Dr. Cara Augustenborg

Dr. Cara Augustenborg

@caugustenborg.bsky.social

Assistant Professor, Head of Environmental Policy at UCD; Member of Ireland's Climate Change Advisory Council; Member of the President of Ireland's Council of State

1.5K followers443 following165 posts

🌍 New in J. of Environmental Policy & Planning! Our study identifies the 5 biggest, interlinked barriers to environmental policy implementation in Ireland and proposes systematic fixes: Open Access read here: 🔗 doi.org/10.1080/1523... #EnvironmentalPolicy #Ireland #ClimateGovernance

doi.orgBarriers to environmental policy implementation: stakeholder perceptions in the context of IrelandEnvironmental policies are embedded in political institutions worldwide, yet degradation persists, with failure to implement existing policies considered a significant contributing factor. Few stud...

Last night, my fellow Council of State members got to hear one of President Higgins' final speeches. It was particularly emotional taking this photo in front of Irl's first Council of State, noting how times have changed for us ladies in particular!

Yesterday, we welcomed George Marshall to University College Dublin for Earth Institute's public event on how to talk about climate change. Today, George joins my EPA Ireland project team to launch our Community of Practice Using Worldview to Inspire & Scale Climate Action (UWISCA).

For the record, I also had several media coaching sessions with Ivan Yates and it was the best media training I've ever had! Anyone who spent any time with IY knew he ran a business for the last few years doing this, so why is it a surprise to someone who worked with him regularly?

The Journal@thejournal.ie

Matt Cooper appeared to be taken aback on his Today FM show yesterday evening when Fianna Fáil TD Niall Collins revealed that he too received media training from Ivan Yates. Cooper asked the question after Collins made a rather punchy remark on The Last Word. jrnl.ie/6864881

Dr. Cara Augustenborg reposted

An extraordinary omission. Yes, policy is the domain of Gov, but climate is one area where a President, limited though their powers may be, could actually play a significant role, e.g. by mobilising community action and lifting the voices of people affected. 👏 @caugustenborg.bsky.social et al.

Caroline O'Doherty@codohertynews.bsky.social

RTÉ receives formal complaint over ‘exclusion’ of climate issues from presidential debates www.irishtimes.com/environment/...

In honour of President Michael D. Higgins' last few days in the Aras, I popped into Newstalk studio to chat with Ciara Doherty, Gavin Duffy & Tadgh McNally about the President's legacy. How will Michael D Higgin’s Presidency be remembered? | Newstalk www.newstalk.com/podcasts/hig...

newstalk.comHow will Michael D Higgin’s Presidency be remembered? | NewstalkAs Michael D Higgins' time as President of Ireland comes to an end, how will his period in the Á...

Dr. Cara Augustenborg reposted

We fully agree @caugustenborg.bsky.social . @rte.ie has most especially failed children and young people on this issue. They should know what the next President's views are on the issue which will most shape their collective futures.

Dr. Cara Augustenborg@caugustenborg.bsky.social

I'm heart broken Ireland's national broadcaster stuck to same old 7 questions tonight on #áras25 presidential debate & avoided the climate question several of us begged them to ask. We learned nothing new of candidates' positions on major global/national challenges. RTE has failed the public.

Dr. Cara Augustenborg reposted

Replying to @caugustenborg.bsky.social

Fully agree. Especially upsetting for young people, especially those voting in their first election, not to see the next President asked about the issue that will most affect their futures. @rte.ie have let them down hugely.

I'm heart broken Ireland's national broadcaster stuck to same old 7 questions tonight on #áras25 presidential debate & avoided the climate question several of us begged them to ask. We learned nothing new of candidates' positions on major global/national challenges. RTE has failed the public.

Just saw Pete Hegseth's ridiculous speech to US military and, for the first time since my father (USAF Colonel) died 5 years ago, I am relieved he is not alive to see what a mockery is being made of the the cause he dedicated his life too. 😔

This is a good summary of healing words of @barackobama.bsky.social in Dublin last night, but fails to mention what struck me most: #climatechange comprised at least 20% of the conversation & was first issue mentioned as priority for #ObamaFoundation. 💚 #BarackObama www.rte.ie/news/us/2025...

rte.ie'Unacceptable' to ignore human crisis in Gaza - ObamaFormer US president Barack Obama has said there is no military rationale right now for continuing to pummel what is already broken in Gaza, and he said it was unacceptable to ignore the human crisis t...

