Sonairte joins Environmental Pillar

From Sonairte

For many years it has been recognised that human existence on plantet earth is based on getting three kinds of sustainability right - economic, social and environmental. This is the basis of the United Nations Agenda 21 Plan for Sustainable Development

Here in Ireland we have had a so-called "social partnership" since 1973 but it really came to the fore in 1986 when the National Economic and Social Council formulated an agreed strategy to escape from Ireland's vicious circle of real stagnation, rising taxes and exploding debt. That Strategy formed the basis upon which government and the social partners negotiated the Programme for National Recovery to run from 1987 to 1990. Since then there have been six more programmes, although the latest - Towards 2016 - will have to be reshaped in the light of the economic downturn.

In the early days the partners were Business, the Trade Unions and the Farming Sector. Later on the Community and Voluntary Sector was incorporated as well, having been recognised as a fourth "pillar" of Irish Society

Now, at last, the government has recognised that sustainability includes the air we breath, the water we drink and the soil beneath our feet and has put a fifth, environmental, pillar in place. 28 national environmental organisations are members of the new pillare and Sonairte is proud to be one of them. You can read all about the work of the Environmental Pillar at http://www.environmentalpillar.ie