Bean Feasa, meaning wise woman, celebrates women helping to restore, protect and reimagine nature across Ireland. 

Thursday, 24 September 2026, Ireland: Wicklow environmental advocates Catherine Cleary and Laura Rosa Regalado Rocha are among the stories of thirteen women being featured in Bean Feasa, a national portrait series co-created by award-winning photographer Evanna Devine, Tóchar Midlands Wetland Restoration and Photo Museum Ireland. They have been selected separately for their contributions to community-led nature restoration, environmental education, species conservation and public engagement.  

Catherine from Wicklow is the co-founder of Pocket Forests, an award-winning social enterprise rebuilding relationships between nature and nature-deprived communities in towns and cities. Through the initiative, she has worked with more than 140 communities around Ireland to grow pocket forests of native trees and shrubs, creating small but powerful spaces for biodiversity, learning and community connection. 

Speaking about her nomination, Catherine said: 

‘’It’s wonderful to be part of this brilliant group of women, all dedicated to making Ireland a wildly better place. There is a real groundswell of people working to restore nature in fields, farms, rivers, lakes, seas, streets and gardens. Our co-collaborator is Mother Nature. We take one good step and she takes ten.”    

Alongside this community restoration work, Catherine writes about nature restoration for The Irish Times and recently completed work on The Hare’s Corner, published by New Island, which explores ten community-led nature restoration projects around Ireland. She also hosts Conversation Beneath the Trees, a podcast for the Irish Agroforestry Forum, and has helped establish a native tree nursery in Shelton Abbey Open Prison.  

Her commitment to restoration is also deeply personal. With her family, Catherine, who is from Wicklow, bought land in Roscommon to plant a native woodland, a project that became the subject of the award-winning documentary The Forest Midwife. 

Originally from Tenerife, Laura Rosa Regaldo Rocha moved to Ireland looking for international experience and to deepen her expertise in nature conservation. Three years ago, she joined the National Parks and Wildlife Service and since then she has been working as an Education Guide at Knocksink Wood Nature Reserve in Co. Wicklow, helping people of all ages build a deeper connection with the natural world. After finishing her degree in Environmental Science, she continued her professional development with a Master’s degree in Renewable Energy, Climate Change and Sustainable Development. Later, she worked as an environmental consultant, assessing the impacts of underwater noise pollution on marine life alongside other environmental assessments.  

At the National Park and Wildlife Service (NPWS), she contributes to conservation initiatives through education and community engagement across Wicklow and North Wexford. In her region, she is actively involved in various conservation initiatives, such as the Little Tern Conservation Project, where she raises awareness on how to protect this vulnerable species. Thanks to this role, she teams up with schools and local communities to show children the nature right on their doorstep, demonstrating how projects like this can make a highly positive impact on these little birds. Laura noted that conservation is not just about teaching but providing opportunities to experience nature first-hand.  

Additionally, thanks to her work, Laura was selected last year to join the EUROPARC Youth Council for 2 year-term. In this role, she represents young people in protected areas alongside peers from across Europe.  

Speaking about her nomination, Laura said:  

“As an environmental educator, my greatest hope is to inspire people to build a connection with nature. Nature doesn’t distinguish between ages; it belongs to all of us. Whether it is a child discovering wildlife for the first time or an adult reconnecting with the outdoors, I want to help people experience that sense of wonder and understand why protecting nature matters.  

Being part of the Bean Feasa project is much more than an exciting opportunity. It is a reminder of what women can achieve when they come together to care for and protect nature. It is an example of unity, collaboration, and shared purpose. I hope this project could inspire others who are already walking this path, or who are just beginning their own journey.” 

Minister of State for Nature, Heritage and Biodiversity, Christopher O’Sullivan, said: 

 “Bean Feasa is a powerful celebration of the women who are helping to restore, protect and reimagine nature in communities across Ireland. Each of the women featured in this series shows the vital role that local leadership, creativity and community action play in tackling biodiversity loss and building a deeper connection with the natural world. 
 
“Through the partnership between Tóchar Midlands Wetland Restoration, Photo Museum Ireland and photographer Evanna Devine, this project will bring these important stories to a wider audience and shine a light on the people whose work is helping shape Ireland’s environmental future. I warmly congratulate all thirteen women selected for this inspiring national portrait series.” 

Commenting on the announcement, Shirley Clerkin, Project Manager with Tóchar Midlands Wetland Restoration, said: 

“Catherine has helped bring nature restoration action into communities across Ireland while ensuring these stories reach wider audiences. She shows how nature positive action can be both practical, innovative, deeply hopeful and applicable to communities both urban and rural.” 

“Laura’s work reflects the commitment and energy needed to protect vulnerable species and engage the public in conservation. Her dedication to projects such as Little Tern and breeding wader conservation shows the important role skilled and passionate people play in restoring and protecting nature.” 

Trish Lambe, CEO of Photo Museum Ireland, added: 

“Bean Feasa recognises women whose work is shaping Ireland’s environmental future, while supporting a leading Irish photographic artist to create an important photographic record of that work. Evanna’s compelling portraits will connect these individual stories with the landscapes and communities around them, bringing this important work to wider audiences through this exhibition.” 

Evanna Devine was awarded the €15,000 Bean Feasa Photography Commission following an international open call. As the national centre for contemporary photography, Photo Museum Ireland is supporting the development, production and curation of the work, including access to its specialist image-processing facilities. The completed series will be presented, along with a bespoke publication, at Photo Museum Ireland later this year before touring nationally. 

The Bean Feasa exhibition forms part of the wider work of Tóchar Midlands Wetland Restoration, one of Ireland’s largest nature restoration initiatives. The project reflects Tóchar’s commitment to ensuring that nature restoration is recognised not only as an environmental challenge but also, as a social movement driven by people working within their communities. 

Tóchar Midlands Wetland Restoration is one of the largest restoration projects currently underway. It is a three-year, €12 million wetlands restoration project co-funded by the Government of Ireland and the European Union through the EU Just Transition Fund Programme. The project is managed by the National Parks and Wildlife Service within the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage. To find out more visit: https://www.tocharwetlands.ie/.  

The commissioned portraits will form part of a public exhibition and publication launching in November 2026 before touring nationally.