This Summer we have decided to share stories about the wonderful people we have on our new Recycling Ambassadors team. We're lucky to have some really creative and passionate people on board!Suzie Cahn, Recycling Ambassador Project Manager, is not only a whizz at coordinating a team of 30+ ambassadors and ensuring the programme runs smoothly, she is also a permaculture expert and educator. 

Suzie and her husband Mike have a 10 year old small-holding in the Wicklow hills called Carraig Dúlra. There they run a small education focused social enterprise.

Each year Carraig Dulra offers a full permaculture design certificate course over two weeks, Suzie reckons this is the perfect year for people to immerse themselves in permaculture learning, considering Ireland is hosting the European Permaculture Convergence, at the Knockree Youth Hostel, in Co Wicklow this year too. 

Suzie on the Recycling Ambassador Programme  
"I have been active in environmental activities for a long time, many of my past roles involved adult engagement, education and facilitation. RAP gave me the opportunity to bring my skills and experience to work with a national programme trying to support behaviour change on a nationwide basis. 

The enthusiasm of the Recycling Ambassadors team, everyone from the regional liaisons to the ambassadors brings great passion to the job and they are all going above and beyond to make it a success and bring the public clear information to support better recycling. 

The unexpected impact beyond the effect of face to face engagement at the workshops has been the creation of what I calling the two way pipeline. The public raise questions with our ambassadors and feed those back through liaisons to me. I get to bring them straight to the stake-holders in our steering group. The IMWA, Repak and the Government representatives, the three waste regions. They answer these questions and I feed the answers back down the pipeline and at the very next workshop the public get to hear them. 

I think this kind of direct communication channel has been missing from many on the ground initiatives and its really adding to the wider impact of the programme, getting us all taking about waste reduction, circular economy etc. With everyone concerned about excessive use of plastic, this is a perfect time to have impact."

To find out more about permaculture or perhaps sign up for one of Suzie's courses, check out the Carraig Dúlra website.