2026 Regional Event Ireland

Nina Carberry is a Member of the European Parliament (MEP) representing the Midlands Northwest. As an active member of Fine Gael and the European People’s Party (EPP)—the largest political group in the European Union—Nina Carberry also serves on three key committees: Transport and Tourism (TRAN), International Trade (INTA), and Budget (BUDG).

Furthermore, Nina Carberry is an accomplished jockey who has been a two-time champion amateur and a leading lady rider on 12 occasions. She achieved a notable victory in the Irish Grand National in 2011, and she has celebrated seven winners at the prestigious Cheltenham Festival.

In addition to her racing career, Nina Carberry is a horse breeder, has held a trainer’s license, and has consigned horses at top sales events. Moreover, Nina Carberry is a television personality, having won “Dancing with the Stars” and served as a coach on “Ireland’s Fittest Family.” As a children’s author, Nina has also written the successful “Rowan Tree Stables” series.

Barry Cowen was elected in June 2024 to the European Parliament as an MEP for the Midlands North-West constituency. He now serves on the European Parliament’s Agriculture and International Trade committees where he focuses on securing better outcomes for farmers, advancing renewable energy and safeguarding Ireland’s pro-enterprise economy.

A native of county Offaly, Barry has over three decades of experience in public office, beginning as a local councillor and later serving as a member of Dáil Éireann from 2011 to 2024 where he represented the Laois-Offaly constituency.

During his time in national politics, Barry held several prominent roles within Fianna Fáil, including key spokesperson and Programme for Government negotiating team positions, as well as serving as Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine in 2020.

Brendan Dunford is a founder of, and volunteer with, the Burrenbeo Trust, a charity dedicated to promoting and enabling community stewardship across Ireland. Within Burrenbeo, Brendan works directly on projects including The Hare’s Corner, Farming for Nature and the Burren Winterage Weekend. Between 2005-2022 he led the award-winning BurrenLIFE Project and its successor, the Burren Programme, an early pioneer of result-based payment schemes. He is also a co-founder of Project ReFarm which uses blended finance to support nature restoration on Irish farmland.

Brendan is a Fellow of Ashoka’s Global network of Social Entrepreneurs and was awarded an honorary doctorate by the University of Galway in 2018 for his work in championing farmland biodiversity. He is author of Farming and the Burren and co-author of the Farming for Nature Handbook. Originally from a farming background in Co. Waterford, Brendan has spent over 25 years living and working in the Burren region.

Stewart Gee works for EIT Climate KIC, working on bringing about innovations in the Irish Agri Food system that will enable Ireland to meet its sustainability targets. 

Climate KIC is Europe’s leading climate innovation agency and community, mobilising systems change in countries, regions, cities and businesses. They orchestrate solutions and facilitate learning to bridge the gap between climate commitments and current reality. Climate KIC was founded in 2010 upon the initiative of the European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT), a body of the European Union. Today, as an independent foundation, they work with partners across the globe to drive faster and more ambitious climate action in Europe and beyond to build climate-resilient communities and fight climate breakdown.

Elaine Houlihan, 30 years old from a small rural village of Athlacca in County Limerick, was the National President of Macra from 2023 to 2025 which is the young farmers organisation in Ireland.

Doug McMillan has a PhD in Environmental Sciences part of which focused on the ecology and water quality of Abbeyleix Bog before its restoration. He has over 25 years of combined experience in academic research, consultancy, environmental monitoring and training in the fields of ecology, environmental science, EHS, laboratory, carbon, energy, sustainability and quality management systems and auditing.  

He is a founder of the Green Restoration Ireland Cooperative (GRI) which was established in 2019 and also manages several projects such as the Farm Carbon EIP, the Farm Carbon Transitions EIP and the Peatlands for Prosperity. During the Farm Carbon EIP, GRI developed innovative approaches to help farmers restore damaged peatlands and other farm habitats including Ireland’s first on-farm paludiculture (wetland agriculture) trials and other measures to maximise carbon storage and biodiversity in the agricultural landscape. This work is being continued through follow-up projects. 

