Pádraig Mac Lochlainn (Donegal, Sinn Fein)
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737. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills how her Department can further financially assist schools that are enthusiastically implementing the Green School Programme; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [12387/25]

Helen McEntee (Meath East, Fine Gael)
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I can advise the Deputy that ESD to 2030, Ireland's 2nd National Strategy on Education for Sustainable Development, aims to ensure that all learners have the knowledge and skills required to promote sustainable development, in line with Sustainable Development Goals target 4.7.

The Department of Education has delivered funding to schools and organisations to support ESD projects with most recently €415,000 delivered to organisations in June 2024 and over €450,000 delivered to schools nationwide in November 2024. ESD funding for both organisations and schools prioritises funding for projects that are either focused on or include an element of Teacher Professional Learning and further implementation of the ESD to 2030 strategy objectives.

Some of the projects funded include the development of school gardens and outdoor classrooms and learning spaces, forest school projects, Harvest Festival, biodiversity projects, training workshops and teacher professional learning, local air quality, weather station and local river monitoring, marine conservation, rainwater harvesting, building a sustainable city through STEM, composting, waste management and recycling projects. A full list of grantees and their projects is available on the ESD to 2030 webpage here: www.gov.ie/en/publication/02952d-national-strategy-on-education-for-sustainable-development-in-irelan/#esd-to-2030-funding.

As in previous years, an ESD to 2030 funding call for schools is likely to be issued by the Department in our September ESD Newsletter which is sent to all schools and over 1,700 subscribers: www.gov.ie/en/publication/02952d-national-strategy-on-education-for-sustainable-development-in-irelan/#esd-newsletter. The newsletter regularly includes information on other funding opportunities which may be available to schools from time to time to support ESD.

Schools in receipt of the Department's ESD to 2030 funding are required to develop a Sustainability Policy Statement in line with the School Sector Climate Action Mandate.

ESD to 2030 funding of €25,000 was provided to An Taisce's Green Schools programme in summer 2024 for their 2030 Future of Education project, Global Goals bookless club, design thinking workshops and for Transition Year module development.

The Department of the Environment Climate and Communications has provided core funding support for the An Taisce Green Schools and Green Campus programmes for a number of years. The An Taisce Green Schools Programme is based on the 7-step methodology which embeds sustainability as an ethos in the school and encourages the school community to take action on a variety of themes. It also strives to increase climate literacy among the students and teachers taking part. Participating schools monitor and evaluate their progress on an ongoing basis. Schools who successfully implement the programme receive a Green Flag. As of 2023, there are 3,677 schools and centres registered for the programme, and 3,401 of these have been awarded at least one green flag. 92% of schools in Ireland are now registered with Green-Schools.

Our colleagues in the Department of the Environment Climate and Communications advise that the amount paid as part of the core funding for the An Taisce Green School Programme over the last five years is listed in the table below: