over 32,000 farmers, foresters, food producers, food distributors and exporters, leading chefs and restaurants, NGOs, professional associations, doctors, economists, lawyers, journalists, students, and consumers. | |||||
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This web site received 329,1344 hits from 14,989 visits in the past 12 months. | |||||
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Currently compiling Blowing in the Wind, our position paper for a national strategy on GM issues. | |||||
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Participated in Prime Time's 31 March 2005 broadcast debate on the GMO controversy with Jeffrey M. Smith (author of Seeds of Deception: exposing corporate and government lies about the safety of genetically engineered food,); Simon Barber (Director of Biotechnology, EuropaBio); Prof. David McConnell, Smurfit Institute of Genetics, TCD; Co-chair EAGLES - European Action on Global Life Sciences; Chair, Irish Times Trust); and Michael O'Callaghan, Co-ordinator, GM-free Ireland Network. Watch the show at www.rte.ie/news/2005/0331/primetime.html. | |||||
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Designed and produced a range of GMO-free zone signs now available for sale through this web site. | |||||
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Participated in the European Conference on GMO-free Regions, Biodiversity and Rural Development, held in Berlin on 22-23 January 2005. The conference was hosted by the Assembly of European Regions (AER), the Foundation on Future Farming and the European NGO Network on Genetic Engineering. See Berlin Manifesto for GMO-free Regions and Biodiversity in Europe. | |||||
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Joined the European NGO Network on Genetic Engineering on 24 January 2005. | |||||
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Briefing for the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Environment and Local Government on 24 November 2004. GM-free Ireland members who spoke were Mark Dearey (Friends of the Earth Ireland), John Heney (Irish Cattle and Sheep Farmers Association, and Michael O'Callaghan. The agenda included a forthcoming EU vote to legalise the placing on the market of Monsanto's GM rapeseed GT73 for use as animal feed, and Ireland's GM policy in general. The meeting went on to hear a briefing on the same subject by the Food Safety Authority of Ireland. | |||||
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Represented the GM-free Ireland Network at the Terra Madre (Mother Earth) conference hosted by Slow Food at Torino, Italy, in October 2004. This historic event was attented by 5,000 small farmers and artisanal food producers from 150 countries. Michael O'Callaghan gave a workshop on the so-called "co-existence" of GM crops with conventional and organic farming. We videotaped much of the conference including a keynote speech by the Prince of Wales, and exclusive interviews with various participants including Kenyan farmer Jack Wafula and Canadian farmer Percy Schmeiser. | |||||
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Consultations with the interdepartmental / interagency Working Group set up by the Department of Agriculture and Food on a national strategy and best practices for the so-called co-existence of GM crops with conventional and organic farming (since September 2004). | |||||
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Participation in the National Future of Food Forum chaired by Nobel Peace Laureate and former MEP John Hume with geneticist Dr. Mae-Wan Ho and author Jeffrey Smith on 4 July 2004. | |||||
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Introduction to GM issues workshop held as part of Dublin's Convergence Festival on 26 April 2004. | |||||
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Formation of the GM-free Ireland Network for stakeholders to co-ordinate their strategies. | |||||
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Over 3,600 emails sent to the Taoiseacht, Senators, TDs and MEPs by members of the public who signed our GM-free Ireland petition which is still available for signature. | |||||
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Launch of the GM-free Ireland web site. | |||||
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Attended the European NGO Network on Genetic Engineering (GENET) conference in Vienna in November to co-ordinate our strategy with other GM-free zones in Europe. | |||||
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Dáil protest on 10 December 2003 aginst Ireland's pro-GM vote in Brussels. | |||||
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Public awareness of GM issues via TV & radio news bulletins, interviews, press releases, email, web site, and public fora. | |||||
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Preparation for Forging a GM Policy for Ireland conference in October 2004. | |||||
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This website continuously expanded with more content about what you and/or your organisation can do to make a difference. | |||||
For enquiries contact Michael O'Callaghan on + 353 (0)404 43 885, email mail@gmfreeireland.org.
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