COMMUNITY ENERGY INITIATIVES THROUGH NEIGHBOURHOOD SOLAR
Updated June 12th, 2026
With summer upon us, villages and towns across Ireland are teeming with high-viz wearing community activists. Many of them are participating in one of Europe’s longest running and most successful grassroots campaigns – The Tidy Towns. Starting with 52 entrants back in 1958, the competition hit a record-breaking 929 entries last year.
Hundreds of thousands of us participate in projects that foster civic pride and cross-generational engagement, while showcasing the beauty of the nation’s built and natural environment. In recent years, the emphasis of the programme has shifted from litter-picking and window-boxes to emerge “as a proactive solution to encourage sustainable community development, environmental stewardship, community energy and pride in place.”
Friends and neighbours working together is one of the most effective ways to tackle climate change, build climate resilience, and improve local biodiversity. By working together, we can achieve goals much faster – and more cost effectively – than any of us can alone.
The Tidy Towns is only the most well-known of a range of similar community and neighbourhood-based initiatives tackling climate change.
The “Our Shared Plate” programme supports communities to grow, cook and eat together. Run under the auspices of the Neighbourhood Network, participants are given the skills to grow food in communal gardens, inspiring “connections through shared meals and spaces.”
While these are “whole island” initiatives, residents can equally band together to act locally in ways that have profound impact.
The Green Hills estate in Ballina, County Mayo, for example, worked together to record their community’s experience about the estate’s green spaces in relation to water and climate change. They used the information gathered as the basis for a number of projects. A garden in a neglected part of the estate includes raised vegetable beds, a mini orchard of heritage apple trees, seating from upcycled old logs, native pollinator plants, and a tree nursery. And the garden works to mitigate potential damage from heavy rain.
Community Energy Delivers Real Results
Now it looks like neighbourhood initiatives may be moving from the garden to the roof.
The fitting of solar is typically associated with formal energy community initiatives such as Sustainable Energy Communities (SECs) or Solar Meitheal programmes. Back in April, though, an enquiry from one homeowner in a new residential development in Newbridge, County Kildare morphed into a community energy project in which four families banded together to install solar on their adjoining homes.
Our SolarSmart teams installed a system that will meet 90% of each home’s energy needs and reduce their annual energy costs by €1,200.
Simply by “leaning over the garden gate” a bunch of new neighbours cooperated to reduce their energy costs, lower their carbon emissions, and accelerate their transition to clean energy. (Thanks to them, four further homeowners in the same estate are considering the move to solar.)
And they set a powerful example of what community-based action can achieve, and what “community energy” can look like.
Community Initiatives
- Sustainable Energy Communities (SECs): Coordinated by the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (SEAI), these neighbourhood groups partner with regional energy agencies (such as Codema in Dublin or the Tipperary Energy Agency) to audit, plan, and execute home upgrades, renewable installations, and sustainable transport solutions. [1, 2]
- Neighbourhood Biodiversity & Clean-Ups: Supported by Tidy Towns, local residents’ associations run grassroots clean-ups and native planting drives. Additionally, many estates participate in Social Credits in places like South Dublin, where volunteers earn rewards for pro-environmental actions. [1]
- Private Eco-Developments: Intentional, self-sustaining neighbourhoods like the Cloughjordan Ecovillage in Co. Tipperary act as full-scale models for ecological living, featuring communal sustainable food production and massive native woodland planting. [1]
- Corporate & NGO Funding: Local groups routinely tap into funds provided by Community Foundation Ireland, which offers specific Climate Action Works grants to support community awareness, activation, and partnerships. [1]
- Shared Tool Libraries: Buy fewer power tools and lawnmowers by creating a shared neighbourhood shed. This reduces consumption and saves everyone money. [1]
- Pollinator Corridors: Connect local biodiversity by planting wildflowers, adding window boxes, or building pollinator-friendly green spaces. Check out the biodiversity resources from the Irish Green Building Council for inspiration. [1, 2, 3, 4]
- Local Clean-Ups: Organize community litter picks to keep your area free of waste and sort recyclable items. [1]
- Energy Cooperatives: Pool resources to invest in local renewable energy generation or bulk-purchase home energy upgrades. [1, 2]
Why Choose Solar In Ireland?
Investing in a solar panel systems in Ireland can bring many benefits, including reduced energy bills, increased energy independence, and a reduced carbon footprint. If you are interested in installing a solar panel system in Ireland, it is also worth exploring the different grant options and green business loans available and seeking professional advice from one of our solar energy advisors.
Feel free to contact us for more information, we’re here to help.
