Church grounds and graveyards across Ireland are becoming havens for birds, bees and bats as part of a biodiversity project inspired by Pope Francis.
The initiative, which began in Clare in 2023, has now spread to over 22 Catholic and two Church of Ireland churches in the county.
It is also growing in parishes in Louth, Wexford, Limerick, Cork, Leitrim as well as Knock Shrine in Mayo.
The original pilot project, led by Clare County Council’s Biodiversity Officer, Barry O’Loughlin, came about after the Irish Bishops Conference agreed that parishes would return 30% of church grounds to nature by 2030. Read more