COMPANY REGISTRATION NUMBER: N1675600 CHARITY REGISTRATION NUMBER: NIC108291 Environmental Justice Network Ireland Ltd Company Limited by Guarantee Unaudited Financial Statements 31 December 2023
Environmental Justice Network Ireland Ltd Company Limited by Guarantee Financial Statements Year ended 31 December 2023 Page Trustees, annual report (incorporating the director's report) Independent examinerfs report to the trustees 11 Statement of financial activities (including income and expenditure account) 13 ststement of financial position 14 Notes to the financial statements 15
Environmental Justice Network Ireland Ltd Company Limited by Guarantee Trustees. Annual Report (Incorporating the Director's Report) Year ended 31 December 2023 The trustees. who are also the directors for the purposes of company law. psent Iheir rep(Kt and the unaudited financial statements of the charity for the year ended 31 December 2023. Ref¢rence and administrative details Registered charity name Environmental Justice Nehyork Ireland Ltd Charity registration number NIC108291 Company regislration number N16756(M) Principal office and registered 0[aU Baths office 0eaU Avenue Belfasl BT2 8HS Northern Ireland The trustees Ms V Cirefice Mr R Blackwood Dr P Doran Ms B McNeill Mr S Wood Mrs C Bailey (Resigned 23 February 2023) (Resigned 1 November 2023) (Appointed 10 January 2024) Company secretary Dr Clara Brennan Independent examiner Finegan Gibson Ltd
Environmental Justice Network Ireland Ltd Company Limited by Guarantee Trustees. Annual Report (Incorporating the Director's Report) (contlnu8d) Year ended 31 December 2023 Structure. govemance and management The Environmental Justice Network Ireland was launched in June 2019 to create a collaborative plattorm fc partnership working beeen academics, representalives of civil society and environmental NGOS. EJNI'S core goal is to address the root causes of social and environmenlal justice deficits on the island of Ireland. EJNI is delivering this goal through an innovative. transdisciplinary model of wllaboration which draws together diverse stakeholders and decision-makers who usually operate in almost completely separale spheres to enhance knowledge exchange and facilitate more effecttve and strategic research, advocacy and action. EJNI now has an extensive netsvork of members drawn from academia. lawyers. NGOS and community activists from across the island of Ireland and beyond who work together to deliver unique, cutting-edge collaborative environmentsl Justi projects. EJNI is an independent, non-profit netsvork, existing and acting in the public interest. The organisation currently has a Board of Trustees whith provides oversight and makes core decisions. Co-ordination of its projects is led by the Director and Steering Group. which is comprised of voluntary representatives from academia. the NGO and legal sectors and grassrcols community activism drawn from its wider network. Its primary activities centre on three key areas: (il Research: the creation and dissemination of evidence-based. multi-media resources to help enhance knowledge about environmental and social justice issues which impact citizens on the island of Ireland and beyond; (ill Advocacy.. empowering and campaigning support activities relating to environmental injustices.. (iii) Action: the provision of a unique platfomi for collaborative online and in-person activism and action designed to enhance cperation beeen diverse stakeholders and across borders.
Environmental Justice Network Ireland Ltd Company Limited by Guarantee Trustees. Annual Report (Incorporating the Directorfs Report) (continued) Year ended 31 December 2023 Structure, govemance and management (¢onthiuedJ Trustses and declslon-making EJNI is driven and overseen by a Board of Trustees and supported by a Steering Group that sits within a transdisciplinary, cooperative 'community of practice,. The aim is a highly structured system of distributed decision making. producing high quality outputs effiuenuy and democratically Ihrough a cooperative model based on (i) core operations and lil) collaborative projects (as described below). The Board of Trustees is responsible for overall perfomance. govemance and policy. It is currently comprised of 4 individuals. Truslees will be elected and appointed by the Interim Board and Company Secretary with consideration of adwce from Steering Group members. The appointed board will be representativ& and reflect the ethos of the organisation. In December 2023, the board is comprised of.. Simon Wood, Brona McNeill, Clare Bailey and Vcenza Cirefice. Dr Clara Brennan (Director, EJNI) is company secretary. The Steering Group is comprised of members of the network and EJNI staff, with a maximum of 15 participants. It meels regularly and is representative of the diverse different types of stakeholders EJNI works with. Staff and Remuneration During 2023 EJNI'S core activities continued to be funded by the Joseph RoWnte Charitable Trust (grant for core funding ran from Ocl 2021- September 2023. and was renewed in June 2023 for a further 3 years) to support a small team of part-time staff to deliver its core operations and support and coordinate its collaborative projects (detailed below). EJNI staff and steering group members may hold multiple roles within the organisation (with the exception of board members, who cannot be salaried employees), e.g. staff members may also be involved in collaborative projeGts as Gonsultants. Director- Clara Brennan Research Officer.. Caitlin Mcllhennon Research Assistant.. Shea Anderson IT and web support". Phillip Lock and John Bums Remuneration for these staff members in their core roles was agreed by Ihe board on the basis of academic payscales for lecturer and research asssstant (in light of the qualifications and the previous roles of the staff members) and wtth consideration of NJC payscales. For project consultancy worf(, daily rates are negotiated with funders on a project-by-project basis. Relationships with related parties Brcina McNeill {Trustee and member of the steering group) is sister to Clara Brennan (Director). Phillip Lock (IT and web support) is husband to Clara Brennan.
