“It’s no longer an option to talk, but do nothing.”- Kevin Hickey, CEO.
4th December 2019: It was announced this week that EIL will become one of the first Irish charities to respond to the climate crisis by introducing a carbon-offsetting scheme for over 600,000km of its travel. In an attempt to mitigate the damage to the environment caused by flights, EIL announced at their AGM in Cork this week that they will make substantial investments in carbon-offset initiatives on behalf of all volunteers, scholarship participants and staff who travel abroad on programmes and training. This investment will include support of projects that plant trees and those pioneering sustainable energy in Ireland and around the world.
“Traveling by air is a key part of delivering our international programmes” according to Kevin Hickey, CEO at EIL Intercultural Learning “but the time has come for organisations like EIL to face up to our responsibilities and to engage in action if we’re going to continue to use flights as a means of travel.”
“It’s no longer an option to talk, but do nothing. We’ve thought long and hard about this, as there are very significant costs involved. However, it is important for us to start somewhere and to continue engaging in the conversation.”
EIL provides intercultural learning opportunities through cultural immersion activities for over 2,500 people each year, both in Ireland and abroad, whilst promoting personal development and global citizenship. The charity is best known for its flagship ‘Explore’ scholarship programme, which provides fully funded overseas learning opportunities each year for Irish people to spend their summers volunteering in Latin America, Asia and Africa or for younger participants who spend a school term or a school year study abroad.
Over 70 EIL volunteers and staff members took to the streets at their recent ‘Network Weekend’, with the help of Mad About Cork’s Alan Hurley, to promote Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 13, Climate Action.