DHR Communications

There’s been a number of exciting developments in DHR which we will be announcing soon. In the meantime, we’ve been keeping busy with various client projects.

Yesterday, we assisted Ballymun Youth Action Project‘s launch of two reports; one on a conference they held recently and another on youth perception of drugs and alcohol use in Ireland.

Earlier in the month we supported Clúid Housing Association‘s announcement of a new national contact centre and work positions.

Threshold also launched its annual report for 2010 and called on the government to prioritise sustainable housing solutions over emergency accomodation and street services.

The Simon Cumbers Media Fund student scheme’s roadshows are being rolled out in various colleges and universities in Ireland. So far we have been to University of Limerick, Independent Colleges, Dublin Businsess School, NUI Galway and Cork IT.

Looking ahead, we are working on the Immigrant Council of Ireland‘s 10th Anniversary Celebrations which will be held in mid-December.

So a brief summary of our work this month. Check here soon as we will be making major announcements soon.

Bob Jordan, CEO and Aideen Haydeen, Chairperson of Threshold at the launch of their 2010 Annual Report.

We’ve been busy since September began. First, we had the deadline for the Simon Cumbers Media Fund 2011 winter round and, on top of this, we also announced a student scheme just last week. The scheme is open to third-level media students in Ireland and successful applicants will have the opportunity to travel to a developing country to produce their project while receiving guidance and mentoring from the Irish Times Foreign Affairs Editor, Paddy Smyth and Newstalk Producer, Susan Cahill.

The Immigrant Council of Ireland has also been busy with a number of events. We managed the publicity for their Racism Report – ‘Taking Racism Seriously’ launch, the Pathways to Parental Leadership toolkit launch and a briefing with the Scandinavian police force on the impact prostitution legislation has had on Sweden and Norway.

Minister Jan O'Sullivan; Paddy Smyth, The Irish Times and Susan Cahill, Newstalk pictured at the launch of the Simon Cumbers Media Fund Student Scheme

In addition to this, we also launched the DARE2BDRINKAWARE.ie 2012 round and worked with the Digital Hub, for the ‘Best in Show‘ graduate internship competition. Other projects that we worked on included Active Retirement of Ireland’s annual national bowls tournament in Castlebar, Co. Mayo.

So that’s a quick round-up of our work over the past month.  For more information on what we do on a day-to-day basis, check out our Facebook page or follow us on Twitter.

After seven years and one day, Dermot Ryan is moving on from DHR Communications to new beginnings in Sydney.

Dermot, together with our other founding Director, Catherine Heaney, has built DHR Communications’ capacity and reputation across public relations, public affairs and project management.  He leaves us with a very proud company, committed to delivering excellent results to our many clients.

The team here at DHR Communications will miss Dermot very much and wish him the best for his future in the Southern Hemisphere.

DHR Communications is currently working with the development NGO Trócaire on the delivery of a special Central American-flavoured gig to thank people who supported Trócaire’s ‘Keep Digna Safe’ Lenten campaign and to raise awareness of the organisation’s work in Honduras and other countries.

2FM's Ruth Scott & Joey Lynch from The Hot Sprockets try their hand at bashing a pinata at the launch of the 'Thanks, from Trócaire' gig.

The gig is taking place at The Grand Social, 35 Lower Liffey Street, Dublin 1 this coming Thursday, 23rd June, from 7pm ’til late.  Alternative / electronic quartet  CODES will headline the event, where they will be joined by blues-rockers The Hot Sprockets and rising Irish five-piece Storyfold.  Tig Linn – a collective with members from Kíla, Discovery Gospel Choir and the Afro-Irish music group De Jimbé – will open the gig, while acoustic performances by a variety of acts will take place throughout the venue over the course of the night.  2FM’s Ruth Scott will be the special guest MC for the night, and the gig will close with a DJ set by internationally acclaimed DJ iZem.

To add a Central American flavour to proceedings, Latino guitarists will be on hand, while Honduran-inspired snacks will be cooked to order in the outdoor beer garden.  Games and crafts from Central America will also be on show.

Tickets for this gig – costing only €5 – will be available on the door on the night.  However, DHR Communications has some pairs of tickets to give away over the coming days.  To be in with a chance to win a pair of tickets, just email your contact details to trocaire@dhr.ie before 9am on Thursday (23rd June).  We’ll announce the winners on Thursday morning.  In the meantime, you can find out more about the gig – and about Trócaire’s work in Central America – at: www.trocaire.org.

