Challenge Bank

Do you have a Challenge in your area that you think could be solved through Design Thinking? Take the next step in your Challenger journey by adding it to the bank!

Courses will be based on the Challenges that people like you, across the region, feel need fresh and innovative thinking. To do this, we’re asking everyone to submit the Challenges that they’d like to tackle collaboratively.

Like and comment on other people's Challenges to show support and increase its chance of being included in a Course. You can filter Challenges by county or category.

Roll over a Challenge for more details. Click to go to the Challenge and like it or leave a comment.

Click to go to the Challenge and like it or leave a comment.

add new challenge

Creation of pocket forests in the border areas area

Creation of pocket forests in the border areas ...

Work with https://www.pocketforests.ie/ to RECONNECT PEOPLE WITH NATURE in border communities. They reconnect people with nature through education workshops to rejuvenate soil and grow native trees, shrubs and woodland flowers to bring a forest ecosystem to your community. WHAT IS A POCKET FORESTS. forests in small spaces. special method of growing small biodiverse forests.

Donegal, Leitrim, Sligo, Cavan, Monaghan, Louth

Health Care Forests

Inspire and support healthcare sites in transforming their green space for health, wellbeing and biodiversity. Ideas include beautiful gardens for rest and recovery; woodland, orchards and meadows that lock up carbon and create habitats for wildlife; and growing space for fruit and veg. https://nhsforest.org/ lots of evidence about the benefits linking nature and well being. Also lots of examples of projects in action to learn from. Can link into social prescription projects.

Monaghan, Louth

Electrical bike and vehicle hire in dundalk and surrounding local villages

Electrical bike and vehicle hire in dundalk and...

https://www.cambridge.gov.uk/voi-electric-bike-and-scooter-trial https://www.ufodrive.com/en/ https://www.lakedistrict.gov.uk/visiting/getting-to-the-lake-district/electric-car-hire-and-charging-points-in-the-lake-district. With more people working from home, using park and ride, could we reduce cars per household down to one car by offering rental of electrical bikes/ cars. Used as an marketing for tourism as well.

Monaghan, Louth

Drogheda Community Fridge

A Community Fridge in Drogheda Town where people can help themselves for free. Indivuduals and businesses can donate surplus food to the fridge to tackle the huge issue of food waste. Volunteers help run the scheme with the help of Co Louth council.

Louth

Ensuring sewage treatment for Dunfanaghy appropriate to present and to future needs.

Ensuring sewage treatment for Dunfanaghy approp...

As above.

Donegal

Sharing the beauty and peculiarity of Ardee Bog: Ecological Survey & Community Outreach

Sharing the beauty and peculiarity of Ardee Bog...

The purpose of this challenge is to raise awareness of Ardee Bog as an important landscape for biodiversity, carbon sequestration and recreation. Friends of Ardee Bog (FAB) wish to carry out an ecological survey of a sample area of Ardee Bog, and share the knowledge we acquire with the community through outreach. The ecological assessment would investigate which species are supported by the sample area of the bog and would evaluate its rewetting and rewilding potential. FAB would then share our knowledge of the bog and its biodiversity through setting up a ‘pop-up’ shop in Ardee in which we could exhibit artwork and information, host educational workshops and organise site visits. FAB would formulate a fundraising plan for the project as part of the challenge. This challenge would equip FAB with valuable knowledge and experience which would help us to carry out similar and potentially larger projects in the future.

Louth

A Community Based Landscape Vision for the Protection and Renewal of the Pettigoe Plateau.

A Community Based Landscape Vision for the Prot...

This large upland area in south Donegal contains some of the best natural, cultural and heritage landscapes in the country. The course would aim to bring people together to learn about this unique landscape, what the threats and opportunities are, and to then establish a vision for this unique area, much of it still in a semi-wilderness state in the year 2021. The challenge would be to involve local landowners including farmers and forestry companies; local comunities and people living on or bordering the plateau such as the villages of Pettigo, Laghey and Ballintra, and all local groups/national agencies who collectively have an interest in taking environmental/economic issues effecting the area seriously - while exploring the opportunities such a plan could create in enhancing and restoring these uplands over the coming decades.

