GIY Annual Report 2016 Letter from the CEO Michael Kelly

Momentum. If I was asked to pick one word to describe GIY, then perhaps momentum would be the most appropriate one.

It seems like ever since the first GIY group meeting back in 2008 The perpetual momentum and forward movement is a hallmark of we’ve been constantly moving forward. Each year we’ve grown who we are but it has one obvious downside– there’s never much bigger, reached more people, added more GIY groups, hired more time to take a breath and reflect on all we’ve achieved. This staff, raised more funds to do our work. annual report allows us the opportunity to do that. In putting it together, I am struck again and again by just how busy it’s been, 2016 was certainly consistent in that respect, but it’s also fair to and how much we’ve collectively achieved. say that the leap forward we took as an organisation was on a different level altogether. 2016 was truly, a landmark year for us. Though I am often the one to get the plaudits, the work that you To my mind, it has been characterized by two key things – firstly will read about in the coming pages is a monumental effort from a we put down roots by opening GROW HQ in Waterford, and group of truly remarkable people. I am so proud of the team that secondly we spread our wings by running two major campaigns in works in GIY and honoured to work with them. In creating a the UK. culture for our organization we’ve often said that we want working for GIY to feel like working on a cool project with your Of course, the highlight of 2016 has to be that we opened the friends. I think we achieve that, most of the time at any rate. doors of GROW HQ in October. It feels like a long time since we first came up with the idea to create a home for the GIY We are also indebted to the hundreds of change-makers that run movement, but in reality it was only a 4 year whirlwind of GIY groups and projects in communities around Ireland, the UK fundraising, design and construction activity, which is not a long and beyond. They are the foundation on which we’ve built our time really. I am hugely grateful to everyone who was involved. house. Waterford City Council for donating the site, our project manager Finally, I would also like to thank the board of GIY (led by Gary Anne Harpur, our architects Solearth, builders Tom O’Brien and all Graham) for their passion and commitment, and for challenging the other members of the design and build team. But also to our and supporting me at every turn. many funders – literally hundreds of people, organisations and companies contributed everything from small donations to large Happy Growing grants and everything in between. We couldn’t have done it Michael without them.

It is with great pride and not a small dollop of humility that I write these few words for GIY’s first “proper” annual report.

GIY has grown into a dynamic and highly professional and effective organisation over its first 9 years but last year GIY also grew up! We are lucky to have a founder with superior communication skills but with the opening of Grow HQ we tripled our employee numbers to almost thirty and the number of stakeholders, investors and suppliers has increased exponentially. So as a grown up, with all the added responsibilities, the time has come for GIY to communicate its achievements, its finances, its objectives and its policies in the time-honoured format of an annual report.

Firstly, as chairman, I want to declare that we are privileged to have a hard working and committed board of directors who have supported and guided Mick Kelly and his team through an exciting and sometimes highly stressful time which culminated in the opening of Grow HQ at the end of 2016.

And while the physical manifestation of GIY’s ambitious plans into Grow HQ is a huge milestone and a solid base for GIY’s global impact, it is not the be all and end all. To my mind, the greatest achievement to date is not the construction of the beautiful building but the building of a beautiful team of people who will ensure that GIY will be a force to reckon with and a force for good for decades to come.

No man is an island, not even the multi-talented GIY founder and the GIY management team has all the skills required to run the smartest of operations. On behalf of the board of directors I commend GIY for an outstanding year of achievements and proffer a green-fingered salute Letter from the Chairperson – Gary Graham to the dedicated and passionate management team who continue to surprise and delight us all.

Gary

WE ARE GIY

We’re building a healthier, happier and more sustainable world where people grow some of their own food.

Why We Do What We Do Our Strategy

The way the food chain currently operates has profound When people grow some of their own food they develop a deeper implications for our health and the health of our planet. understanding and connection with food which GIY calls ‘food empathy’. For the first time in human history the number of diet-related diseases has surpassed that of infectious diseases. Over 2 billion Research shows that people who grow some of their own food people globally are overweight or obese. Ireland has the highest have better diets and eating habits; show higher levels of rate of obesity in children under 5 in the EU. knowledge about nutrition; recycle and compost more, and waste less food. GIYing is a proven lever to a healthier, happier and The global food system is responsible for up to one-third of more sustainable lifestyle. So, we’re all about getting people to human-caused greenhouse gas emissions, and a major contributor grow some food. to climate change. In Ireland over 90% of fruit and vegetables consumed are imported, two-thirds of which could be grown here.