Catherine Heaney, one of the founding Directors of DHR Communications, spent a week in Ethiopia last month as part of her voluntary involvement in the Irish business-to-business charity, Connect Ethiopia.

Catherine has been a Board member of Connect Ethiopia for almost three years.  The charity was founded in 2005 by leading entrepreneur Brody Sweeney and well-known solicitor Philip Lee.  It aims to promote the economic development of Ethiopia through building links between business communities in Ireland and in Ethiopia.

DHR Director Catherine Heaney befriends one of the younger residents of Lalibela during her recent trip to Ethiopia.

In April, Catherine – along with 12 other representatives of Connect Ethiopia – travelled to the ancient North Ethiopian village of Lalibela, which is famed for its 11th and 12th Century rock-hewn churches and is a UNESCO World Heritage site.  All members of this delegation are leading figures in Ireland’s hospitality, marketing and tourism sectors.  During their time in Lalibela, they delivered an intensive training programme to local service-providers and worked to build the ‘StayLalibela’ brand, which aims to increase the number of tourists visiting the village each year.

One of Lalibela's famous rock-hewn churches. Photo: Jan O'Connell.

In addition to Catherine, other members of the delegation to Lalibela included Michelin-starred chef Kevin Thornton; well-known Kerry hotelier Francis Brennan; and Connect Ethiopia founders, Brody Sweeney and Philip Lee.  All of the Irish people involved in the trip gave freely of their skills and services.

As part of their work in Lalibela, the Irish delegation developed a range of new tourism products, including a cookery school, a half-day farm visit and a walking tour.  Catherine worked closely with the Lalibela Guides Association during her stay, providing advice on writing website content; designing a tourist trek; and marketing their services better.

Catherine Heaney and fellow Connect Ethiopia delegation member, Jack Crotty, pictured with a member of the Lalibela Guides Association while mapping out a new trek for tourists to Lalibela...

... And one of the many stunning views to be enjoyed by trekkers in Lalibela.

Over 80 people from Lalibela’s tourism sector completed the four-day intensive training programme delivered by the Irish delegation in April.  The purpose of the trip was to enhance the skills of key personnel in Lalibela’s hospitality sector, so that the village can take advantage of a growing tourism market in Ethiopia and develop sustainable tourism products.

“While Lalibela plays host to lots of day-trippers who come to visit the churches, what we are aiming to do is ensure people extend their visit and remain in the village for a longer period of time,” Catherine says.  “Our aim is not only to encourage more people to visit Lalibela, but also to increase the average number of nights that tourists spend there from one to three.

“Thanks to our work in April, visitors to Lalibela can now enjoy a range of activities as well as visiting the spectacular churches.  With StayLalibela, we hope to create a more sustainable and profitable tourism industry in Lalibela, which will be of real benefit to the local economy.  Our measurable objective will be to help double the number of foreign visitors to Lalibela from 28,000 in 2009 to 56,000 in three years’ time.”

Catherine Heaney and chef Kevin Thornton participate in a traditional Ethiopian coffee-making ceremony in Lalibela.

StayLalibela was officially launched in Dublin earlier this week, and the launch achieved high levels of media coverage in the national press.  You can keep up-to-date on the progress of StayLalibela by checking out the website on a regular basis and / or following StayLalibela on Facebook.

Catherine takes a break during a hike in the hills around Lalibela.

Win Tickets to ‘Pathways to Africa’ Gig

To mark Africa Day 2011, we have two pairs of tickets to give away for the ‘Pathways to Africa’ gig, taking place at 7pm on Sunday, 22nd May, in the Button Factory, Temple Bar, Dublin 2.  The highlight of this gig will be a performane by acclaimed Guinean djembé drumming master Nansady Keita.  Also on the line-up are Congolese musician Niwel Tsumbu; the Wassa Wassa Rhythm and Dance Collective; reggae, dub and roots act Dub Investigation; and Rwandan dance troupe Inkindi n’Inganzo.

To be in with a chance to win a pair of tickets for what promises to be an excellent evening of African music, song and dance, just email noomi@dhr.ie, including your contact details, or comment on this post.  The competition closes at 3pm tomorrow, Friday, 20th May.

