• Sustainable Tourism Network member discount available: An additional 20% discount applies for members. Contact us for your member discount BEFORE booking your ticket. Member discount cannot be refunded after ticket booking. 
• Ticket price: €145+vat.

Now in its sixth year, our annual Inspiring Sustainable Tourism Conference is a thought-provoking, educational and inspirational day with amazing speakers, panel discussions and vibrant networking opportunities. 

Line-up

The Venue

We are thrilled that the Inspiring Sustainable Tourism Conference takes place at the wonderful Armada Hotel, Co Clare. The Armada was chosen because this business is a committed member of the Sustainable Tourism Network and continuously shows great dedication to delivering positive impacts on its local, social and environmental landscape while reducing negative ones. Delegates can avail of a very generous room rate at the Armada on 22 and 23 Jan €149 if they mention that they are attending this conference. Tel. +353 (0) 65 707 9000.

Line-up 

Darina Allen, Ballymaloe Cookery School, Shanagarry, Co. Cork 
A true trailblazer over many decades on the Irish culinary, sustainability and organic scene, Darina Allen co-founded the famous Ballymaloe Cookery School in 1983 and, more recently, the Ballymaloe Organic Farm School. Located in East Cork, students flock from all over the world to hone their culinary skills at this sustainable, biodiverse farm-to-table project. The core philosophy of the farm and the school is sustainable food production whilst also building up wildflower meadows, recording insects, swift boxes and house martens, not cutting hedgerows and planting edible hedgerows for wildlife and shelter. It is a circular economy with zero waste. Core to Darina’s work is sharing ideas on food sustainability with others through the cookery school. Darina is also a founder member of the Irish Farmers’ Market Movement, East Cork Slow Food Convivia Leader, Chair of Artisan Food Forum and a Farming for Nature Ambassador. She is the author of 21 bestselling cookbooks and somehow finds time to write a weekly food column for the Irish Examiner. 

Eoin Cluskey, Co-founder, Bread 41 
Eoin Cluskey is the co-founder of Bread 41, a well-known Dublin bakery recognised for its high-quality sourdough breads and pastries - and its commitment to sustainability. Bread 41 uses traditional methods, including slow fermentation and sourdough techniques, using only three ingredients - organic flour, water and salt. It is also committed to working closer with Irish farmers moving forward to procure more organic Irish grains. With Eoin at the helm, Bread 41 also focuses on environmentally friendly initiatives. The bakeries run using renewable energy, and low-energy ovens. Single-use coffee cups have been removed, bin use has been reduced, and Bread 41 uses a biodigester. Most decisions that have improved Bread 41's environmental footprint have also saved the business large amounts of money. Bread 41 also focusses on positive social impact practices in its operations. It is currently setting up a 'Love Bread' education programme to teach people, schools and children about the nutritional values of Real Bread, its cultural history and ingredients.

Adam Harris, Founder and CEO, AsIAm 
Adam Harris is the Founder and CEO of AsIAm, Ireland's Autism Charity. Adam founded AsIAm based on his own experiences growing up as an Autistic person in Ireland. In addition to his leadership at AsIAm, Adam was appointed to the Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission in July 2020 and serves as a Executive Council Member for Autism Europe. He is a Social Entrepreneurs Ireland Awardee and has sat on and advised many government consultative and policy committees on disability rights and inclusion, which have helped shape national policies for a more inclusive society. A passionate public speaker and advocate, Adam regularly contributes to media and conferences in Ireland and overseas, engaging with government and the public to promote greater understanding and acceptance of Autistic individuals. His work has positioned AsIAm as a cornerstone of autism advocacy in Ireland, driven by his belief that Ireland must become a country in which every Autistic person is accepted ‘as they are’ – equal, valued and respected.

