The Save Lough Neagh Film Festival and Conference took plae on 9th-10th May in Oxford Island. It brought together campaigners, artists, scientists and local communities for a timely and thought-provoking gathering.
What stood out most was the stamina, creativity and commitment of grassroots people — those who have taken leave from work, spent years fundraising for legal challenges, gathered evidence, written submissions and kept showing up because they care deeply about the future of Lough Neagh and the wider region.
Across discussions on data centres, AI infrastructure, critical minerals, gas caverns at Islandmagee, sand dredging in Lough Neagh and proposed mining in the Sperrins, one question kept returning: who carries the risk, who takes the profit and who gets to decide?
There was concern that what is often called the “green transition” can sometimes be shaped without communities having a real voice. As one participant remarked, “profits are privatised, risk is socialised.”
Yet the mood of the weekend was not cynical. It was hopeful, energetic and determined. Alongside the hard questions about environmental protection, public accountability and the common good, there was also a strong sense of connection — communities becoming better informed, building solidarity and imagining new ways forward.
Lough Neagh needs more than rhetorical commitment. It needs real change, and it needs communities talking together.
March for Lough Neagh – Sunday 17 May
The conversations continue next weekend.
All out for the March for Lough Neagh
Sunday 17 May, 12 noon
Assemble at The Battery Bar and walk to Ardboe High Cross
Everyone who cares about the future of Lough Neagh is warmly invited to take part.