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Environment, Climate Change & Agriculture

Community Climate Action Fund


The words Community Climate Action Fund

The Community Climate Action Programme is a new programme to support small and large, rural and urban communities to take climate action at a local level. Mayo County Council, in conjunction with the Department of the Environment, Climate and Communications will support communities to promote and assist in the scale up of community climate action.

This Programme is an opportunity for groups to take a holistic approach in making their community less carbon intensive and more sustainable for the future. The Programme is open to a range of community groups – from those new to climate action to those with more experience.

There are two strands: 

Strand 1: Building Low Carbon Communities: Mayo County Council have been allocated a grant of €609,000 for projects under this strand. Under this scheme communities will partner with Mayo County Council to carry out projects that have a direct climate action impact.

Strand 1A: Shared Island Community Climate Action: This strand enables communities and local authorities to carry out a cross-border project in partnership with a community in Northern Ireland. Unlike strand 1, Local Authorities have not been automatically allocated funding under strand 1A and is open for all communities to apply.

Application Forms

Applications are open from Friday 1st December and will remain open until Friday, 23rd February 2024.

Interested community groups are advised contact the Community Climate Action Officer in Mayo County Council with their project ideas.

Communities should then complete and submit their application form and supporting documents.

Links to each of the online forms can be found below:

There will be public engagement and information sessions both online and in-person. Keep an eye on Mayo.ie and our social media for upcoming dates.

Useful Resources:

Frequently Asked Questions

Below are some quick FAQs about the programme. Full details on the Programme are available in the supporting documents section below.


  • A number of community projects will be selected which demonstrate climate action at a local level in Mayo. Local communities will be selected following the application phase and will carry-out their direct climate action projects over 18 months. Projects can include a suite of measures, not just one specific action.

    The overall objective of the programme is to shape and build low carbon, sustainable communities in a coherent way to contribute to national climate and energy targets.

  • Eligible communities must be a not-for-profit; be located in the operational area of the Mayo County Council; and be registered with a PPN or connected with other collectives such as the Wheel, Tidy Towns and /or a community group with Articles of Association or a Constitution, which hold an AGM, and for which approved minutes are available.

    Examples of eligible groups include local charities, sports clubs, community groups, local environmental groups, social enterprises, Resident's Associations etc.

    Private individuals, commercial undertakings, schools and national community or environmental organisations are not eligible for funding from the Community Climate Action Programme.

  • Projects must demonstrate the delivery of national climate action at a local level for strand 1 and on a cross-border basis on the island of Ireland for strand 1a. There are five programme themes and communities should try to incorporate as many themes as possible. The themes are:

    • Community Energy
    • Travel
    • Food and waste
    • Shopping and recycling
    • Local Climate and Environmental Action

    Please see presentation in supporting documents section below for project examples and case studies.

  • Ultimately there must be some sort of tangible – even perhaps measurable - end result which reduces or lessen the impact of climate change.

    Direct climate action projects do one or more of the following - reduce/ remove greenhouse gas emissions; increase the production/ use of renewable energy; improve energy efficiency; increase climate resilience; enhance biodiversity; or contribute with the Just Transition. Awareness and education projects would be examples of indirect climate action projects. Those types of projects have a lot of merit and are needed, but they are not the focus of this funding.

  • Funding is available for 100% of the project and there are three project sizes eligible:

    • Small scale projects < €20,000
    • Medium scale projects €20,000 to €50,000
    • Large scale projects €51,000 to €100,000
  • Interested community groups are advised contact the Community Climate Action Officer in Mayo County Council with their project ideas.

    Communities should then complete and submit their application form and supporting documents.

    Direct links to each of the forms can be found below:

    There will be public engagement and information sessions both online and in-person in each of the Municipal Districts. Keep an eye on Mayo.ie and our social media for upcoming dates.

  • Lorna Dennehy - Community Climate Action Officer

    climateaction@mayococo.ie



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