We are GIY

The Founding Story GIY is an emerging global movement of people who grow some of their own food at home, school, work and in the community. We Michael Kelly worked in the IT business for ten years, but his life are passionate believers in the power of food growing experiences changed the day he noticed that a bulb of garlic he was about to to really reconnect people to their food in meaningful ways and buy in his local supermarket was imported from China. He started put them on a path to a healthier, happier and more sustainable growing his own food (badly..) which restored his relationship with life. food and made him healthy, happy and more sustainable. GIY is focused on creating a positive, empowering, disruptive In 2008, he established a “GIY group” locally so he could meet and change in the food system by creating a mass movement of people learn from other amateur food growers. In 2009 he started GIY to who have more food empathy, and make better food decisions. inspire and support others to grow their own food. Strategic Objectives and Activities

Strategic Objectives 2016-2019 Core Activities

1. Supporting people to grow food wherever they call home with awareness and skills campaigns, online resources and 1. Grow an engaged, vibrant and networked community local community supports. of GIY groups and projects in Ireland and the UK. 2. Supporting a network of local champions to put food 2. Devise, promote and deliver a suite of engaging, growing back at the centre of their communities by creating participatory education and awareness campaigns, GIY groups and projects, e.g. GIY groups; community events, courses and resources to inspire and support gardens, schools projects, cottage markets etc. people to grow food. 3. National awareness campaigns to encourage adults and 3. Make GROW HQ a thriving centre of excellence for children to grow food at home, school, work and in the homegrown food, a food education centre, the home community. of the GIY movement and a place where people can immerse themselves in growing, cooking and eating 4. Attending national events to promote food growing and homegrown food. food empathy.

4. Create a best-in-class, financially sustainable, well 5. GROW HQ - a home for the GIY movement and a place resourced, funded and governed organisation to where people can immerse in the GIY lifestyle and grow, support our strategic objectives. cook and eat home-grown food.

6. Promoting food growing as a therapeutic device for disadvantaged groups.

How We’re Funded

GIY is a not-for-profit social enterprise and a company limited by guarantee (CLG) that currently employs 29 people in Waterford. Our turnover in 2017 will be approximately €1,150,000. We raise this income through:

• GROW HQ – our food education and retail centre in Waterford City and online shop.

• Working with partners such as The Ireland Funds, The Community Foundation, innocent, Energia, Bord Bia, Ulster Bank, Aramark and Cully & Sully to create food growing programmes.

• GIY@Work – corporate wellness programme training employees to grow food at work as a lever to a healthier and more sustainable lifestyle.

• GIY Supporters

o Retail Friends – contributions from relevant retailers to advertise and feature in GIY publications in print and online.

o GIY Member Scheme – GIYers pay €35 per annum to receive our quarterly magazine GROW as well as other resources to help them to grow food.

“We are exceptionally proud of Sow & Grow and our partnership with GIY. As an organization they have empowered so many local communities and individuals around the country to grow their own food.”

Blathnaid McKenna, innocent Drinks

GIY Milestones

Sometime long ago – Mick’s garlic epiphany.

2008 – September: first GIY meeting held in the library in Waterford City.

2009 – GIY wins Social Entrepreneurs Ireland award and establishes as organisation. First GIY Gathering held in WIT in September 2009 with speakers including then Minister for Food Trevor Sargent and Clodagh McKenna.

2010 – Wins Arthur Guinness Fund Award (April), first show garden at Bloom (June); President Mary McAleese, Diarmuid Gavin and Duncan Stewart speak at GIY Gathering in Guinness Storehouse.

2011 – First schools campaign, create edible Map of Ireland at Bloom and GIY Street Feast at Waterford Harvest Festival. Speakers at GIY Gathering include Bob Flowerdew and Joy Larkcom.

2012 – World Record attempt at Bloom for the most number of people sowing a seedling at the same time. Run Operation GIY Nation campaign with AIB; attend Electric Picnic. GIY Gathering speakers include Mark Diacono, Alys Fowler and Lia Leendertz.

