Award-winning Fair Seas film about Donegal and Sligo coast to be screened online

Surfer, scientist and explorer,  Rossnowlagh's Dr Easkey Britton, will be the guest speaker at an online screening of a film which explores the coastline from North Donegal to Sligo through the eyes of its coastal communities.

‘Fair Seas: The Atlantic Northwest’ will be shown during the free virtual event at 7.30pm on Tuesday, November 21. The film features the views, stories and insights of local communities along the Donegal and Sligo coast, who depend on the sea to make a living. To register click here.

The screening will be followed by a short update on Marine Protected Areas in Ireland from Fair Seas and a panel discussion with community members from the film to hear more about life along Ireland’s Northwest coast

The 14-minute film hears from seafood producers, an angler, dive instructor and walking guide and delves into how Marine Protected Areas might offer a new way to conserve the marine life that has supported these communities for generations. ‘Fair Seas: The Atlantic Northwest’ won the Exceptional Merit award at the Documentaries Without Borders International Film Festival.

Jack O'Donovan Trá, Videographer Lawrence Eagling, Director Tasha Philips and Elsa Kelly of Wild Atlantic Oyster during filming in Lissadell Sligo. Photo: Swimming Head Productions

“The sea off the coasts of Donegal and Sligo is home to more than 25 species of whales and dolphins and 38 species of species,” Aoife O’Mahony, Fair Seas Campaign Manager said. “It’s also home to rare and endangered species of sharks, skates and rays. This film explores this incredible coast through its coastal communities but it also highlights the impact of climate change, a loss of biodiversity, reduced fish stocks and pollution. It’s not all negative however, the film shows what happens when action is taken. The basking shark was hunted nearly to extinction; now it is a protected species in Irish waters and making a welcome comeback.

“We’re delighted that Dr Easkey Britton is the guest speaker at our online screening. She is a wonderful ambassador for the ocean and has been surfing in these rich waters since she was four years old, pioneering women’s big-wave surfing in Ireland. Easkey is also a scientist, academic, social activist and has written several books about our relationship with water. She will speak about what the Northwest coast means to her before reading a short extract from her new book ‘Ebb and Flow’.”

Grace Carr, Marine Advocacy Office with the Irish Wildlife Trust said added: “The North West coast of Ireland is a magical place. I have worked as a dive master and marine biologist around the world and the west coast of Ireland is still my favourite place to be because of the vast biodiversity and amazing waves and rock formations caused by the Atlantic.

“The really great thing about this film is that it showcases the views of a range of ocean users and even though everyone has a different background, at the end of the day they all want the same thing - a healthy and productive ocean.”

Fair Seas is campaigning for strong and ambitious Marine Protected Areas (MPA) legislation to be published as soon as possible. The group wants to see mandatory targets committing to effectively protecting 30% of the seas around Ireland by 2030 with 10% strictly protected. Fair Seas is calling for stakeholder engagement at every stage of the MPA designation with clear delivery timeframes as well as a robust management framework which clearly defines the varying degrees of site protection to ensure MPAs deliver for nature.

‘Fair Seas: The Atlantic Northwest’ was part funded by the Networking and Marine Research Communications Awards, funded by the Marine Institute under the Marine Research Programme with the support of the Irish Government.

It was produced by Swimming Head Productions, an award-winning team specialising in quick-fire documentaries with a focus on heritage, science and the natural world.