Stories from the Waterside
LAWPRO delivered Stories from the Waterside during the first COVID-19 Lockdown in May 2020. It was initially a story writing competition to promote the value of local waters, and later entrants spoke of how it had helped help them cope during Lockdown.
Entrants were to share their memories and reflections of time spent at a river, lake, or coast. They submitted almost 500 stories from across the entire island of Ireland, in both English and Irish languages. A robust judging process selected 20 prize winning stories. LAWPRO published those winners and a further 18 stories in the Stories from the Waterside book.
The book was launched during National Heritage Week 2020 by Minister Malcom Noonan to mark Water Heritage Day. This initiative was delivered in collaboration with The Heritage Council, The Heritage Officers Programme, Inland Fisheries Ireland, and Waterways Ireland. The success of this initiative led to a request to speak at an international Symposium on Rivers in November 2020.