2013 – We begin scouting sites for GROW HQ including St Otterans Hospital and WIT. Launch of Get Ireland Growing Fund supported by AIB; attend Litfest. Finale of Sow & Grow takes place at Bloom with Donal Skehan. Win Arthur Guinness Projects Awards for GROW HQ.

2014 – Taoiseach Enda Kenny launches fundraising campaign for GROW HQ; launch of GrowitYourselfie campaign with Renault Ireland with Ian Dempsey and

Lorraine Keane. Get Ireland Growing Fund supports 100 community food projects. Patrick Holden at the GIY Gathering.

2015 - Sow & Grow launches with new patron Lilly Higgins; launch Give Peas a Chance with Cully & Sully at CHQ; celebrate finale of Get Ireland Growing at Airfield.

2016 – GIY runs Sow & Grow schools campaign and Give Peas a Chance in the UK for the first time, and opens GROW HQ.

GROW HQ Milestones

GROW HQ is the home of the GIY movement, and GIY’s €1.4m national food education centre on a 3 acre site at Ardkeen, Waterford donated by Waterford City Council. Managed by the force of nature that is Claire McCabe, GROW HQ is a place for people to immerse in the GIY lifestyle, and learn how to grow, cook and eat food. It includes a stunning eco-building with green roof, a 65 seat café, shop, training rooms and veg / kitchen gardens.

• June 2013: Pitch to Waterford City Council.

• July 2013: Public information event at the Woodlands Hotel about the project.

• October 2013: Announce design team to be led by Project Manager Anne Harpur and Solearth Sustainable Architecture.

• November 2013: Taoiseach Enda Kenny launches our fundraising campaign; December we receive a grant of €75,000 from the Department of Health.

• February 2014: Announce major donations from Tony Ryan Trust (€100,000), Bord Bia (€40,000) and Aramark (€60,000).

• March 2014: fundraising cookery demo event with Rachel Allen, and launch of Golden Ticket raffle in association with Ballymaloe Cookery School.

• April 2014: Waterford City Council voted to dispose of the land to GIY in a 100-year lease

• June 2014: Full planning permission granted

• October 2014: GROW COOK EAT is published to raise funds for GROW HQ.

• February 2015: Bank loan sanctioned from AIB; tender Docs issued for construction; also announce loan note scheme to raise €300,000 in funds.

• October 2015: Appoint Tom O’Brien Construction as building contractor.

• December 2015: Sod Turning event features Mayor of Waterford John Cummins and Tanaiste and Minister for Social Protection Joan Burton. Design Team Work Complete.

• March 2016: GROW Circle challenge to raise the final €250,000 needed for GROW HQ finishes. GIY also announces significant grant awards from the Community Foundation and Waterford Local Enterprise Office.

• October 2016: GROW HQ opens. Guests at the opening event include Darina Allen and Rory O’Connell.

Top Left: Taoiseach Enda Kenny, Ella McSweeney and Michael Kelly launch the fundraising campaign. Bottom Left: GROW HQ project team at HQ as construction begins. Above: At the sod turning, Mayor of Waterford John Cummins, Michael Kelly, Tanaiste Joan Burton, Gary Graham and Ciara Conway TD. GROW HQ – 2016 - Getting open and the first 3 months

The final pieces of our fundraising puzzle fell in to place when we completed the GROW Circle challenge in March. In just three months 20 companies came on board and committed €250,000 between them. In return we will be teaching their employees how to grow their own food in the coming three years. We also received significant funding from The Community Foundation and Waterford Local Enterprise Office.

Having turned the sod in late 2015, summer 2016 saw us finalizing the build. A huge thanks to the design and build team, particularly our Project Manager Anne Harpur, architect Mike Haslam at Solearth and our building contractor Tom O’Brien Construction. Also a big thanks to David Joy who managed the recruitment of key staff, the fit out of the building and the final stages of our pre-opening process; and Lucy Bell who got our

production garden up and running at GROW HQ.

We got the keys from the builder on Friday 30th September and opened our doors on Wednesday October 5th. At an opening event on October 6th, Darina Allen and Rory O’ Connell joined our other guests who included our sponsors, investors and local businesses that supported us through the project. On Saturday October 9th we gave our local champions from around Ireland the opportunity to see the place for the first time.