Environmental Justice Network Ireland Ltd Company Limited by Guarantee Trustees. Annual Report (Incorporating the Directorfs Report) (¢oRthiued) Year ended 31 December 2023 Objectives and actlvltles EJNI'S growing neOrk of academics, lawyers, NGOS and grassroots community activists in Northem Ireland and across the island of Ireland are working together with partners across the EU to spOnd to environmental and social injustice. EJNI defines 'environmental justice, as the prevention of unfairly distributed environmental harms and the estsblishment of procedures to ensure that concerned citizens and public InteSt groups can a¢$$ the justice system at reasonable cost-. be provided with a fair plafform for the treatment of environmental issues- and obtain adequate and effective remedies for breaches of environmental law. EJNI will contribute to the ongoing tranSfOatiOn of the Northem Ireland conflict through: empowering cilizens to address root causes of environmental injustice namely the de-prioritization of environmental protection and social justice during Ihe conflict contributing to peace-building efforts by providing a plaffom for collaboration between diverse stakeholders but also beiween groups and indNiduals from all communities in Northern Ireland promoting cross-border cwperation on the island of Ireland through the development of cooperative solutions to shared environmental chalSenges EJNI'S core mission and operations are underpinned by the principles and values of participation, human rights and equality. Public participation is one of the central tenets of the UNECE Convention on Access to Environmental Justi. The right to a heatthy environment is increasingly recognised as the basis for a wide range of legal interventions centred on environmental justice claims. Finally. equality, dIVety & inclusivity considerations have informed the development of the organisation since its establishment. EJNI'S activities are designed to encourage the development of a non-sectarian political culture which is inclusive. transparenl. responsive and accountable. It will do this through supporting and equipping communities with the knowledge they need to create a vibranL pluralist and activist civil society, responsive to the needs of the most vulnerable and able to hold the government to account for environmental and connected social justice failures EJNI'S work will help provide a platft)mi for voices from community activist groups which have been marginalised groups in the context of public policy-making in relation to the environment and social justice in Northem Ireland. Through joint-working belween communtlies. NGOS. lawyers and academics to produce evidence-based resources. events and advocacy activits'es. EJNI will help cultivate the Independen of the community and voluntary sectors. EJNI'S work has already. and Wbll conlinue to develop projects that promote increased participation of women in processes which will help influence political decis10n-mang and also greater indusivity in political decision-making and poIiGy work. EJNI'S work will fulfil three central charitable purwses: (i) to promote. for the benefit of the public, access to environmental justice by supporknng comrnuntties. individuals and organisations that are engaged in challenging environmental injLJstice on the island of Ireland and providing a Platfo for collaboration between these groups.. {ii) to promote. for the benefit of the public, the advanment of education about environmental justice concems on the island of Ireland and how these relate lo global environmental. economic and societal debates: and(iii)lo cary out or assist in the carying out of research inlo environmental justice and to publish or otherwise disseminate the results of such research on the island of Ireland and across the wodd for the benefit of the public. EJNI will achieve tts goal of enhancing environmental justice on the island of Ireland through
Environmental Justice Network Ireland Ltd Company Limited by Guarantee Trustees. Annual Report (Incorporating the Directorfs Report) (contlnued) Year ended 31 December 2023 addressing the root USe$ of environmental Injusti through three ntral areas of activty: Research." the creation and dissemination of evKdence-based. rnulti-Tnedia resources to help enhance knowledge about environmental and social justice issues which impact citizens on the island of Ireland and beyond. Advocacy. empowering and campaigning supwrt activities relating to environmental InjustiS. Action= the prowsion of a unique plafform for collaborative online and in-person acbvism and action designed lo enhance cooperation belween diverse slakeholders and across borders. In terms of timescale. EJNI has a range of short-. medium- and long-tern goals. In the short term, the goal of the organisation is to continue to develop its network, profile. administrative and working practices and acquire additional core funding to support a growing team of staff in line with the scale of our operations - which have increased again during 2023. In the medium term. EJNI will focus on the development of its 4 core projects.. Rights and Nature.. Access to Justice: Climate Govemance and Linking the Irish Environment. In the long lem, EJNI will continue to develop new project streams within a broader strategy for addressed environmental and the connected social injustice on the island of Ireland. This strategy will be developed in partnership with EJNI'S network of partners from the island of Ireland but also in consultation with other environmental justice networks and bodies from other jurisdictions (in particular from postryconflict societies).
