Opportunities and threats in Múscraí Heritage Plan
AN award-winning plan which gives a detailed insight into the characteristics of Cork’s Múscraí Gaeltacht is destined to form the blueprint of its future development.
The Múscraí Heritage Plan/ Plean Oidhreachta Mhúscraí was an initiative of Acadamh Fódhla and supported by Cork County Council and the Heritage Council.
The Múscraí-based ‘ hedge university’ has pioneered a number of Gaeltacht initiatives since its foundation by composer Peadar Ó Riada and others in 2000 but the Heritage Plan, carried out by consultants Research+Dig and involving exhaustive consultation locally, is its most ambitous initiative to date.
At the beginning of March, the plan received an Irish Planning Instititute accolade in the social and economic plan catergory.
The Múscraí Heritage Plan has the protection of the Gaeltacht from outside threats as its main thrust, as its summary outlines.
“Change always occurs. “The role of this document is to help the people of Múscraí manage that change and protect the core significant aspects of the region in which they live,” the plan states, adding that the ultimate aim is to make the Gaeltacht a better place in which to live, work and visit.
The 181-page document identifies a number of key advantages enjoyed by the mid Cork Gaeltacht community, some of the opportunties which would be opening up in normal times and the existential threats to the Gaeltacht.
The main thesis of the document is that Múscraí is unique due to a combination of factors including the tangible - archtecture, archaeology, flora and fauna - and it is inextricably linked to the intangible, folklore, music, customs, poetry and placenames.
“There is a deep, complex and symbiotic relationship between people and place.
“One is simply less without the other.
“For Ireland, Múscraí’s cultural creativity and spirit of place acts as a reservoir of meaning and inspiration that helps counter the homogenising nature of globalisation.”
The document lists a number of features of international significance in terms of heritage. These include the Gaeltacht’s folklore collection, the practice of pilgrimage, the living tradition of music, song, poetry and dance, the role played by Múscraí in the the preservation of the Irish language and music and the part played by the community in the struglle for Irish independence.
The threats to the area identified in the plan include mass tourism and a reduction of cultural tourism numbers amongst growing numbers of visitors, the proposed upgrade of the N22 and the development of new large housing estates, the withdrawal of services and a falling population in the Gaeltacht itself and its hinterland.
Another core element in the plan is the protection of the
Múscraí dialect of the Irish language, identified by scholars as among the richest dialects of the ancient language.
The plan’s authors and supporters are recommending that the document should provide the basis for all future decisions concerning the management of Múscrai’s heritage and taken into account by relevant bodies such as Cork County Council and Údarás na Gaeltachta who are making decisions about Múscraí,
“Development should be sustainable and consistent with the Gaeltacht’s culture and way of life,” the plan states.
While the plan identified mass tourism as a threat to Múscraí, it is proposing that the development of a sustainable tourim industry which focuses on the language, landscape and the traditions of Múscraí.
A first step on this course would be the coming together of the five villages in the Gaeltacht to form a tourism group and the first item on their agenda should be to organise a conference on sustainable tourism where different ideas could be aired and discussed in detail and the event would provide a launch pad.
While the COVID-19 outbreak will put a lot of these plans on hold for the time being, they will provide a useful starting point for the rescuscitation of the tourism industry in the area when the emergency period comes to an end and people have to face into an uncertain future, blighted by the economic after-effects of the pandemic.
Last year the Múscraí Gaeltacht was included in a multi-national EU network of cultural locations which, it is hoped, will benefit from a multi-million Euro investment to identify and promote authentic cultural experiences for tourists. In this network, called the Atlantic Culturescape, Múscraí is alongside the Sliabh Gullion region in the border, Vigo and Cantabria in Spain, the Brecon Beacons National Parks in Wales and Rio Maior region in Portugal.
While the Múscraí Heritage Plan was issued before the Atlantic Culturescape Project came forward, there are possiblities that both could dovetail in the future.
The full document is available on the Cork County Council website if you search for the Múscraí Heritage Plan.