Then it was down to business! Our first course took place on Tuesday 18th, not surprisingly a talk on garlic by Michael Kelly! We held our first Friday Feast on the last Friday in November and on November 26th we planted our orchard as part of our national Orchard in an Hour campaign. Thanks to JB Dubois our head chef and the kitchen team, in December we received a McKenna Guides award.

A huge congrats to the team at HQ on a successful opening period particularly Centre Manager Claire McCabe, Head Chef JB Dubois, Finance Manager Ciaran Walsh and Education Coordinator Hazel Tierney.

Energia Get Ireland Growing Cottage Market

Between 2012 and 2015 GIY’s Get Ireland Growing Fund 2016 was the year that saw us put a major push behind The supported over 400 community food growing projects with Cottage Market initiative. The first Cottage Market was grants and other supports. Projects supported include those developed by the marvel that is Karen O’Donohoe who was working with DEIS schools, people with mental health issues and originally a local champion of a GIY group in Ladysbridge in Cork disabilities, asylum seekers, ex-offenders, early-school leavers and who later came to work for GIY as Community Manager. and long term unemployed.

A Cottage Market is a community-led market designed to put We were delighted therefore to bring the Get Ireland Growing home-made and home-grown food and craft back at the centre Fund back towards the end of 2016 with a brand new title of Irish communtities. A small grant from CEDRA allowed us to sponsor, Energia. The campaign was launched in November and pilot new markets with GIY groups in Headford and Drogeheda. we received over 600 applications for 85 grants. Energia staff are also taking part in their own workplace growing initiative. Towards the end of 2016 we were chosen as one of 6 flagship

investment projects (from 317 applications) by The Ireland Funds GIY Groups and awarded €60,000 over two years to support the development of 15 Cottage Markets in the GIY network.

2016 was a busy year for GIY groups with 65 new groups registering with us in locations such as Castlepollard, Athboy and Significant funding support from The Ireland Funds and the Newtownmountkennedy. We also had existing food growing Ulster Bank Skills and Opportunities Fund will allow us to develop projects register with us via Change X. We brought our lovely even more markets around Ireland in 2017 and beyond. local champions together for Get-Togethers to inspire and support a number of times during the year including: Pictured below is our Community Manager Karen with the team • February at St Brigids Garden in Dublin from SAP Landscapes and students from Salesian College • June for Bloom Celbridge during the Orchard in an Hour day in November. • October at GROW HQ

GIY in the Community GIY in Schools

Sow & Grow Eat Together

This was the fifth year of our primary schools growing In partnership with Tramore Educate Together primary school, we programme Sow & Grow, which we’re proud to partner with developed a social eating programme for children called Eat innocent drinks on. In 2016 we took the campaign to the UK for Together. During an 8 week pilot programme we delivered the first time. In total 120,000 children took part in over 4,000 seasonal, nutritious hot 2-course dinners each Wednesday. The schools in the UK and Ireland. children spent a full 45 minutes eating together and talking about their food.

In Ireland we were delighted to have Operation Transformation’s Aoife Hearne as ambassador, while Lorraine Pascale was The objectives of the programme were : ambassador in the UK.

• Give the children an opportunity once a week to eat in a The winning school in the Ireland campaign visited The GIY zone relaxed, social setting - serving each other, sharing and enjoying at Bloom and met with President and Mrs Higgins. We visited food together. This will develop an understanding of the social the winning school of the Sow & Grow UK campaign, Horsenden aspect of eating. Primary School in Middlesex, in June to meet the kids and give • Encourage healthy eating habits and an understanding them their prizes. The MD of innocent UK and Ireland Nick of nutrition and a balanced diet. Canney and marketing Manager James Peach attended also. • Encourage children to try new foods together.

• Encourage an understanding of the seasonality of fruit Sow & Grow 2016 along with all our campaigns and events was and vegetables. managed by the wonderful Shona Dubois.

