Orla Hegarty
@orla-hegarty.bsky.social
Architect Asst Professor @UCDDublin @UCDArch FRIAI RIBA ARB opinions my own #Housing #Architecture #Construction #CovidIsAirborne #ClimateAction
Nollaig shona daoibh and Happy Christmas from UCD Library! We hope you enjoy your holiday break.☃️ All UCD libraries will close tomorrow afternoon (23 Dec) & will reopen Fri, 2 Jan 2026. The Vet Medicine Library will reopen on Mon, 5 Jan. See our opening hours schedule at www.ucd.ie/library/use/....
The Winter Solstice sunrise at Newgrange is one of Ireland’s most powerful connections to the past✨ This RTÉ Brainstorm article by Terry Clavin of the @dib.ie (based at @ria.ie) explores how archaeologist Michael J. O’Kelly rediscovered the alignment in the 1960s. www.rte.ie/brainstorm/2...
How Newgrange's spectacular Solstice light show was rediscovered
Those who flock to Newgrange on 21 December owe much to the excavation work of archaeologist Michael J O'Kelly in the 1960s
rte.ie
Just a little "head up". The December solstice will be at on the 21st (Sunday) at 15:02 Dublin time. That is the shortest day, so Monday is when the days start to get longer.
'John Muir, co-founder of the Corsi-Rosenthal Foundation, a UK charity campaigning for the improvement of clean indoor air, said any investment in the devices was well worth the money'. There's a poll in this article - please vote. www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/educati...
Education bosses ‘missing a trick’ by failing to roll out air cleaners in schools
Northern Ireland is “missing a trick” by not rolling out air cleaners across its school estate, an industry expert has said.
belfasttelegraph.co.uk
We have the tools to “dramatically cut the spread of respiratory infections” such as flu, Covid, RSV, measles, etc It is a political choice not to tell people how to reduce the spread of airborne disease spread… & to let Ireland’s hospitals fill with sick adults & children this Christmas
Martin McKee@martinmckee.bsky.social · 9mo ago4/ Ventilation saves lives. Clean indoor air, through ventilation or filtration, dramatically cuts the spread of respiratory infections. It’s time to treat air quality like food hygiene: a basic public health requirement.
Fixing South Kerry's depopulation problem An alarming drop in the number of children in South Kerry is running counter to the population rise elsewhere, and it's all down to housing policy” ..my piece in @irishexaminer.bsky.social today www.irishexaminer.com/news/munster...
Fixing South Kerry's depopulation problem
An alarming drop in the number of children in South Kerry is running counter to the population rise elsewhere, and it's all down to housing policy, writes Orla Hegarty
irishexaminer.com
🚈 2 days of traffic chaos from the #Luas shutdown confirms that the (abandoned) plan for *2 years* of traffic chaos for digging up the Luas & replacing it with Metro tracks wasn’t a good idea
Dublin Live@dublinlive.bsky.social · 9mo agoCommuter relief as full Luas services to resume from 6pm as power fault solved
“252 walk-up apartments from 3 to 4 storeys” *not currently permitted under Building Regs Lifts aren’t just for wheelchairs, they’re for parents, prams, pregnancy, disability, aging, paramedics, undertakers, furniture delivery, bicycles, laundry & much much more www.irishtimes.com/business/202...
Glenveagh set to lodge plans to build 1,350 homes in north Dublin
Irish homebuilder is planning a major residential scheme at Belcamp Hall off the Malahide Road in north Dublin
irishtimes.com
“Half of Irish businesses view housing as biggest barrier to competitiveness” .. I bet all of Irish businesses don’t know that the plan for achieving “housing affordability” is wage inflation. What will that do for competitiveness? www.irishtimes.com/business/202...
Half of Irish businesses view housing as the biggest barrier to competitiveness
Housing was also highlighted as the most crucial infrastructure priority for businesses
irishtimes.com
“2,000-year-old building site reveals raw ingredients for ancient Roman self-healing concrete” “Ancient Romans could make exceptional concrete mortars but as Pliny the Elder [23 or 24- 79BC] notes, poor mortar was cause of the collapse of buildings in Rome” theconversation.com/a-2-000-year...
A 2,000-year-old building site reveals the raw ingredients for ancient Roman self-healing concrete
This has re-written our understanding of how Romans manufactured concrete.
theconversation.com
Never forget, if you design a city for cars, it fails for everyone, including drivers. If you design a multi-modal city that makes walking, biking & public transit attractive options, it works better for everyone, including drivers. INCLUDING DRIVERS. The “war on cars” has always been a lie.
Why is Dublin such an outlier on the price of apartments?
Orla Hegarty@orla-hegarty.bsky.social · 9mo ago🪧Current new build 2-bed apartment sales price in Europe Dublin €600,000 Belfast £189,950 (€216,000) 🇬🇧Manchester £299,995 (€341,000) 🇫🇷Le Mans <hour from Paris from €159,100 🇩🇪Essen <hour from Düsseldorf Large 1-bed €265,500 🇵🇹Porto Large 1-bed €240,000 🇮🇹Turin Large 1-bed €190,000 links below
“Government has been incentivising supply at a high cost in a “mistaken belief” that more supply & wage inflation will achieve affordability” www.irishtimes.com/property/res...
