This article is from page 8 of the 2014-07-15 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 8 JPG
THE CEO of Shannon Airport, Neil Pakey, has invited members of public to attend a special meeting at the airport later this week which could see the establishment of a community led organisation to drive business in the airport.
Mr Pakey will himself chair the public meeting, which it is hoped will see the establishment of a ‘Friends of Shannon Airport’ organisation.
Speaking to the The Clare People yesterday, the Shannon CEO said that he has been impressed by the local support for the airport over the past year.
“The level of interest in Wednesday night’s meeting is another indication of the support and goodwill for Shannon.
“Should a Friends of Shannon Airport Group evolve from the meeting, it will be a very worthwhile exercise and we look forward to seeing what emerges,” he said.
“Since I came on board over a year ago as CEO, I have been really impressed with the goodwill within the region towards the airport.
“This has certainly strengthened with the gains we have been making in terms of new services and the positive news that our growth has generated.
“The region clearly recognises the importance of the airport.”
Member of ‘Friends of Liverpool Airport’ will also be in attendance at the meeting and explain how their organisation has helped in the development of the John Lennon International Airport in Liverpool.
Friends of Liverpool Airport was established by a small group of enthusiasts and people with a genuine interest in the well-being of Liverpool Airport and since then it has grown beyond expectations.
Their membership consists of people who want to be informed about the Airport, people who volunteer their spare time to help with specific airport needs such as tourist promotion and school tours.
The public meeting will take place at Shannon Airport this Wednesday, July 16, from 5.30pm. THREE North Clare schoolchildren will be the stars of a new RTE show this autumn. Robert Donnelly and Hannah Doyle from Gaelscoil De Hide Oranmore, and Keelin Fitzgerald from Kilnaboy National School, recently finished filming for the new RTE show ‘Bug Hunters’.
The show will hit the screens later this year as part of RTE Junior’s schedule of programmes.
Filming took place in recent weeks in the Burren and RTE studios. Robert, Hannah and Keelin were delighted to be involved with the show and are looking forward to seeing the end result later this year.
Bug Hunters is presented by Dr Michael Dugon. In each episode bug expert Michel meets up with three kids and takes them on an exciting bug hunting expedition.
As well as looking for, finding and discovering insects, Bug Hunters will allow the kids to handle these fascinating creatures and learn cool and interesting facts about them and their habitats.
Each episode of Bug Hunters is broken down into a separate environment. There are numerous animal-rich environments such as grassland, woodland, bogland, freshwater (ponds and streams), seashores, mountain/hills, farmland, urban areas (parks and squares) and houses.
Michel Dugon holds a Bachelor of Linguistics and Education from the University of Burgundy (France), a Masters in Ecology from Bangor University (Wales) and a Ph.D. in Zoology from NUI Galway.
From 2001 until 2005, Michel was employed as a lecturer and cultural coordinator at the French Alliance of Penang (Malaysia).
In 2005, Michel took over a reptile and venomous animal park on the archipelago of Langkawi (Malaysia). After discovering new populations of snakes and lizards, Michel was invited to pursue a M.Sc. in Ecology at the University of Wales Bangor. Michel graduated with distinction in September 2007.