The Team

Our staff team consists of 29 people based at GROW HQ and our office in the Williamstown Centre at Ardkeen Waterford. The Senior staff team are:

"Working at GIY gives me the very best combination of meaningful, challenging, inspiring and creative work. I love what I do and I love working shoulder to shoulder with this passionate, hardworking and hilarious crew." Shona Dubois, Campaigns & Events Manager

The Board

Our dedicated board of directors comprises leading business and public sector professionals who give generously of their time on a voluntary basis to ensure that GIY upholds the very highest standards of professionalism and governance. The board of GIY meets quarterly and works closely with the CEO and the Senior staff team, providing oversight and support to ensure we have the greatest possible impact. During 2016 we established a sub-committee to start GIY on the journey to complete the Governance Code. Above pic: GIY Board and Staff visit GROW HQ Construction site.

Board of Directors:

Chairperson

Gary Graham, Bloom Manager, Bord Bia

Directors:

Feargal O’Neill, Regional Director at NEPS

Tim Holmes, Head of Quality at Diageo

Aileen O’Malley, Partner at O’Malley Sorohan

Trevor King, Strategic Business Consultant at Trevor King and Co.

Catherine McMullen, Senior Consultant with International EcoSystem Management Partnership

Aisling Farrelly, Former Senior Manager at IBRC

Paul Sweetman, Director/Owner at Stacked.ie

Sarah Furno, Owner at Cashel Blue Cheese

Give Peas a Chance GIY@Work Programme

For the second year of our al desko growing campaign with our 2016 saw the development of GIY@Work as a focus area for us. friends in Cully & Sully we were delighted to expand the It’s a simple idea – that some of the best places to work campaign in to the UK. We launched the Irish campaign at recognise how food-growing can help people to live healthier Bloom with a panel discussion on healthy workplaces which and happier. And here in GIY we can help to make that happen. ‘Dragons’ Bobby Kerr and Alison Cowser took part in. The UK We offer everything from ‘al-desko’ growing experiences to campaign launched at the Ice Tank in London. workshops, to onsite garden development and community garden volunteering programmes.

The 2015 challenge was won by Optimal Chiropractic in Cork who donated their community garden to the Cork Association In 2016 we were delighted to work with some of Ireland’s great for Autism in Mogeely. A spring meitheal in early 2016 places to work including the EPA, Bord Gais, BNY Mellon, East installed and built the garden which will be of huge Coast Bakehouse, Nearform, KBC Bank, Symantec and more. therapeutic benefit to the service users.

Building on the superb work done by Ronan Douglas in In September, the Give Peas a Chance campaign was 2015/2016, Brooke Murphy joined the team from Australia in nominated for ‘Best Charitable Initiative by a Retailer’ in the late December as Business Development Manager and will be National FMCG Awards with Checkout magazine. The winning developing our offering further in 2017. companies in 2016 were:

Ireland: Aura Leisure and their nominated charity, Laura Lynn.

UK: The Milestone Hotel, London and their chosen charity The Kensington & Chelsea Foundation.

Main Pic: L-R Michael Kelly, Alison Cowzer (East Coast Bakehouse, Bobby Kerr (Insomnia), Rena O’Donovan (Cully & Sully) at the GIY zone at Bloom. GIY @ Work

L-R Mayor Adam Wyse, Mairead Lavery, Karen O’Donohoe, Hazel Tierney, Claire McCabe, Claire Cullen, Sean Moncrieff, Amy O’Shaughnessy (Energia), Michael Kelly and Shona Dubois GIY in the Media

Thanks to our Comms manager Claire Cullen Delsol and our PR agency, Powerhouse PR, we were spreading the GIY word in print and broadcast in 2016.

Mick was on with Bobby Kerr when he recorded his Down To Business show in Waterford in February.

In March we were on with Matt Cooper on The Last Word on Today FM, and Marian Finucane on RTE Radio 1.

The launch of Give Peas a Chance featured on Alison Curtis show on Today FM in June.

Sean Moncrieff broadcast his show live from GROW HQ in November.

We also had features in The Irish Times, The Irish Examiner and The Sunday Business Post.

MIck had a weekly slot on the WLR breakfast show with Ollie & Mary and occasionally he even mentioned GIY..

