Cornafulla and Ballymore to host Bog Bothy tour this summer

A touring, purpose-built community gathering space, is to be located in Cornafulla and Ballymore during the summer, it has emerged.

The announcement was made today by those behind the project, Irish Architecture Foundation (IAF), architects, 12th Field, and Tóchar.

Bog Bothy is a touring, purpose-built shelter and community gathering space in Ireland designed to reimagine the future of peatlands through architecture, culture, and climate action. When it is touring it can be used as a space for reflection, workshops, and exhibitions in communities across Ireland.

The 2026 summer tour was made possible through a national partnership with Tóchar, one of Ireland’s major wetlands restoration programmes, which is coordinated by the National Parks and Wildlife Service.

Following its inaugural successful tour in 2025, which was funded by Creative Ireland, Bog Bothy returns with a renewed focus on community co-design, capacity building and long-term engagement with Ireland’s peatland landscapes.

Bog Bothy 2026 will be hosted by three communities, Cornafulla, Ballymore and Miltownpass following a competitive national open call.

The Bog Bothy will be in Miltownpass from May to June, in Cornafulla from mid-July to mid-August and Ballymore from mid-August to mid-September

In Cornafulla, the Bog Bothy will be hosted by Cornafulla Micro Reserve, which brings together landowners, farmers, artists and volunteers to support the ecological recovery of a post-industrial peatland. “We want more people to feel confident coming out onto the bog and to feel that this changing landscape matters to them," a spokesperson said.

Ballymore Heritage Group and Shinglis BirdWatch & Natural Heritage Group will host the shelter in Ballmore. Both groups share a commitment to the cultural and ecological life of Ballymore Parish, including the wetlands of Lough Sewdy. “The bothy offers a unique way to highlight Lough Sewdy’s biodiversity within an engaging and shared space," they said.

Milltownpass TidyTowns is a community-led group engaged in biodiversity protection, climate action and heritage awareness within a living peatland landscape. A representative said: “The Bothy creates space for conversation, learning and reflection, which feels very suited to the stage our bog and our community are at right now.”

Through this new partnership, the project deepens its commitment to exploring how architecture, placemaking and collective action can shape evolving relationships with these sites of ecological and cultural transformation.

Speaking on the importance of the announcement, Minister of State for Nature, Heritage and Biodiversity Christopher O’Sullivan stated: “The restoration of nature is crucial for livelihoods, wildlife, climate and a healthy environment for everyone. My department recognises that this challenge cannot be achieved alone, that nature requires the whole of society to participate, sharing what they know about local landscapes and exploring together what can be achieved. As we make a shift to nature recovery, initiatives such as the Bog Bothy tour will become even more significant as communities come on board with the collective objective of a healthy environment for all.”

IAF Director Emmett Scanlon added: “We in the IAF are delighted to be working again this year with architects 12th Field and our new partner Tóchar to tour the Bog Bothy to three new communities. Already, Bog Bothy has placed architecture and placemaking at the heart of community-led action in these precious landscapes, demonstrating the value of co-design practices in building capacity among communities. With this new tour we will reach even more communities, who we hope will be excited and empowered to develop sustainable ways to use their local knowledge and ambition to offer leadership and imagine new futures in the Irish peatlands.”

Shirley Clerkin, Tóchar Project Manager, said: “Tóchar is delighted to support Bog Bothy, which creates space for communities to actively participate in the future of their peatlands. As these landscapes transition from extraction to restoration, it is vital that local knowledge, culture and imagination are part of that process. As part of our restoration work, Tóchar encourages people to get involved in the profound shift that is underway in the midlands landscapes, and to explore their relationships with wetlands and these interwoven futures. Providing communities with places and spaces to engage with local landscapes in new ways is at the very heart of this collaboration with the IAF and 12th Field architects, and the wonderfully vibrant structure that is the Bog Bothy.”

The tour begins in Milltownpass, where the bothy will be installed from the May Bank Holiday weekend, with a programme of locally led activity including engagement with schools and community groups. Each host community will work closely with architects 12th Field through a series of site-based workshops, mapping sessions and discussions, collectively exploring new futures for their peatlands.

Speaking on working with local communities, a spokesperson for 12th Field architects said: “Bog Bothy places communities at the centre of conversations around their bogs. We are excited to work with Milltownpass, Cornafulla and Ballymore to explore their relationships with these landscapes and to support new ways of thinking about their future.”

Alongside this, the IAF and Tóchar will convene a series of public conversations and events addressing themes of community capacity, energy transition and ecological entanglement, connecting local knowledge with wider national dialogues on climate and land use.

For more information, visit: IAF.ie | https://www.tocharwetlands.ie Instagram (@irisharchitecturefoundation), Tóchar Instagram(@wetlandsrestoration)

Facebook (Irish Architecture Foundation).