In May, the Foundation contributed £110,000 over three years towards core costs including staffing, advocacy and community work, to support systems change campaigning in Northern Ireland. Friends of the Earth is a grassroots environmental campaigning community that aims to protect people and the planet. Our grant is contributing towards the delivery of their seven-point recovery plan for Northern Ireland, which aims to reverse the damage from what they describe as decades of environmental neglect, degradation and exploitation.
We committed to this grant because of the clear need for environmental action in Northern Ireland, and the potential for learning from this work to be applied across the other Friends of the Earth branches in England, Scotland and Wales. We were also impressed by Friends of the Earth Northern Ireland’s commitment to working in partnership and at a grassroots level. They connect and mobilise around 45 groups across the country, forming communities of place, practice, and interest that are campaigning for positive change.
On their experience of applying to us, James Orr, Director at Friends of the Earth Northern Ireland said: “We felt there was a really strong alignment between our work priorities and those of John Ellerman Foundation’s ‘Environment’ programme and were thrilled to secure multi-year funding, giving us the security to deliver long term plans. It is refreshing to find a funder that recognises the need for systemic change and supports work to deliver this through policy, advocacy and campaigning. The application process was clear and the staff and Trustees have genuinely engaged with us and our work at every stage. We are delighted to be working with the Foundation to deliver lasting environmental change in Northern Ireland.”