Link to the Peatlands for Prosperity project: https://greenrestorationireland.coop/peatlands-for-prosperity/

Link to the Farm Carbon Transitions EIP project: https://greenrestorationireland.coop/farm-carbon-transitions/

Link to website: https://greenrestorationireland.coop/

Brigitte Misonne is Head of Unit for Animal Products in DG AGRI, European Commission. She holds overall responsibility for monitoring market developments, analysing economic trends, building-up market knowledge and designing EU market support measures in the animal product sectors. She is also responsible for the Honey Directive currently under review and for a 3-year engagement with the JRC on a project addressing the need for validated methods of analysis that are fit-for-purpose to detect new types of sugar-based adulterants in honey.

Jan-Erik works since 2001 at the European Environment Agency (EEA) in Copenhagen, starting as project manager responsible for the area of agriculture and environment. From 2001 to 2008 he had lead responsibility for the development of EU agri-environmental indicators, related sectoral assessments and agriculture policy analysis, work on EU bioenergy production as well as cooperation with EU institutions. From January 2009 to December 2015 Jan-Erik was head of group for ‘Major Integrated Assessments’ and ‘Assessment Methods’. Since January 2016 he has focused on Natural Capital Accounting, his tasks including representing EEA in the EU project on ‘Accounting for natural capital and ecosystem services’ (‘KIP INCA’) .

Another important responsibility of Jan-Erik is overseeing the development of the ‘Common International Classification of Ecosystem Services’ (CICES) and contributing to the UN statistical standard on ecosystem accounting

A particular focus of Jan-Erik’s work over the last five years has been EEA’s contribution to EU processes on the development of biodiversity and ecosystem monitoring. This covers all kinds of data, satellite data, statistical sources, citizen science as well as other innovative methods. He also continues to manage EEA’s work on High Nature Value Farmland and extensive grazing systems.

Jurgen Tack studied biology (marine ecology) at Brussels Free University where he also obtained his PhD in Sciences. Within the Framework of the Kenya Belgium Project in Marine Sciences (Coastal Farms Kenya) he developed a number of oyster farms along the Kenyan coast. In 2000 he joined the team of the Belgian Biodiversity Platform (Belgian Science Policy Office) where he was responsible for European and international science policy in the field of biodiversity and biodiversity related research. In 2007 he became the CEO of the Research Institute for Nature and Forest (a research organization under the umbrella of the Flemish Authority). In 2015 he became Secretary-General of the National Science Foundation (Flanders) In 2016 he took the position of Scientific Director at the European Landowners’ Organization (ELO), CEO at Landelijk Vlaanderen (Flemish Landowners’ Organisation) and CEO of the Aanspreekpunt Privaat Beheer Natuur en Bos (an advisory organ for private landowners on the management of nature and forest). In 2023 he became Secretary-General of the European Landowners Organisation (ELO). He coordinates several EU projects on private land conservation. On behalf of ELO he chairs the European Commission’s Large Carnivore Platform and acts as expert for the EU Biodiversity Platform and the EU Expert Group on Cultural Heritage.

Mark is a Co-founder and a former Director of the Forum for the Future of Agriculture. He is now a Member of the Forum’s Advisory Council and a Senior Fellow at the Transatlantic Policy Network. Mark joined SpiritsEUROPE as their Director-General in September 2025, having enjoyed a long career in the agri-food sector, principally at Syngenta where he held several senior leadership and executive level positions in corporate affairs and business sustainability in the EAME region and globally. After leaving Syngenta in 2017, Mark became the CEO of EngineeringUK before joining Indigo Ag, where he held a variety of different roles before becoming Head of Corporate Affairs and a Member of the Executive Team in 2024.  

With over 25 years of experience in the chemical and biological plant protection and nutrition, agribusiness, floriculture, and ingredients industries, I am on a mission to drive agricultural innovation and sustainability. As the Chief Innovation Officer at Oath Group, Martin leads a team of experts in Business Development, Field Sciences, Data Science and Regulatory Affairs.

Oath, a public benefit company, regenerates life in depleted soils globally with naturally occurring, beneficial microorganisms to address some of agriculture’s biggest challenges, including yield, nutrient density, and soil carbon.