Donegal

Developing Universal Design Community Garden

Developing and establishing Dundalk Community Garden, based on a Universal Design would be all inclusive, accessible as well as supporting a wide range of needs. It would be a place where all ages and backgrounds could find respite and experience nature, supporting sensory, therapeutic and mental health. It's aim is to engage all levels of ability and backgrounds, children with additional needs, families,young people,single individuals, general population, dementia sufferers, it would support those who feel lonely and isolated no matter the age or gender in gardening, horticultural therapy or just enjoying the change of seasons or to learn something new or inspire connection to nature. Help bridging the gap in town center activities and bringing the community together.

Louth

Community Gardens and Allotments in North County Louth

Community Gardens and Allotments in North Count...

The purpose of this Design Thinking course is to facilitate interested participants who are passionate about creating community gardens and allotments in their local community in North County Louth which would create opportunities for meeting, socialising and growing organic fruit and vegetables to sustain their families and communities.

Louth

Knowledge and Skills for Circular Economy

Educate about why we need to transition from linear to circular economy. Develop a market place for materials for the circular economy.

Cavan

Restoring hedgerows for climate and biodiversity benefits

Restoring hedgerows for climate and biodiversit...

Hedgerows are homes for birds and mammals, support pollinators, shelter livestock from cold and heat, absorb carbon, prevent sediment entering watercourses, and are often last spots where you will see spring woodland flowers. Widespread removal and intensive management is reducing their coverage and benefits. Challenge is to find a way with landowners, communities and others to join together to create a real network of healthy hedgerows stretching across the region.

Donegal, Leitrim, Sligo, Cavan, Monaghan, Louth

Wells for Community Connection

To develop exsisting and new places /opportunities for social connection in meaningful ways. Traditionally communities where more dependent on each other and more curious to connect (less distractions) The local community well was a meeting spot for clean water. Meeting at the well and other meeting spots created strong connections. As did the mode of transport ie walking and cycling created opportunities to stop and acknowledge each other. Recreating this type of transport initiative in rural Ireland like electric bikes initatives would help the actions to reduce climate change / and involve tech solutions re the security and charging points as secondary aims. The primary simple aims are social engagement in health promoting initiatives through meeting places as a result of meaningful regular activity.

Louth

The Tain Walkway

Creating a Walkway from Ardee to Dundalk through Tallanstown, Louth Village and Knockbridge using the historic Tain Trail as a guide

Louth

Food Growers Network & Strategy in Monaghan

Connecting consumers with the county's growers, and connecting growers with one another. Expand on the existing (?) Monaghan Food Network between restaurants and food producers in the North Monaghan area https://localprevention.ie/monaghan-county-council-supports-monaghan-food-network/ and make it a county wide effort. Create a new strategy? - the last one was 2017-2020. A community supported approach to agriculture is required as many farmers do not have the time for the admin side of things. Food poverty needs to be addressed too. Could we introduce food subsidies similar to medical subsidies for those on social welfare? Offer social food credit, can only be spent on locally grown or produced food? Ensure balanced focus on veg growing alongside meat production; there's a lot of emphasis on meat and dairy. Promote seasonal consumption.

Monaghan

Littering on Rural Roadsides

Littering in ditches and illegal dumping has spoiled many countryside roads and walks in Leitrim. At a glance, the Lough Allen loop (the roads through Ballinaglera, Drumshanbo, Drumkeerin and Dowra) is noticeably bad. Much of this rubbish has been expelled from passing vehicles. This issue threatens the natural biodiversity, local tourism and the environment. This challenge may well transcend county borders. Hopefully a collective discussion will follow with all those interested.

Leitrim, Cavan

Using the Masterplan to Develop the Sliabh Beagh Area

Using the Masterplan to Develop the Sliabh Beag...

Funding is needed to develop the area. The Sliabh Beagh area is a beautiful amenity in North Monaghan that has been underdeveloped and underfunded. The Sliabh Beagh Masterplan has been created with ideas to develop and enhance the area. These ideas need funding to be progressed.

Monaghan

Digital Divide

increase in eServices leaving people behind

Louth

Climate Change Initiative

A programme set out to work with 12 young people from the mid Louth area that will focus on Climate Change and Climate Action. This programme could aim to highlight and focus on not only this generations awareness but also future generations solutions.

Louth