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

Thursday, 24 September 2026, Ireland: Dublin environmental leaders Sharon Harvey and Liane Costello 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 work connecting communities with urban biodiversity and protecting coastal environments.  

Sharon Harvey is a horticulturist and community gardener based in Ballymun with over 20 years of experience in horticulture. She leads the GLAS Community Garden for Global Action Plan Ireland, where an underused urban site has become a biodiversity-rich space bringing together food growing, habitat restoration, environmental education, wellbeing and social inclusion. In 2025 alone, the garden welcomed more than 3,000 visits and continues to provide opportunities for people of all backgrounds to connect with nature. 

Speaking about her nomination, Sharon said: 

“Being part of the Bean Feasa exhibition is a special opportunity to celebrate the vital role women play in nurturing both people and the environment. I believe that nature has the power to bring communities together, inspire positive change, and create more inclusive, resilient places for everyone and this truly showcases it.” 

Liane Costello is the Biodiversity Officer with An Taisce’s Clean Coasts Programme. With over 2,000 registered groups, the programme supports and promotes local nature guardianship around Ireland. 

Drawing on a background in marine biology and communications, Liane works with schools, communities and organisations to deepen understanding of Ireland’s marine and coastal environments. She is particularly recognised for her work on coastal dune restoration, including promoting citizen science, invasive alien species removal, and planting projects to protect vulnerable dune systems 

As Biodiversity Officer, Liane integrates biodiversity across the Clean Coasts programme and supports volunteers, colleagues and other environmental NGOs in conservation projects around the country. Her work spans dune restoration, coastal clean-ups and nature walks to citizen science and ocean literacy, using practical, hands-on experiences to connect people with the coast and build the knowledge needed to care for it. 

Speaking about her nomination, Liane said: 

“I hope that my inclusion in the Bean Feasa Exhibition can reflect and highlight all the powerful, inspiring women I get to work beside – our volunteers, my colleagues and friends at An Taisce, and my counterparts from other environmental organisations. My actions are only possible through their inspiration, guidance and support. That, and I hope it might encourage more people to care for our precious marine and coastal environments, which are in dire need of more protection.”  

As part of the campaign, photographer Evanna Devine will travel across Ireland to create intimate portraits of each participant in landscapes connected to their environmental work. The resulting body of work will provide a powerful visual record of the women helping shape Ireland’s environmental future. 

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, Tóchar Project Manager said: 

“Sharon Harvey and Lianne Costello are among the women leaders who have the ability to inspire communities and create meaningful connections with nature. Their work is genuinely transformative at community and national levels, creating real models for action for us all to look for guidance.” 

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. 

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