Barry Rogers, Head of the Dublin City Tourism Unit
Barry Rogers heads up Dublin City Tourism Unit which is responsible for sustainable tourism development across Dublin city. The unit is also responsible for the Smart Tourism Programme for Dublin which is focused on driving innovation in the tourism industry and establishing Dublin as a world-leading 'Smart Destination'. Dublin was the first Irish city to sign the Glasgow Declaration on Sustainable Tourism Development and has recently announced its commitment to undertaking Global Sustainable Tourism Council destination sustainability certification. The unit also recently won the prestigious Global Tourism Innovation award and Dublin was also awarded the title 2024 European Capital of Smart Tourism. Barry has previously worked with Tourism Ireland in the areas of strategy development, corporate governance, policy, and tourism data and Insights. He has a BA and MA in Tourism Economics and Policy from the National Centre for Tourism Policy Studies at the University of Limerick. 

Bronagh O’Rourke, Managing Director, Burren Farm Experience
Bronagh O’Rourke is a qualified eco tour guide and conservation ranger, and is passionate about wellness and the environment. She has channeled this energy and skill into developing a multi-faceted business on the family farm which allows for a more family focused lifestyle. Established in 2019, the Burren Farm Experience tour business enables people to gain insight into the history and formation of the farm and the landscape of the Burren. Bronagh also created the Burren Premium Beef brand in 2020 and sells their Angus and Hereford beef directly to restaurants and online customers. The business works with a local artisan butcher and delivers orders directly to the door. Both the beef and tourism businesses have evolved into highly sought-after, award-winning products which complement each other. Bronagh's long-term strategy is to improve the land for biodiversity and embrace climate change mitigation measures such as carbon sequestration through the protection of their woodlands. She also wants to give her visitors the space to reconnect with nature in a unique, impactful and memorable way.

Ray Ó Foghlú, Development Lead, Hometree
Ray Ó Foghlú is the development lead at nature restoration charity Hometree which is based in Ennistymon, Co Clare. What began as a tree-planting charity grew into a project that endeavours to deeply connect people with nature, and facilitates a wide variety of fundamental projects to address both Ireland’s declining biodiversity and the unfolding climate challenge. Ray runs the charity's farm programmes, such as Illaun FarmForest EIP, as well as their cultural projects, including Dinnseanchas & Ardnaculla Summer School. His background is in environmental science where he specialised in forestry policy and practise. Ray’s areas of interest are forest ecology, native woodland restoration, farm woodland integration, and the role of culture in change. He is a 2021 Nuffield scholar, where he looked into the barriers to afforestation.

Hazel Hurley, Graphic Recorder, Illustrator and Community Artist  
Hazel Hurley is a graphic recorder, illustrator and community artist based between Cork city and Clonakilty. Since 2016, she has worked with a variety of organisations at local, national and international level, bringing their projects, stories and visions to life by creating engaging visuals, be it live graphic recording, illustrations or animations. Much of her work has focused on equality, human rights, wellbeing and climate action, and she has worked extensively with the Traveller community. Career highlights include being part of the team that facilitated the Children and Young People’s Assembly on Biodiversity Loss, and working for the United Nations at the COP27 Climate Conference in Egypt in 2022. Hazel is passionate about the environment and sustainable living and completed the permaculture course in Kinsale College in 2021. She is a core member of the Cork-based community tree planting group Trees Please. Hazel took part in An Taisce’s 2023 climate ambassador programme with and is currently studying for a certificate in spoken Irish. Labhair Gaeilge léi! 