Environmental Justice Network Ireland Ltd Company Limited by Guarantee Trustees. Annual Report (Incorporating the Director's Report) (¢ontlnued) Year ended 31 December 2023 Objectives and actlvltles (conth?ued) Risks The retum to physical events in the post-pandemic environmentsl justice arena has been slow. Our response to this has been lo blend in-person events with the production of a range of online altematives which have been highly successful. including hybrid meetings. a series of collaborative film projects, webinars. interactive briefing papers and online dialogues and the development of a social media and communications strategy which is focused on digital activities and advocacy events. We have minimised costs of operating a physical office by taking up a residenl desk in a co-working space - so we do not have wastage or unnecessary overheads associated with a full private office. In addition. our working pattems are flexible to ensure equality of opportunity and participation for parents and those with caring responsibilities. Unprecedented levels of political uncertainty in Northem Ireland and the controversial nature of some of the issues which will be raised during projects (e.g. the extent & nature of cross-border collaboration on the environment) can render building Irust beleen stakeholders & ensuring active participation difficult. We have employed mechanisms used to build trust in collaborative projects, such as building on existing relationships. use of intermediaries & guarantors & building trust through the project itself to offset this risk. Stakeholders are always consulted about anonymity & confidentiality requirements at the outset of each EJNI project and where relevant a full ethical approval process is cofflpleted via the academic institutions associated with each project. Difficulties developing a Common 'language' that cross-disciplinary groups & non-academic stakeholders can engage with and dealing wth disagreements between collaborative working partners are addressed in EJNI projects through our use of accessible language and the early identification of themes which draw together commonalties raised by Part1pant$. This is essential when projects deal with contentious issues, especially those which may have political ramiratIOnS in Northern Ireland. Duplication of efforts in an already busy and underfunded environrnental sector are avoided by EJNI through careful scoping and mapping studies at the outset of each core activity or collaborative project. These efforts have typically led to new cooperalive relationships with organisations or individuals engaged in complementary work. Difficulty securing collabordtive project funding has rK)t to date been an issue, with all of our current collaborative projects {designed to address existing knowledgelsupport deficits) attracting funding or in-kind support (details on request).
Environmental Justice Network Ireland Ltd Company Limited by Guarantee Trustees. Annual Report (Incorporating the Directorfs Report) (continued) Year ended 31 December 2023 Achievements and perfomian¢e EJNI has had significant successes across all three of our central objectives: One of the central goals of EJNI'S work is to enhance knowledge and raise awareness of environmental justice issues. To fulfil this goal and to document the work and impact of the organisation- (il EJNI'S accessible, rtifIed green website acts as a repository for all of our collaborative work - all of which is open access; lil) rigorous proofing of outputs for accessibility and readability occurs: (iii) dedicated project pages on our website {e.g. our Rights and Nature project pagel include descriptions of the project and all outputs associated with it, instructions on how to gel involved with advocacy and links to other resources: INI dtfferent multimedia formats are used to reflect project findings & to maximise interest and accessibility: and Iv) novel techniques to communicate research findings are adopted (e.g. dance. poety. music as well as legal, technical and political analysis. e.g. our film proiectsl. Evaluation and peer-review is critical in collaborative. transdisciplinary wotk when stakeholders from very diverse backgrounds are working together on a project. EJNI has developed a systematic peer-review process whereby outputs for each project comply with produclion guidelines and pass through an independent review and qualty assurance process. Each project is also screened for accessibility and equality issues at design slage. ensuring that we are constantly engaged in strengthening human rights and equality through how we do our work, and in tum supporting inclusive, non-sectarian and participatory politics in all of EJNI'S acttvities. Dissemination of our work is delivered vla (i) email updates aut outputs to our extensive neOrk of associates who in tum disseminate the work to their own nehvorks)-, {ii} our online presence, e.g. our Iwitter accounts and website., and (iii) press releases to local and national Tnedia. The work of EJNI is making a difference lo a number of beneficiary groups in Northem Ireland. the border counties and across the island of Ireland (the impact of our projects is also regislering across the EU and our outputs are used by intemational audiences). Benefits have been generated for. (i) collaborating project partners through highlighting their work to