Geological Survey Ireland and INFOMAR attend Rose Festival 2025

Graduates representing Geological Survey Ireland

The annual Rose Festival took place in St Anne’s Park, Clontarf, Dublin on July 19th and 20th where Geological Survey Ireland and INFOMAR showcased their work in the Biodiversity and Biosphere Villages. The Rose Festival is a much-loved, free, family-friendly event that attracts thousands of visitors each year. It features live music, arts and crafts, food vendors, and a vibrant celebration of community and nature. The Biodiversity and Biosphere Villages showcases the incredible work of environmental, conservation and community groups who engage with the public on biodiversity, climate action and sustainability.

Figure 1: Geological Survey Ireland graduates engaging with visitors.

Over the course of the weekend teams from GSI/INFOMAR spoke to many members of the public about geology, soils, geothermal, coastal change and Marine mapping. Some of the highlights from the team included: 

  • Wandering by the other stalls in the Biodiversity and Biosphere Village and seeing all of the gorgeous plants along with the many dogs that visited our stand to say hello.
  • Getting to talk to retired members of the public from environmental fields and hearing their stories and the passion they still have for it as well as hearing the live music playing all day.
  • Engaging with inquisitive visitors many of whom were fascinated by the geological map of Ireland. The visitors were eager to understand the colour scheme of the map and discover the geology of their home counties.
  • Receiving a chilli plant, herbs and plenty of enthusiasm from one of the exhibitors as a thank you for explaining the geology map of Ireland.

Figure 2: Rose beds at St. Annes Park.

This event was a fantastic opportunity to connect with the community, raise awareness, and inspire action for environmental awareness and protecting our marine environment.

INFOMAR is Ireland’s national seabed mapping programme, funded by the Department of Climate, Energy and the Environment and jointly managed by Geological Survey Ireland and the Marine Institute. Its mission is to map the seabed of Ireland and deliver a complete bathymetric dataset to support sustainable marine management into the future.