Bloom 2016

Bloom has been our showcase event for many years, and in 2016 we pulled out all the stops for the show’s 10th anniversary to make the GIY Zone bigger and better than ever. In addition to partnering with our lovely sponsors innocent and Cully & Sully to showcase the Sow & Grow and Give Peas a Chance campaigns, we also created a brand- new discussion stage called Food Matters in association with Bord Bia and The Irish Food Writers Guild.

The GIY Food Matters stage became the home of practical food-growing workshops and thought-provoking food discussion and debate at Bloom.

Speakers included Ross Golden Bannon, Aoife Carrigy, Dr Donal O’Shea, Mairead Lavery, Phillip Boucher Hayes, Bobby Kerr, Alison Cowzer, Aidan Cotter and more.

In our specially constructed stretch-tent, the GIY Food Matters stage brought together leading food growers, writers, chefs, nutritionists, healthcare experts and journalists for debate and discussion on the most important food issues of today, including:

• Reading, Writing, Arithmetic and Food – what would Irish society look like if children learned about food in school?

• The 39c Kilo of Veg – what are the real costs of cheap food?

• The Food Bogeyman - First it’s fat, now it’s sugar. Is it time for a more nuanced discussion about food and health?

• Hospital Food – enough to make you sick. Other 2016 Highlights

GROW Magazine

During 2016 we had 4 wonderful issues of GROW magazine, featuring articles by Phil Weal on growing fruit, Hans Wieland on fermenting, Jane Powers on tomatoes and much more. Claire Cullen Delsol took over from Shona in the Editor’s chair for the final two issues of the year.

Change X and the GIY Website

In 2016 we partnered with Change X to bring the GIY group community on to this wonderful platform that showcases proven innovations to improve communities. In the spring we also launched our brand new website developed by Mor Solutions.

Orchard in an Hour

Brainstorming with Change X and our local champions on ideas to mark the centenary year celebrations, we came up with the idea for a national orchard planting initiative called Orchard in an Hour. Sponsored by SAP Landscapes, we had 100 Orchard in an Hour packs to give away to community groups and encouraged communities to sign up to plant their community orchards on November 26th.

Spud Love

A cheeky video kicked off our national spud growing challenge Spud Love in February in association with Bord Bia. ‘SpudLove 2016’, encouraged Irish communities to fall in love with the spud all over again by hosting a local ‘Spud Off’ competition, with the aim of finding Ireland’s favourite spud.

Summerval

For Waterford’s summer festival we created a unique Urban Food Trail in the city which consisted of 8 raised bed planters dotted around the city centre. Each planter was allocated to a veg family so it acts as a trail, but also an educational activity focused on crop rotation. Our own ‘Juicie’ Jim Brindley led free guided tours of the trail on Saturday and Sunday afternoons.

Other 2016 Highlights

Cré Partnership

As part of a 3 year partnership with Cré, GIY will be doing a promotional campaign on Brown Bin use and composting to the GIY community and at GROW HQ.

Medtronic

In early 2016 we were one of 6 organisations to be awarded funding by Medtronic as part of their Healthy Communities Fund, a 3 year programme supporting not for profit groups to remove barriers of access to healthcare. The €20,000 funding allowed us to support community food growing projects in Galway, Athlone, Kilkenny and Dublin.

Festival Fun

In mid May we were at Litfest in Ballymaloe with Cully & Sully to showcase the Give Peas a Chance campaign in a specially constructed garden and chill-out space. We were also at Fifteen Seconds in Austria (June), Waterford Festival in Curraghmore, School of Food Open Day (Thomastown) and the Waterford Harvest Festival (September).

Team Development

2016 saw our team grow dramatically as we expanded our core programmes in GIY and opened the door at GROW HQ. Claire McCabe moved from GIY to take over the Centre Manager role at GROW HQ, while Karen O’Donohoe joined the team full time as Community Manager. Eimear Delahunty joined the garden team full time. Having started on a short-term contract in June, Claire Cullen joined the team full time as Communications Manager in September. Juicie Jim Brindley joined the team as Comms Assistant, while Elaine Brown joined us as Community Coordinator having worked with us on a student internship in 2014.