James Chilton, Associate Director, KPMG Future Analytics Consulting
James Chilton is an expert in spatial planning and destination development with more than 24 years’ experience in the fields of planning, tourism and recreation. He has worked in Ireland, the UK, New Zealand, Portugal and Georgia, engaging in destination planning, strategic tourism master-planning, feasibility analysis, recreation planning and urban regeneration. His notable projects include several major destination plans and county tourism strategies; a recreation trails strategy for the Algarve; a heritage tourism project in Georgia; and a visitor management and sustainable tourism plan for Holy Island, Co Clare. These projects all share the common themes of balancing diverse interests to achieve optimal outcomes for local communities while providing engaging experiences for visitors. James has led significant place-making projects, as well as numerous feasibility studies and funding applications. He led the project team for the successful €20.2m Westport Estate Platforms for Growth application, a Destination Town application for Carlow Town, and a recent €7.2m Urban Regeneration and Development Fund application for Carrick Campus. James is a Chartered Town Planner with a BA (Hons) in Town and Country Planning, a postgraduate degree in Town Planning from Bristol, and an MSc in Tourism, Conservation, and Sustainable Development. Since 2012, he has served as a national jury member for the Irish Blue Flag Beach Awards.

Fiona McKenna, Sustainable Destination Development Officer, Co. Clare, Ireland
Fiona McKenna is a Sustainable Destination Development Officer for the local authority of Co Clare. This role, the first role of its kind in Ireland, focuses on achieving a sustainable destination certification for Co Clare in line with Clare’s Tourism Strategy 2030. Fiona holds a PhD in Sustainable Tourism Destination Management from the Atlantic Technological University, Sligo. Her PhD looked at Sustainable Tourism Indicator Systems and her research centres on supporting tourism destinations by collecting baseline data on indicators to monitor the impacts of tourism and develop strategies to address sustainability challenges, including climate change mitigation. Fiona also holds a BSc in Biology from Hawaii Pacific University (HPU) and a Masters in Environmental Sustainability from University College Dublin (UCD), where she graduated with first-class honours. Before transitioning into sustainable tourism, worked in regulatory affairs, advising pharmaceutical companies to ensuring compliance with European directives on waste management and environmental regulations. Fiona is invested in developing strategies that create more sustainable practices within tourism that respect and collaborate with local communities, preserve cultural heritage, and protect natural environments.

John Burke, CEO of Armada

John Burke is CEO of Armada, which comprises Armada Hotel, House and Farm. This business was the first hotel to achieve the internationally recognised B Corp status in Ireland and is now part of a global community of businesses that are collectively working to develop a better way of doing business, achieving a high standard of social, environmental performance, transparency and accountability. John studied Hotel Management in the Shannon College before taking on the family business at age 21. The Armada employs 230 people in high season and has a year round work force of 190. John also has investments in other tourism interests in Co Clare also, including the Fiddle + Bow collection.

Brendan Dunford, Founder Burren Beo Trust & Farming for Nature 
Brendan Dunford is a founder of the charity Burren Beo Trust, which aims to connect people to their places and their role in caring for them. Focusing on the wellbeing of people and place, Burrenbeo’s work includes monthly walks and talks, conservation volunteering, festivals like Burren in Bloom and Burren Winterage, education projects like Heritage Keepers and hands-on nature restoration initiatives such as The Hare’s Corner. Brendan is also a founder of Farming for Nature and ReFarm which aim to acknowledge, celebrate and support farmers across Ireland and Europe who work to protect nature. Based in Co Clare, Brendan was manager of Burren Programme (2010-23) which employed an innovative, results-based payment system to incentivise Burren farmers to improve local biodiversity, water quality and landscape, delivering consistent social, economic and environmental gains – and garnering national and international accolades –during its lifetime. In 2011 Brendan became a fellow of Ashoka’s global network of social entrepreneurs and in 2018 he was awarded an Honorary Doctorate by the University of Galway for his work in championing biodiversity. He has served two terms on the advisory boards of both the Environmental Protection Agency and the Heritage Council. He is a regular contributor to the Irish Farmers Journal and an occasional contributor to other publications.

Sponsors 

For more information on County Clare’s Sustainability Journey visit here and here.

Check out the work of KPMG Future Analytics and KPMG Sustainable Futures.

Exhibitors at the Sustainability Hub

ONA Water Ireland

Ireland's Association of Adventure Tourism

Dublin City Tourism Unit

Watt Footprint

Solgrid Ltd

MyWaste.ie

NuSolas Energy

Parkside Ireland Ltd