The West Kerry area was awarded the title thanks to the local community’s dedication and commitment to their wonderful environment.
The judges said the core of the community’s work is based on the fact that they don’t take any of their peninsula’s considerable advantages for granted.
“They care for their beautiful environment, they know they have to protect it and as a result they create imaginative ways to be more sustainable in the way people work and live there,” judges said.
“They also understand they have a responsibility to improve the peninsula and to leave it in a better place for the next generation of residents and visitors.”
Although Dingle town itself has a population of only about 1,600 people with 13,000 in the wider area, a million people visit the Peninsula annually.
The community has worked tirelessly to develop projects in energy, transport, agriculture and sustainable tourism with many initiatives, such as those aimed at reducing waste at food festivals or encouraging people to work together to plant trees.
‘Ireland’s Greenest Places 2025’ began in late May when members of the public were invited to nominate a special place or project which they believe contributes to a genuinely greener environment.
Each place was judged on specific criteria including its beneficial environmental impact, level of ongoing collective engagement by the community and evidence of behavioural change by people.
The panel of five judges consisted of Eamon Ryan, former leader of the Green Party, Kevin O’Sullivan, Irish Times Environment and Science Editor, Lisa Browne of Electric Ireland, and journalists Rosita Boland and Mary Minihan from The Irish Times.
In total over 120 nominations were received from across the island with the overall winner and category winners being chosen from a shortlist of 14 entries.
Two other Kerry places were also on the shortlist. Killarney was one of three finalists in the Greenest Town category along with Ballina in Mayo and Skerries in Dublin with the latter emerging the winner.
In the Greenest Village category Castlegregory/Maharees was up against Inagh in Clare, Louisburgh in Mayo and Cloughjordan Ecovillage in Tipperary. In the end it was Inagh which claimed the Greenest Village title.