Midlands Science has announced a new collaboration with Laois County Council and leading Irish energy provider, Energia.

The collaboration will see science education outreach being delivered to schools in the Portlaoise area in the coming months.

Portlaoise has recently been designated as Irelands First Low Carbon Town and this special outreach education programme, has been designed to create awareness of climate change science and action.

Jackie Gorman, CEO of Midlands Science said: "The Climate Action Plan is Ireland's roadmap to becoming a climate neutral economy and resilient society by 2050. Becoming a climate resilient society will help us to cope with the impacts of a changing climate. Young people care about the environmental crisis and climate action because it is their future which will be impacted by the worse effects of climate change. Midlands Science is delighted to team up with Energia and Laois County Council in providing a number of science education workshops over the coming months with the help of Declan Holmes from Science Ireland. A transformational shift in the way our society and economy operate is needed and students are more likely to change their behaviours and encourage their parents to join them if they better understand the science of climate change. These workshops will teach them more about climate and environmental impact, but it will also be interactive and include brainstorming and teamwork opportunities on certain aspects of climate change education."

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Portlaoise has been designated as Ireland's first Low Carbon Town under both the National Development Plan – Ireland 2040 and the Climate Action Plan 2019. As a designated 'Decarbonisation Zone' Portlaoise Town must deliver a range of climate mitigation, adaptation and biodiversity measures driven by Laois County Council to address local low carbon energy, greenhouse gas emissions and climate needs to contribute to national climate action targets. At a minimum, these outcomes must be capable of meeting the Government’s targets for carbon emissions reductions specifically an average 7% per annum reduction in overall greenhouse gas emissions from 2021 to 2030 (a 51% reduction over the decade).