The ‘Pathways to Africa’ concert is being organised by Wassa Wassa with support from Irish Aid.  Further information on events taking place for Africa Day 2011 is available at www.africaday.ie.

Would you like to visit IMMA for a public conversation with renowned West African artist Romauld Hazoume?

In addition to the ‘Pathways to Africa’ concert, Irish Aid is supporting a whole host of Africa Day events around the country over the coming fortnight.  The first of these will take place tomorrow evening (Friday, 20th May) at 5pm at the The Chapel in the Irish Museum of Modern Art.  African curator and writer Yacouba Konate will host a public conversation with leading West African artist Romauld Hazoume, who was born and continues to live in the Republic of Benin and whose work is deeply rooted in the culture and traditions of West Africa.

This public conversation is taking place in conjunction with an extended solo exhibition of Hazoume’s work at IMMA.  The conversation will be followed by a wine reception.  Admission is free, but booking is essential.  To book a place now, just click here.

We’ve had lots on in the past few weeks, and have been really busy with various client projects and events.  Over the past month, we’ve worked on a number of initiatives with The Digital Hub, including the annual DARE2BDRINKAWARE.ie awards ceremony and the launch of the ‘Best in Show‘ graduate internship competition.  We were delighted to secure award-winning Irish film director Juanita Wilson as the special guest at this year’s DARE2BDRINKAWARE.ie ceremony, where she delivered a very thought-provoking keynote address to the students in attendance.

Bruno Palma - one of the winners in last year's 'Best in Show' - helps launch the call for entries to the 2011 competition

In addition to our work with The Digital Hub, we also managed a major research launch for CARDI – the Centre for Ageing Research and Development in Ireland – recently.  This focused on the over-prescription of medicine to elderly patients in residential care settings, and attracted wide-ranging media coverage, including this editorial in The Irish Times.

Active Retirement Ireland (ARI), meanwhile, has also been keeping us busy: last week, we worked on a media strategy for the organisation aimed at publicising the impact of re-introducing passport fees for over-65s, and we also attended the ARI AGM in Killarney, which was widely covered in print and broadcast media.  It focused on the importance for men of keeping active after they retire, and Dr. Martin McAleese delivered a keynote address on this theme at the event.

Yesterday, we had the official launch of the www.energyinnovation.ie blog.  We have worked with ESB International for the past four months on developing this blog, which focuses on key trends and developments in the energy sectors in Ireland and abroad.  Today, we’re working with the Irish Council for Civil Liberties – and a coalition of 17 leading non-governmental organisations – on the launch of the ‘Your Rights. Right Now‘ report on Ireland’s human rights record.  The report was launched this afternoon by Minister of State Kathleen Lynch TD; later tonight, a political briefing event for TDs and members of the diplomatic corps will take place.

Other projects on which we’ve recently worked include the continuation of our leadership training programme for the New Communities Partnership; stakeholder and political briefing events on MIPEX, on behalf of the British Council (Ireland) and the Immigrant Council of Ireland; the launch of the current funding round for the Simon Cumbers Media Fund; and the conclusion of the programme of events we devised to mark the 30th anniversary of Ballymun Youth Action Project.

ESBI bloggers pictured at the launch of www.energyinnovation.ie yesterday

So that’s a quick round-up of our work over the past month.  For more information on what we do on a day-to-day basis, check out our Facebook page or follow us on Twitter.

DHR Communications has been really, really busy in recent weeks!

For the past few months, we’ve been working with Ballymun Youth Action Project (BYAP) to plan and deliver a programme of events to mark its 30th anniversary.  The Project was Ireland’s first ever community-based response to drugs: it was founded in 1981, after three young people died from drugs-related causes in Ballymun.  To mark the 30th anniversary, we’ve been working with BYAP on events that are running now, throughout the month of March.

Artist and stand-up comedian Dean Scurry pictured at the launch of the programme of events marking the 30th anniversary of Ballymun Youth Action Project

Last week saw the official opening of the programme of events, with a visit to BYAP by President Mary McAleese; the launch of a ‘BYAP 30 Years’ art exhibition curated by acclaimed artists Guggi and John Duffy; the planting of a commemorative rose-bush; and the unveiling of a major public art project, developed in collaboration with axis Ballymun.  Next week will see a national conference on substance misuse in Dublin Castle, and a community festival at the plaza in Ballymun, featuring a headline performance by Christy Dignam and Joe Jewell from Aslan, along with a whole host of performances by local acts.  All of the BYAP 30th anniversary events are open to the public, free of charge.  For further information, click here.

