Register Now: Sustaining the New Common Charter

Patrick is Director for North-South Policy in the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade. Patrick has over twenty years experience in diplomacy. After graduating in Economics and Management from Oxford, he joined the British Foreign and Commonwealth Office, and completed postings in Moscow, Paris and Tel Aviv. Patrick joined Ireland’s Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade in 2018, working as Humanitarian Director, then as Middle East Director. From 2022-2026, Patrick served as Ireland’s Ambassador to Poland.

Dr Aoife Ní Lochlainn, Head of Policy and Advocacy, Irish Environmental Network

Tara Farrell, Chief Executive, Longford Women’s Link

Kate Clifford, Director, Rural Community Network

Dr Anthony Soares, Director, Centre for Cross Border Cooperation

Aoife is Head of Policy and Advocacy at the Irish Environmental Network (IEN), the umbrella body for national environmental non-government organisations (NGOs) in Ireland. Her role spans a broad range of environmental policy issues, working with member groups to advance sustainable policy in Ireland. She also leads the IEN’s work on all-island environmental cooperation. A public policy analyst and researcher, Aoife has over 15 years’ experience in economic, social and environmental policy and has worked across the public, private and NGO sectors.

Tara is an Non-Government Organisation leader specialising in strategy, organisational performance, governance and equality with extensive experience at Chief Executive level in the not-for-profit sector. As Chief Executive of Longford Women’s Link, she leads strategic development and equality-focused initiatives across a growing organisation of 70 staff. Tara brings significant board and governance expertise, most recently as Chair of Irish Rural Link and former Chair of AONTAS and holds roles across community, education and sport sectors. She is also a lecturer in equality and human rights and holds an MBA from the University of Galway.

Kate is the Director of Rural Community Network, an organisation representing rural communities across Northern Ireland. She has worked extensively on rural development, equality of access to services and rural proofing in public policy. Kate is an advocate for rural voices in policymaking, ensuring that the needs of dispersed and marginalised communities are reflected in government decisions. She was awarded an MBE in the New Year Honours List 2025 for services to Rural Communities and Peace Building. Kate holds a Master’s Degree in rural development from Queen’s University Belfast.

Anthony is Director of the Centre for Cross Border Cooperation where he leads in the development and advocacy of policies at regional, national and European levels that support sustainable cross-border and transnational cooperation. He is CCBC’s lead on the New Common Charter, and a member of the International Centre for Local and Regional Development and Transfrontier Euro-Institute Network. Anthony is Secretary to Universities Ireland, Secretary to the Standing Conference on Teacher Education, North and South (SCoTENS) and Convenor of the Ad-Hoc Group for North-South and East-West Cooperation.

Ciara is the Director and co-founder of Environmental Justice Network Ireland (EJNI). Ciara has a particular interest in environmental justice and environmental governance in post-conflict societies and was formally a lecturer in environmental law at Newcastle University. With EJNI, she has undertaken extensive project management and co-authored multiple reports, policy notes and technical briefings which deal with wide-ranging environmental law and governance issues on the island of Ireland and across Europe. Ciara leads on EJNI’s work on all-island environmental cooperation and is a member of the UK Office of Environmental Protection’s College of Experts.

Cultural Artist Farhad O’Neill graduated with a BA in Fine Arts (Music) in 1991. His training in sculpture consisted of some studio courses, and a basic knowledge of the workings of the tools and machines in the sculpture studio. In 1995, he opened his first studio in Belfast. Farhad returned to Canada in 2004, where he resumed his practice. In 2021 he returned to his hometown of Belfast and his studio is in the city centre where he has created a new body of sculptural work called Bua an Cultuir/Victory of Culture, and works on commissions.