Re-Energising The Royal Canal

David Boles

Thesis

Proposal: Dublin Food Co-op Greenhouse and Jamies Farm School
Location: Royal Canal Between Lock 2 & 3 Parallel to St Ignatius Rd

The North East Inner City has long been a broken link in the Dublin city social chain.  It has a rich areal history which is sadly over shadowed by its large number of social issues : vandalism, homelessness, destruction of property, improper rubbish disposal. Living along the Royal Canal it is a hub of life and activity and a way of life. People social, mingle and commute along the canal. More so, in a way than it would ever have intended to be used when it was built. I hoped to re-create through monitoring the interactions experienced with nature. I was drawn to the infrastructural links of the entire canal initially. The excitement it brought to an area. It represented opportunities, jobs , work , links, and adventure. All of these were elements I hope to achieve whilst creating a more urban farm environment created by both the Jamies Farm and Dublin Food Co-op community based business which would also hopefully help the community in the NEIC to grow also. I think this serves as an example to be built upon for the future of the Royal Canal in Dublin and much further beyond stretching as far back as Longford.