In addition to our work with BYAP, we’ve been busy with ESB International recently: in the past few weeks, ESBI’s new corporate blog – www.energyinnovation.ie – went live.  DHR Communications oversaw the planning and development of the blog, and advised ESBI on content planning.  Members of ESBI’s senior management team are the bloggers for this venture, sharing their insights and expertise on a broad range of topics relating to the energy sectors in Ireland and abroad.  So we’d advise anyone with an interest in energy to check it out and subscribe for regular updates!

We’ve also been travelling the length and breadth of the country in the past few weeks, visiting colleges and meeting students from all over Ireland as part of an information roadshow for the ‘Generation Next’ entrepreneurship competition.  We’re working with the South-East Regional Authority on developing and promoting the competition, which we launched last month with a little help from ‘Dragon’s Den’ star – and leading entrepreneur – Sean Gallagher.

Sean Gallagher pictured with some of Ireland's future entrepreneurs at the launch of 'Generation Next'

And, of course, in the middle of all this work, a general election took place!  In the lead-up to this, we advised the Family Resource Centre National Forum on a pre-election initiative that resulted in over 200 candidates signing a pledge to maintain support for the FRC programme.  We also provided event management services to Trócaire and the Society of St. Vincent de Paul for a hustings event, addressed by representatives of all major political parties.  And we worked with the Immigrant Council of Ireland on the launch of ‘Count Us In’, a campaign aimed at highlighting the voting power of new Irish citizens.

Representatives from the Immigrant Council of Ireland pose outside the gates of Leinster House at the launch of the 'Count Us In' campaign

DHR Communications is delighted to announce two newcomers to our staff team: Naomi Feely and Lee Daly, both of whom are participating in our internship programme for the next three months.

Naomi Feely has a background in research, having worked in a variety of roles in the public, private and community and voluntary sectors over the past seven years.  In addition to interning with DHR Communications, she is currently studying for her MA in Political and Public Communications at DCU, and also serves in a voluntary capacity with OPEN.  Further details of her experience are available here.

Lee Daly has previously worked with Transparency International Ireland and on the election campaign for Sir Menzies Campbell MP in the 2010 UK general election.  Full details of his experience are here.

We’re looking forward to working with Naomi and Lee over the coming months.

We are seeking two people to participate in a photocall to launch ‘Generation Next’, a new competition for third-level students.  The photocall will take place in Dublin City Centre, from approximately 10am-12pm, Tuesday, 15th February 2011.

One of the participants should be a third-level student; aged approx 17-20, and the second participant should be aged 10-12.  A brother and sister would be ideal, but is not necessary.

What will be required?

• Both participants will be photographed with a prop to launch the student competition. 
• No acting or performance experience is necessary, but a friendly and cooperative attitude will go a long way.
• Photographs will be released to media nationwide, on website and social media platforms – participants must sign a release form. Parental permission will be required for the student aged 10-12.

Remuneration:  As this is a not-for-profit initiative, there will be no financial payment.  However, family cinema tickets and other goodies will be awarded.

To apply:  If you would like to be one of the faces of the ‘Generation Next’ Competition, email a good quality jpeg photograph, with your name, address and contact phone number to generationnext@dhr.ie before 5pm, Tuesday, 8th February 2011.

About the Competition
‘Generation Next’ will invite third level students to submit proposals for educational tools – targeted at primary-school pupils – that would:

• Introduce elements of entrepreneurial behaviour – such as creativity, curiosity, initiative, innovation and autonomy – in primary-school pupils.
• Raise awareness amongst primary-school pupils of the role of enterprise and entrepreneurs in society.

The ‘Generation Next’ competition is promoted and administered by DHR Communications, on behalf of SERA.  For further information please contact: Generation Next, c/o DHR Communications, 4 St. Catherine’s Lane West, The Digital Hub, Dublin 8.  Tel: 01-4885808, Email: generationnext@dhr.ie.