Have Irish property prices reached their peak? Five experts give their take
Property prices in Irelaned continue to rise so is there merit in waiting to buy?
irishtimes.com
TIME person of the year “The Architects of AI” Real architects are ethical. They care about people’s lives, the planet & the climate emergency
“on conservative & rough assumption total capital investment [in apartments] could be €2.5 -€3 billion, & more to buyers” .. this lobbyist “industry research” of costs has be challenged hard. It’s not independent, & we can’t afford it @clifftaylorit.bsky.social www.irishtimes.com/your-money/2...
Big State subsidies make apartments viable, but average earners still priced out
New report shows that Government incentives make the numbers add up for developers, but not at an affordable cost for buyers
irishtimes.com
Paywall lifted on the #EchoChamberPod with the powerhouse @judesherry.bsky.social and not awful @frankoconnor.bsky.social Derelict Ireland - Awareness Is Not Enough Listen: podcasts.apple.com/ie/podcast/t...
Ireland’s natural habitats decline further with 90% officially in poor condition www.irishtimes.com/environment/...
Ireland’s natural habitats decline further with 90% officially in poor condition
Head of National Parks and Wildlife Service says time to begin conservation efforts ‘was yesterday’
irishtimes.com
We are building a resource hub that will support educators of children and young people with Long Covid and overlapping illness. Thanks to all our #volunteers who make this possible. www.longcovidkids.org/education-pr... #Education #Inclusion #EquitableEducation #SEND #Disability
“it remains to be seen if building high-cost apartments will do anything to square the affordability circle at the heart of the country’s housing challenge” ..high cost claims from development sector need to be challenged www.irishtimes.com/business/202...
Ireland’s vicious housing circle: high costs, high rents
Private rental sector investment seems to be a central focus of Government policy
irishtimes.com
This is a photo of all the workers who have spent more than five years restoring the Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris
Clean air, ventilation & masks all stop the spread of disease “Flu Season” is just cold weather.. leading to closed windows.. leading to inadequately ventilated buildings.. leading to a build up of virus in the air #FluIsAirborne
The Irish Times@irishtimes.com · 9mo agoNumber of people hospitalised with flu increases by almost 60% in two weeks
🪧Current new build 2-bed apartment sales price in Europe Dublin €600,000 Belfast £189,950 (€216,000) 🇬🇧Manchester £299,995 (€341,000) 🇫🇷Le Mans <hour from Paris from €159,100 🇩🇪Essen <hour from Düsseldorf Large 1-bed €265,500 🇵🇹Porto Large 1-bed €240,000 🇮🇹Turin Large 1-bed €190,000 links below
Irish Examiner@irishexaminer.bsky.social · 9mo agoHealth Services Executive telling schools & childcare in North West to “keep rooms well ventilated” .. yet still in the media still telling everyone else to “cough in your elbow & wash your hands” 🤦🏻♀️ #FluIsAirborne #CovidIsAirborne
Clean Air Advocacy Ireland @cleanairie.bsky.social · 9mo agoGreat to see HSE now recommending that students & staff stay home while sick, and to keep rooms well ventilated to reduce airborne spread of infections. Such a statement would have been a lot more impactful if they were a constant standard, not just rolled out once the horse has already bolted.
New Gist: Waving the Ban Hammer Patrick O'Donovan has proposed a National ID system, a Meta-endorsed regulation model and a mass surveillance machine, all in one. It's government by Dunning-Kruger. www.thegist.ie/the-gist-wav...
The Gist: Waving the Ban Hammer
Patrick O'Donovan has proposed a National ID system, a Meta-endorsed regulation model and a mass surveillance machine, all in one. This is the Gist.
thegist.ie
“The World Economic Forum estimated a one-megawatt data centre could consume up to 25.5 million litres of water each year just for cooling, comparable to the daily water use of about 300,000 people” www.abc.net.au/news/2025-12...
What we know about water use of the over 250 data centres in Australia
Australia has more than 250 data centres and more in the pipeline, prompting experts to warn against using drinking water to cool servers.
abc.net.au
🪧Current new build 2-bed apartment sales price in Europe Dublin €600,000 Belfast £189,950 (€216,000) 🇬🇧Manchester £299,995 (€341,000) 🇫🇷Le Mans <hour from Paris from €159,100 🇩🇪Essen <hour from Düsseldorf Large 1-bed €265,500 🇵🇹Porto Large 1-bed €240,000 🇮🇹Turin Large 1-bed €190,000 links below
Irish Examiner@irishexaminer.bsky.social · 9mo ago🏗️ 🇮🇪 “Construction Activity in Ireland has now decreased in each of the past seven months” “faster pace of contraction in November.. weakness in activity levels across commercial, residential & civil engineering being the weakest performing sub-sector” www.pmi.spglobal.com/Public/Home/...
🏗️ SCSI apartment cost report It makes ZERO sense to claim hard construction cost inflation is 49% for suburban apartments.. but only 22% & 19% for urban apartments. What’s going on? Cat 2 suburban 3-6 storey Cat 3 urban 5-8 storey Cat 4 urban 9-15 storey scsi.ie/wp-content/u...