a wider audience,. lil) environmental NGOS & activists (particularly small cornmunity groups) through networkinglengagemenuco-production opportunities and through our provision of advocacy tools-. (iii) politicians & policy makers benefit from the production of evIden-baSed research {notably our impact on discussions around the NE Protocol through our 'Linknng the Irish Environment, Report which was launched in June 2023., and (iv) local communities & the wider public - through education and raising awareness of environmental injuslices, environmental and access to juslice rights of communities and individuals. and by giving agency to environmental concerns. EJNI'S work is helping shift perceptions of the consequences of weak environmental govemance & the need for effective accountability mechanisms. This is demonstrated in the web metrics for both EJNI'S webstte and the Manual of Environmental Justice (over 1300 page views per month as of February 2023}. Important wider impacts include enhancing public support for higher environmental ambition (e.g. our Rights and Nature work is translating into successful council motions and proposals for legal reform and through the convening work of our Climale Governan ObseNatory) and building communty cohesion through highlighting the work of community activists in protecting natural heritage, e.g. through our IMO movement-tracking Rights of Nalure films whith have been screened by communtties across the i51and of Ireland. We have coordinated signrficant collaborative efforts with other network bodies bolh on the island of Ireland and with EU partners, (e.g. Northem Ireland Environment Link and Irish Environmental Network. EEB. CAN-E) - with our Linking the Irish Environment Report prompting co-signed letters to the UK and Irish Governments and diredy informing the development of the first dl-island environmental civic form. Our Work is also having significant international impact, featuring in the UN'S Aarhus Convention Compliance Committee's prcoress report on state aid. All of these outputs and details of our events are hosted on our bSite. v*ww.ejni.neL
Environmental Justice Network Ireland Ltd Company Limited by Guarantee Trustees. Annual Report (Incorporating tha Director's Report) (eonlinue Year ended 31 December 2023 Achievements and performance (cortthJuedJ Advocacy.. we have engaged in wid&ranging, impactful and empowering support activities for campaigns relaling to environmental justice induding the translation of research into accessible formats and new advocacy tools. Highlights include: Our 'Manual of Environmental Justi, _ a major new web resour developed in partnership with Community Law and Mediation. We engaged in needs assessment research lo identify gaps in the support and informab'on currenty available io comrnunities facing environmental injustice on both sides of the border in Ireland lo infomi the design of the Manual website, addressing identified gaps through three key functionalities- (i) an expert directory connecting environmental expertise to communitiesl campaignerslorganisations as a direct response to our research which indicated that 78°h of participants believed a lack of accessibility to infonnation andlor expertise was an obstacle to carrying out their work,. lil) an advocacy map - our analysis indicated fragmentation of resources and knowledge across the island of Ireland. and our map allows organisations and communities to connect and share knowledge on similar workjcampaigns by pinning submissions to a virtual map where users can investigate further the worklprojects being carried out by communities facing similar challenges,. and (iii) a resource library - an extensive library of resources covering a broad range of environmental issues. In the three rnonths since the website launched in November 2022. we have added over 100 subscribers to our quarterfy newsletter and this number is growing as our directory. map and library expand. Our Environrnental Justice Calendar promotes events (online. in-person and hybrid) as well as details of govemment consullations and opportunities for citizens to engage in public participation in environmentsl justice decision-making. We dedicate time to searching and adding new events and consultations to the calendar but have also created a function for communities and other organisations to add Iheir own events - creating cross-pollination between academics. lawyers. and civil society. We have featured over 200 events or consultations since 2021. Actlon.. EJNI has developed into a unique convening platform for collaborative online and in-person activism and action designed to enhance cooperation between dTverse slakeholders and across borders to deliver strategic, real-world impact Launch of our 'Linking the Irish Environmenf Report at our stakeholder networking event with NIEL and IEN in June 2023 Launch of Strategic Climale Litigation Report Administration of a Rights of Nature monthly hub Convening of a monthly NECP working group Briefing to the Irish Consulate in Edinburgh on the LIE report findings Environmental Protestors and Riverwalk events in June 2023 Briefing on Lough Neagh's fijture ownership. presentstion to Belfast Cty Council is support of successful motion. Follow up activity and briefing councillors. All of these outputs and details of our events are hosted on our website, w1V.ejni.net.
