We are delighted to welcome this month's speaker: Kevin Halpenny, Landscape Architect working with Fingal County Council in North Dublin, Ireland in the role of Senior Parks & Landscape Officer for the local authority. The show garden “Fingal Nurturing Communities through Nature” was awarded Gold at Bord Bia Bloom 2026 along with the Most Sustainable Garden Award. The garden celebrates community gardening, shared green spaces, and sustainable living, highlighting how nature can bring people together and support wellbeing for all ages and abilities.
Kevin is a past President of the Irish Landscape Institute which is the professional body representing Landscape Architects in Ireland and he is also a former Board Member and of World Urban Parks (WUP) and former Chair of World Urban Parks (WUP) Europe Committee and current member of the WUP Climate Change and Resilience Committee
Kevin’s career as a Landscape Architect and Environmental Engineer spans 40 years working mainly in local government in Ireland and the United Kingdom.
In his work, Kevin has been responsible for introducing initiatives and strategies relating to Green Infrastructure Planning, Management and Health Promotion. He is also centrally involved in Green Infrastructure related Policy Development, Open Space Policy and the Council’s Open Space related Capital Programme and Biodiversity Action Plan. He is responsible for a diverse range of capital projects relating to historic landscape restoration, transportation infrastructure, and the development of new parks, sports facilities and urban green spaces.
Kevin is a strong advocate for Community Engagement as a means of building consensus and support for initiatives relating to physical planning. In his work he promotes urban biodiversity and the use of Ecosystem Services and Nature Based Solutions to address many of the challenges of increasing urbanisation. He believes that Public Health & Wellbeing is the core justification for Parks & Urban Green Infrastructure and that in this context, evidence-based practice is essential.
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