Airfield Estate, the sustainable food hub and educational charitable trust has announced the new members of its 2025-2026 Youth Board, with one appointment from Clare.
Sarah Treacy (16) from East Clare, Whitegate is one of 10 teens that have been selected to help inform and shape the future of sustainable food in Ireland. The Youth Board aims to help teens develop skills in sustainability, agriculture and leadership while also providing a platform for a younger generation to impact climate action.
Coming from a farm in Whitegate, East Clare, Sarah has first-hand experience of food production after starting a business where she sold hen eggs from her garden, and was the runner up in a Local Enterprise Office Teen Enterprise Competition. With a passion for climate change and agriculture, she believes that sustainable farming practices are essential to preserve farming lifestyles for future generations. As a member of the Airfield Estate Youth Board, Sarah and her peers will be taking part in workshops and talks to help them become future leaders in the food, agriculture and climate action space.
The Airfield Estate Youth Board is a diverse group of young people aged 15 – 19 from across Ireland who are passionate about shaping a more sustainable food future. Acting as advisors to the Estate’s leadership team, the Youth Board brings fresh perspectives to projects and decision-making processes, ensuring that youth voices are represented at Airfield Estate.
Speaking about the appointments, Airfield Estate CEO Claire Mac Evilly said “Our mission at Airfield Estate is to maintain the legacy created by the Overend sisters and to safeguard sustainable food production and education for future generations. There’s no better way to do that than to invite young people in and empower them to participate directly in our activities and projects. While our team will be on hand to share resources and facilitate, we look forward to hearing new ways of thinking, and learning from our new members how best to cultivate and protect our shared future”.
The first term of the Youth Board, which began in 2023 and lasted two years, recently conducted research and published a report titled “Food Systems Though the Eyes of Young People” exploring how the younger generations perceive the food system and their role within it. The newly recruited cohort will be working together to develop a campaign which builds upon the findings of the previous cohort’s research.
For more information visit www.airfield.ie or follow @airfieldestate on Instagram and Facebook
New members of the Airfield Estate Youth Board include:
Aoife McGowan (19) from Carrick on Shannon, Co. Leitrim
Clodagh Farrell (15) from Terenure, Co. Dublin
Emily O’Brien (16) from Croghan, Co. Offaly
Hugo Russel Connolly (17) from Dundrum, Co. Dublin
Jane Duggan (19) from Mullingar, Co. Westmeath
John Badin (15) from Dundrum, Co. Dublin
Mary Clare O’Connell (16) from Blarney, Co. Cork
Sam Barry (15) from Dundrum, Co. Dublin
Sarah Treacy (16) from Whitegate, Co. Clare
Sean Monaghan (15) from Dundrum, Co. Dublin
Airfield Estate, based in Dundrum, South County Dublin, is a dedicated sustainable food hub and Dublin’s only working urban farm and gardens. The 38-acre site, originally owned by the Overend family, attracts over 120,000 visitors a year including families, garden enthusiasts, schools, weddings and corporate bookings.
As an educational charitable trust, Airfield is leading the charge in connecting consumers directly with their food enabling them to make informed choices. We are driven to facilitate and collaborate to support sustainable food production with a view to positioning Dublin as a sustainable food city. www.airfield.ie