Thank you @yurikageyama.bsky.social for a feel good story amid the gloom. I have a bug loving kid here in Ireland, but they seem to be a rare breed here! A culture of bug loving kids sounds like just what the world needs. 🐛🪲🐞

Dr. Cara Augustenborg reposted

Actor Mandy Patinkin’s plea for Jews to consider how what Netanyahu’s Israeli government is doing to Gaza is not just harming Palestinians and killing kids — but also endangering Jews across the globe.

Dr. Cara Augustenborg reposted

In today's Irish Times, my perspective as a former Fulbright scholar and current Programme Director for University College Dublin Environmental Policy MSc programme, where we are seeing significant increases in US/international applicant numbers this year. www.irishtimes.com/ireland/educ...

irishtimes.com‘There’s a war on academia’: US faces brain drain of its brightest and best teachers and studentsEurope may benefit as Trump’s campaign against Ivy League colleges is causing academics to consider emigrating

Not so fun fact: Every hour a person spends in space emits the same climate harming pollution as 2,000-4,600 people on earth (source link below), but today I heard Katy Perry say "everyone should do this to help them love themselves" 🙄 www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...

sciencedirect.comThe environmental and moral implications of human space travelHumans have long dreamed of traveling to space. In response to the recent increase in commercial space flight, this paper evaluates environmental impa…
Dr Panti Bliss-Cabrera@pantibliss.bsky.social

I know complaining about Katy Perry in “space” is low hanging fruit and there are much worse things happening in the world, but there’s just something so peak… shallow and smarmy… bread and circuses… about it that typifies everything wrong with a system that serves only the shallow and the rich

Couldn't have picked a nicer day for a field trip with my UCD MSc Environmental Policy students! Thanks to Baron Randal Plunkett for the personal tour of his novel ecosystem & beautiful estate at Dunsany Castle- to inspire our own campus biodiversity efforts back home!

Dr. Cara Augustenborg reposted

interesting to read a very strong case against liquified gas investments WITHOUT even talking about the dangers of climate breakdown: - running costs are enormous (and households pay) - doesn't prevent weather-related disruption - renewables are so cheap and fast they make it redundant

irishtimes.comThe debate: Should the State develop a terminal for liquefied natural gas?Geopolitical upheaval, energy security and reliance on UK for supplies are forcing a rethink on the ban on LNG

There are lessons to be learned from across the pond... #datacentres #Ireland

Grist@grist.org

Georgia was about to retire coal plants. Then came the data centers. Utilities nationwide are falling back on fossil fuels to meet huge energy demand. Written by @ejreports.bsky.social . grist.org/energy/georg... #Georgia #Coal #Energy #Climate #Data

A climate ad at the #Superbowl was not on my bingo card! 👏👏

Ayana Elizabeth Johnson@ayanaeliza.bsky.social

Super Bowl ad drives home the critical point: When it comes to acting on climate change #lateristoolate. But SOLUTIONS EXIST. If we act now, we can help protect the people and places we love. Bravo Science Moms & Potential Energy Coalition 🌏🏈

This article made me so sad for young people in Ireland. Their lives are uncertain & lacking in the joy & hope I remember from my 20s. One even mentioned uncertainty of climate change as a contributor. 1/2 www.irishtimes.com/life-style/p...

irishtimes.com‘I presumed I’d be at least renting by now’: The lives of Ireland’s 25-year-oldsEmigration, home ownership and climate change are among the issues weighing on the minds of Irish twentysomethings
View full thread

Yesterday, our UCD Environmental Policy MSc students toured our campus biodiversity initiatives to inspire their Spring trimester project for my Tools for Sustainable Development module, joined by surprise guest, Eamon Ryan - Frmr G'ment Minister for Climate, Environment & Transport (& UCD alum!).

Dr. Cara Augustenborg reposted

Dr. Cara Augustenborg reposted

Not linking extreme weather and #StormEowyn damage to climate change in reporting was a missed opportunity. Even though we don’t yet know how much climate change turbocharged this event, this disruption is consistent with what we expect from a warming world.

Dr. Cara Augustenborg@caugustenborg.bsky.social

I wasn't thrilled with RTE's reporting of #StormÉowyn wrt #climatechange last week... Thanks to @irishexaminer.bsky.social for letting me express my concerns on the costs of RTE's "muddled climate messaging" and why it matters so much here 1/2: www.irishexaminer.com/opinion/comm...