The Carnsore Windfarm project brings together leading Irish universities and energy companies. Spanning 200 acres in the most south-easterly corner of Ireland, Carnsore is home to 14 turbines powering around 7,600 households a year. The land is mostly agricultural but with pockets of wet grassland, scrub and reed beds. Recognised as extremely rich in biodiversity, the region includes special marine areas of conservation and protected areas for birdlife. Crucially, the project seeks to measure the value of the benefits delivered by the wind farm ecosystems to the local community – looking at ‘ecosystem services’ such as pollination, water filtration, or the mental health benefits of spending time in nature. This will give operators like ESB a new way to evaluate biodiversity on the sites and prioritise actions to strengthen these natural resources.
The Commission
In 2026 the Creative Ireland programme and the Biodiversity Office at Wexford County Council in collaboration with the Rosslare Municipal District seek proposals from sound artists/composers who have extensive experience working with communities. The sound artist/composer will develop an audio response to the site, that reflects cultural and ecological memory and belonging, while also bearing witness to signals of climate change, biodiversity loss and transition. In this way, the response will preserve ecological and cultural knowledge, while also serving as a record of change for future generations.
Timeline
The timeline of this project is January 2026-October 2026.
Fee
The fee for this work is €9,000, with €1,000 for travel and materials. (€10,000 in total).
For this fee the composer musician will:
- Build on the relationships with the local community group that have already been established by the Nature Plus Team;
- Gather more stories, knowledge and understanding of the community;
- Work with the community to co-design 6 x tracks that compliment the landscapes and the stories collected and can be accessed via QR code on signage at the site;
- Work with the Creative Communities Engagement Officer at Wexford County Council to upload the recordings to a host website accessible through the QR codes. The composer is not expected to set up a new website;
- Support the community in working with the ESB and Wexford County Council on sign locations;
- With the community, design and develop three further audio (perhaps including visual) happenings/performances related to the ecological and cultural knowledge of the site that are showcased for the public across 2026.
As well as leading and delivering the creative outcomes of the project, artists will be expected to project manage. Some limited support will be available from the Creative Communities Engagement Officer, and the Environment Department and the Heritage Office.
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