Rosy Bent joined Shona to work on Campaigns and Events, and Brooke ‘Sparkles’ Murphy joined us from Australia as Business Development Manager. Wonder interns from Germany included Maya and Ramona and through our involvement in Waterford Arts & Heritage CE Scheme we were delighted to welcome Pat Keating, Michael Carter, Catherine Foskin and Eileen Dunphy. GIYers Speak

“I found the Herbal Remedies course with Brooke really “‘For me it was a dream come true to set up the Cottage interesting. She shared a wealth of knowledge, which market. It’s something I always wanted to do but having was eye opening and the course had a great interactive the support from Karen and the GIY brand name behind element. Learning how to make these wonderful, me gave me the confidence I needed to actually go ahead effective remedies at home, with what we already have with it. They provided with materials at the start – but it at our fingertips -was very empowering.' was actually the enthusiasm from Karen that really pushed me to do it. Often that’s what makes the Aoife Coghlan – GROW HQ Course-Goer difference, someone who shares your passion, reassures you that it’s possible and that you’re not alone with this crazy idea, someone who understands the fear of starting “The cold did not dampen our spirits as men, women, something new.’ children and teens all helped out to plant this food legacy for our community to enjoy over the next 100 Eimear Cullen, GIY Drogheda. years. As I stood and listened to the heart warming conversations I felt such a feeling of belonging. Some things money can't buy, this experience was one of 'I live in Erdington in Birmingham which isn't a very green them.” space. I also feel like the community could definitely stand to come together more and wanted to start a group Tracy Doyle, Scarriff Foroige Youth Club – about of like minded people and make some positive change in Orchard in an Hour. my local area. I attended a GIY event in Birmingham a couple of years ago where you all came and spoke and I found it very inspiring' “Through Sow & Grow, We have witnessed the self- esteem of our most vulnerable and marginalised Liz Courtney Birmingham UK. children blossom as every child can succeed regardless of ability.”

Principal, St Thomas Senior School

Thank You to our Funders and Sponsors in 2016

We are very grateful to the organisations that supported our work in 2016 – we couldn’t do what we do without your support.

In early 2016 we launched the GROW Circle challenge to raise the final €250,000 we needed to fund GROW HQ. In total, 28 companies came on board and joined the GROW Circle.

In return for a donation to GROW HQ, we are helping their staff and communities to grow some of their own food and develop food empathy in the coming years.

We are proud to partner with these exceptional companies who have helped us to The GROW Circle develop GROW HQ.

• Java Republic • Chia Bia • SSE Airtricity • Applegreen • Three Mobile • The Granville Hotel • Sportworks • Waterford

Stanley • AIB • Miele • School Food • WLR FM • Renault Company • Genzyme • Walsh’s • Real Nation Bakehouse • Ardkeen Quality • Whitfield Clinic Foodstore • SAP Landscapes • Bausch & Lomb • Ballymaloe • Dawn Meats Cookery School • Caulfields • Cashel Blue Supervalu • Aramark • Cre • Douglas Carroll

• Flahavans By the Numbers

GIY Ireland CLG and GIY Ireland (Activities) Ltd Figures 2016

GIY Ireland CLG GIY Ireland Total (Activities) Ltd* Programmes Trading Sales 219,644 281,071 500,715

Cost of sales 9,953 201,052 211,005

Gross Profit 209,691 80,019 289,710

Less Overheads 208,984 79,581 288,565

Net Profit/Loss 707 438 1,145

* Note: These figures do not include GROWHQ

GROW HQ Fundraising and Expenditure

GROW HQ was a €1.4m project. The fundraising plan for GROW HQ was diverse, targeting a mixture of crowd funding, corporate sponsorship, government grants, borrowing and philanthropic donation. The repayable portion of our funding (bank loan and loan notes) were kept at 50% of the total project budget.

GROW HQ Fundraising GROW HQ Expenditure Philanthropic Donations 165,000 Construction & Consultants 1,235,000 costs Government Grants 215,000 Contributions, wages & 165,000 Fundraising/GROWCircle 310,000 Furnishings Loans 710,000 Total 1,400,000 Total 1,400,000

GIY, 2nd Floor, Williamstown Centre, GROW HQ, Farronshoneen, Ardkeen, Ardkeen, Waterford Waterford Ph: 051 584411 Ph: 051 584422 Email: [email protected] Email: [email protected] Web: www.GIY.ie Web: www.growhq.org