Environmental Justice Network Ireland Ltd Company Limited by Guarantee Trustees. Annual Report (Incorporating the Directorfs Report) (¢onlinu•dJ Year ended 31 December 2023 Achievements and performance (eoijtiftuedj Public Benefft Our main activities and who we try to help are described below. Our charitable activilres involve supporting communities, individuals and organisations through undertaking and publishing accessible research in response to stakeholder needs, undertaking advocacy around key environmental justice issues and taking direct aclion in collaboration with partners through engaging in public consultation processes to help challenge environmental injustice on the island of Ireland. EJNI provides a platform for collaboration beeen diverse stakeholder groups lo promote the advancement of education about environmental justice concems on the island of Ireland and how Ihese relate to global environmental, economic and societal debates through production of multimedia resources and convening of key events such as roundtables. workshops and conferences. EJNI also carries oui high quality. peer-reviewed research into environmental juslrce and we disseminate the results of such research on the island of Ireland and across the worfd for the benefit of the public. All of these activities are undertaken to further our charitable purposes for the public bener We have referred to the guidance contained in the Charity Commission's general guidance on public benefit when reviewing our aim and objectives and in planning our future activities. In particular, the trustees consider how planned activities will contribute to the aims and objectives they have set. Financial review EJNI continues to receive Core Funding from the Joseph Rowntree Charitable Trust with our latest grant of £207,000 running from October 2023 for three years. ECF continues to be our primary project fijnder and we have significantly expanded the scope of our ECF-funded projects in 2023. with a new project focusing on strategic litigation attracting significant interest from stakeholders north and south of the border. Our main project with ECF has been renewed for 2024125. We were also commissioned by the Northern Ireland Human Rights CommissKsn to undertake a project examining the impact of Brexit on environmental rights, and received a small top-up grant from Community Foundation Ireland to maintain our work on the Manual of Environmental Justi. Reserves policy and going ¢oncem Reserves are needed to bridge the timing gap between spending and receiving of incorne and to cover unplanned temporary shortfalls in income should they arise. Holding adequate reserves safeguards the provision of our services in the evenl of unexpected significant financial pressures. The trustees consider that the ideal level of reserves would be belween three months of core expenditure which would come to approximately £15,000. Unrestricted reserves freely available to spend. therefore excluding fixed assets. restricted reserves and designated reserves amounted to £19,079 which is above targec the trustees believe that this represents an apwopriate level of reserves.
Environmental Justice Network Ireland Ltd Company Limited by Guarantee Trustees, Annual Report {Incorporating the Director's Report) (continued) Year ended 31 December 2023 Plans for future periods The two intersecting areas of activity which EJNI is engaged in reLqte to core operations and collaLN)ralive projects. li) Core Operations are undertaken by the EJNI staff {all of whom are part-time) which comprise a Director {Dr Clara Brennan), a Research and Policy Coordinator (Caitlin Mcllhennon), Research Assistant (Shea Anderson) and an IT Coordinator (Phillip Lock). {ii) Collaborative Projecls are run by a semi-autonomous leam of paid individuals (where required) and volunteers from the EJNI nelwork and partner organisations, nested within the larger EJNI circles of accountability {the Steering Group and Board). Approval of projects is the responsibility of the Steering Group and the Director will provide oversight and coordination of the collaborative projects within EJNI'S broader strategy. Some projects require external funding {e.g. to fijnd buy-ouusecondment for project leads, research assistance. dissernination. projeci-speciffic events etc.) and securing this funding is the responsibility of the project team who ¥MII be supported by EJNI stsff. Other projects do not require funding and are cooperative efforts between individuals working for a range of partner organisations on a project of common strategic interest. This rnodel ensures buy in andlor in-kind support from a wide range of organisations at the cutting edge of environmentsl justice issues. The priorities for this year are to complete and develop the projects which have commenced and to acquire fvnding to support the development of those projects which are at an eady stage of development or which we have not yet acquired funding for notably the Rights of Nature project and continued funding for Linking the Irish Environment. A further priority is to ensure fvnding is acquired for an administrative assistant given the rapid increase in organisational activities and income and the associated increased administrative burden assc¢iated wilh this growth. Small company provisions This report has been prepared in accordance with the provisions applicable to companies entided to the small companies exemption. The trustees, annual report VRS approved on 2 Seplember 2024 and signed on behalf of the board of trustees by: Mr S Wood Trustee 10