For many years, Liverpool Irish Festival has coordinated Merseyside’s contribution to #GlobalGreening for St Patrick’s Day. 2024 is no different.

Greening regional locations is an act of care; showing Irish diaspora communities that they are seen, recognised and cherished. Green is also the colour of enviornmetnalism, so another depiction of how we love our world and those in it.

Use these hashtags to learn more on social media: #GlobalGreening #StPatricksDay and #FeilePadraig.

In previous years, we have cut together a short flm of our images. This year, we’re presenting a gallery of our best images. For all the images taken at 2024 locations, please visit our Googledrive of archive images.

Environmentalism

In 2024, we’d like to give a significant focus on environmentalism. As a carbon literate organisation it is important to us that we are not wasting enegery. Lighting cultural buildings green, rather than their standard colour, takes no more energy that in any other colour, but will symbolise both Ireland and the environment. Lighting anything with LEDs costs between 50-70% less that old lighting systems. Can you swap out your old lightbulbs (when they blow) for LED ones?

This year, onlookers are asked to consider their carbon outputs. Can you make one change to your life that would help the planet?

Due to the carbon footprint of milk, our Artistic Director lowered her cow’s milk intake by seven/eighths and cheese intake to less than half of her previous consumption!  She also has meat free days and takes all her soft plastic to the recycling drop offs at the local superstore. What can you do? The Festival commits to ensuring all our print — newspapers, posters, printer paper, envelopes, books, postage packaging etc — are as responsibly sourced as possible.

Internationalism

#GlobalGreening was originally founded by Tourism Ireland in 2010. It gained international partners, with sites in Sydney, Venice, Milan, Hong Kong and Washington DC and many more. Each celebrates Irish communities across the world. Turning emerald honours the influence, assimilation and impact Ireland has had. It reminds us of the time, effort and labour Irish perople have invested in their ‘found homes’ and the friendships made within their host communities.

At a time when parts of the world are at war, being able to show our affection for a community — post-conflict — seems all the more pertinent. We hope for a time beyond war and for a time when peace and reconciliation can truly be found.

Who’s involved in Merseyside?

Each year, at dusk, we set off to capture images of our participating partners, going emerald in honour of St Patrick’s Day. One year, this involved a 90-mile round trip! This year sees the following locations (in no particular order) turning green…

• • The Port of Liverpool Building
  • St George’s Hall
  • Liverpool Town Hall
  • Lister Steps
  • Steve Prescott Bridge, St Helens
  • Greystone Bridge, Knowsley
  • Sefton Park Palm House
  • Liverpool Parish Church (Our Lady and St Nicholas)
  • The Liverpool Everyman
  • The Liverpool Playhouse
  • The Liverpool Empire
  • World Museum Liverpool
  • The Tung Auditorim, Unversity of Liverpool
  • Hamilton Square, Birkenhead.

Get involved

We invite you to visit as many locations as you can. Add your images to social media, using our handle @LivIrishFest and hashtag #GlobalGreening. We’ll photograph each particpating building/structure and share them on Mon 18 March 2024, accesible from our news page.  Keep an eye out on Facebook and Twitter, too, where we’ll try and post some of the images! We hope you will enjoy seeing these buildings and structures light up in honour of Ireland and its people.

2023 poem

For anyone interested, please see Cristina-Steliana Mihailovici’s 2023 St Patrick’s Day poem, here.

2023’s film

2022’s film

2021’s film