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Environmental charity Keep Northern Ireland Beautiful, in association with Heyn Environmental Solutions, revealed the parks and green spaces that have been awarded a prestigious Green Flag Award.

Armagh Palace Demesne provided the perfect backdrop as a record 51 parks and green spaces in Northern Ireland received their Green Flags, awarded for exceeding tough environmental standards for green space management and visitor facilities – the Green Flag Awards is the mark of a quality park or green space recognised throughout the world.

For the 2016/17 season, Keep Northern Ireland Beautiful saw a continued increase in public parks, country parks, cemeteries and green spaces meeting the demanding standards.

First-time winners this year included Antrim/Belmont Cemetery (Antrim & Newtownabbey Borough Council); Castle Park (Ards and North Down Borough Council); Clare Glen and Palace Demesne (Armagh City, Banbridge and Craigavon Borough Council); Carnfunnock Country Park, Ecos Nature Park and Eden Allotment Gardens (Mid and East Antrim Borough Council) and Maghera Walled Garden (Mid Ulster District Council).

In 2016 Keep Northern Ireland Beautiful have announced two new Green Flag Award categories: the Green Flag Community Award and the Green Heritage Award. Ballyeaston Church Ruin received a Green Flag Community Award for the site which is managed and maintained by Ballyeaston Village Committee. Antrim Castle Gardens and Clotworthy House and Sentry Hill Historic House & Visitor Centre received the Green Heritage Award, these sites conserve, enhance and help people enjoy the heritage value of the site. There are now more places than ever for the public to enjoy high quality outdoor spaces.

This year 22 sites in the Republic of Ireland have also received the Green Flag Awards, further highlighting the growth of this top quality award, in Ireland the scheme is managed locally by An Taisce.

The Green Flag Awards are judged every year by green space experts, who volunteer their time to visit applicant sites and assess them against eight strict criteria, including horticultural standards, cleanliness, sustainability and community involvement.

Minister for the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs, Michelle McIlveen said:

“Our parks and open spaces are frequently enjoyed by people of all ages, providing an opportunity to relax and unwind from everyday life.

“We recognise and reward the achievements of all those who work to improve the quality and environmental standards of our parks and open spaces.

“It is a credit to all those involved that the Green Flag Award scheme has continued to grow over the last four years. I am delighted that this year we have seen a record number of applicants to the scheme.

“I look forward to the continued success of the Green Flag Awards in the coming years in helping more and more of our public parks and green spaces achieve higher environmental standards.”

Dr. Ian Humphreys, Chief Executive Keep Northern Ireland Beautiful said:

“We are delighted to be celebrating another record-breaking year for the Green Flag Award scheme. All the flags flying this year are a testament to the efforts of the hundreds of men and women, both staff and volunteers, who work tirelessly to maintain the high standards demanded by the Green Flag Award.”

If you are interested in finding out further information about the Green Flag Award or other programmes run by Keep Northern Ireland Beautiful please e-mail us on enquiries@keepnorthernirelandbeautiful.org call us on 028 9073 6920 or check out our website www.keepnorthernirelandbeautiful.org.

Copenhagen 8 September 2016 – The Foundation for Environmental Education (FEE) is holding its biennial General Assembly on 15-16 September in Ahmedabad, India. At the assembly sessions, member organisations from 75 countries will be discussing the most recent developments in FEE and elect their new President and Board of Directors.

The General Assembly is arranged and hosted by the Centre for Environment Education (CEE) India, FEE’s Associate Member in India. The first two assembly sessions will be addressing the latest developments and strategic planning for FEE and its five programmes, whilst at the Members’ Forum sessions, members will have the opportunity to join workshops on the implementation of programmes, projects and campaigns. 15 new organisations are to be confirmed as members of FEE.

The FEE President is elected every four years and the Board of Directors every two. Following the nomination procedure, a new President and Board of Directors will be elected for the period 2016-2020 and 2016-2018 respectively. The coming General Assembly will herald the end of an era with the retirement of Jan Eriksen. Current president and a member of FEE for over 26 years, Jan has steered the organisation through some its most demanding periods of transition and growth and is leaving it as the globally recognised and respected organisation that you know today: a fitting testament to his diligence and commitment to FEE over the years.

The assembly will be followed by the CEE Conference on ‘Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) for Transforming Education for Children and Youth’, to take place on 16–18 September 2016. The Conference aims at bringing together global experience and expertise to highlight and strengthen the role of ESD.

About the Foundation for Environmental Education (FEE) www.fee.global

With members in 75 countries around the world, FEE’s programmes represent the cutting edge in Education for Sustainable Development and Environmental Education. It is the vision of the Foundation for Environmental Education that its programmes empower people everywhere to live sustainably and in an environmentally conscious manner.