This study investigates water quality along the river Liffey in Dublin city with the help of citizen scientists, including the community of river users such as paddle boarders and those accessing the river from the bank. The primary objective was to evaluate water quality near sources of pollution observed by citizens, while filling data gaps for the United Nations (UN) Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 6, Indicator 6.3.2. The participants used field chemistry kits to measure nitrate (NO₃-N) and phosphate (PO₄-P) at 19 locations on a monthly basis over the course of nine months, recording the results on a smartphone app. 10% of nitrate samples were indicative of low quality water values while 35.6% of phosphate samples were indicative of low quality water. Rainfall over the study period was analysed to investigate the impact of run-off from rainwater on the river. Results indicated that excessive rainfall was not a factor in lower water quality in this area. Citizen scientists' observational notes and photographs entered onto the database, with accompanying test results were key to highlighting pollution sources at specific locations which correlated with high levels of nitrate and phosphate resulting in low quality water. Land use was a factor in these areas of recent housing development indicating possible domestic misconnections. Citizen scientist data has the potential to fulfil UN SDG 6, in contributing to Indicator 6.3.2 while detecting contamination.

The Southern Irish End Moraine (SEEM) was, for many years, an accepted feature of the geomorphological assemblage of Ireland. This is despite the lack of mapping of the ‘End Moraine’ over large areas. This paper presents evidence from county Kilkenny, an area that the SEEM cuts across from east to west. It attempts to trace this feature on the landscape through mapping using both field observations and a detailed digital elevation model. Where possible, it also looks at the sedimentology of the feature Charlesworth (1928) originally described. Following detailed mapping, no evidence for this feature on the landscape is found. Evidence for the reinterpretation of some of the features that formed part of the original ‘SEEM’ is also presented.

A multiproxy (pollen, microcharcoal, loss-on-ignition, magnetic susceptibility and geochemistry) sequence from Lough Cullin, southeast Ireland, supported by a high-resolution radiocarbon chronology, modelled using Bayesian approaches, provides a record of environmental change for much of the Holocene. Following the establishment of mixed deciduous woodland, climatic deterioration was likely responsible for pronounced vegetation change and erosion, 7615–6500 cal. BC to 6245–5575 cal. BC, evidence for the ‘8.2 Kyr’ BP climate event. The so-called ‘elm decline’ is dated to 4220–3980 cal. BC and whilst there are possible indications of an anthropogenic cause, clear evidence of woodland clearance with cereal pollen is recorded at 3900–3700 cal. BC, 3790–3580 cal. BC and 3760–3650 cal. BC, during a period of clearance and farming of 320–450 years duration. A reduction in farming/settlement and woodland regeneration during the Middle Neolithic parallels the archaeological record, with low levels of activity during the Late Neolithic/Chalcolithic after 2960–2525 cal. BC, prior to increases during the Bronze Age then woodland clearance and agriculture between 1500–1410 and 1275–1000 cal. BC, corresponding with the archaeological evidence. A subsequent ‘step-wise’ reduction in human activity follows, from the latter date to 815–685 cal. BC, and a brief but pronounced cessation at 690–535 cal. BC. Renewed woodland clearance and agriculture commenced until 415–250 cal. BC. From the latter date until cal. AD 390–540, the Late Iron Age/Early Medieval period, a phase of woodland recovery is attested, followed by renewed landscape disturbance and arable agriculture in particular, continuing to the close of the record at cal. AD 780–1035.

Citizen science can considerably assist researchers in collecting environmental data, expanding the scope of projects and serving an educational purpose. However, there has been considerable debate on the importance of establishing proper methods to ensure data quality, and providing adequate training and engagement of volunteers, to maximise their participation. In this paper, we present the framework that we developed during Urban Citizen’s 6.3.2, a citizen science project monitoring water quality and macroinvertebrate biodiversity of urban rivers and streams in Dublin, Ireland. This framework was utilized for establishing the surveying methodology, recruiting our volunteers, training them as citizen scientists, engaging and supporting them during the data collection, and communicating results. We provide an overview of the citizens’ participation, their background and motivation, and their feedback on our training and engagement methods. Finally, we present a discussion of lessons learnt, including choosing proper methodologies, ensuring flexibility to maximise participation, the role of local community groups and of a multi-directional knowledge transfer, and the social impact of the project. The innovative aspects of this methodology include engaging with existing networks, and the ethical considerations of citizen science.

The science of geology began to thrive during the middle of the nineteenth century, with the expansion and consolidation of geological mapping of the Geological Survey of Great Britain and Ireland, and the foundation of geological societies across the islands of Britain and Ireland. As the desire for geological knowledge and understanding among the general public grew, so did the provision of lectures and courses open to the public. These public lecture series proved popular with a wide cross-section of men and women of Victorian Britain and Ireland. This paper explores the provision of geological lectures by officers of the Geological Survey of Ireland through the Museum of Irish Industry in Dublin, and the women who took these courses during the 1850s and 1860s, and completed geological examinations for London's Science and Art Department in Dublin as a result of these lectures. It provides a glimpse into the scientific and, specifically, geological interests and activities of these women at a time when it was not possible for them to become members of the geological societies in the cities in which they lived.