Beannachtaí na Féile Pádraig

Happy springtime from LookWest.ie.  Our spring newsletter is bursting with exciting news and events from across the Western Region

St Patrick's Day is a special time of the year for the global Irish community.  LookWest.ie has a strong global community and the launch of RE:CONNECT Western Regional Business Network will foster and nurture that special relationship.  See more on RE:CONNECT below.

We wish you and yours a very Happy St Patrick's Day, wherever you are in the world.

RE:CONNECT with LookWest.ie's New Business Network

LookWest.ie and six local authorities in the Western Region have established a new business network to facilitate growth for businesses in the region.

RE:CONNECT will help foster contacts between businesses in the West of Ireland and individuals and businesses abroad. The network was launched in January at the Irish Embassy in London by Taoiseach Enda Kenny.

As part of IT Sligo's Enterprise and Innovation Week 2012, the Irish launch of RE:CONNECT will take place on Tues., March 20th.  Register here for this event.

Details of our next RE:CONNECT London event in June will be announced soon.  >> More here

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What Makes You Feel Irish?

To commemorate this St Patrick's Festival, we're asking 'What Makes You Feel Irish?' Is it a pint of plain or a blustery Connemara walk? Or maybe it's mackerel fishing off an Atlantic beach while eating a pack of Taytos?

Our Facebook gallery already has some of the hilarious moments only an Irish person would understand.  >> More here

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LookWest.ie Upstarts

In our new series of case studies LookWest.ie Upstarts we interview some of the West's latest and greatest who have gone out and done it for themselves.   

Bábógbaby was founded by Adrian Devane after moving back to Galway following 13 years in film and television production in Dublin.

Bábógbaby's BB Bear, voiced by Adrian's three-year old daughter Robyn, teaches toddlers and children 33 words of Irish, while the company's other products include a Bábógbaby smartphone app.

Adrian tells us how he Looked West and found a new career. >> More here

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LookWest.ie Shortlisted for the Nokia Digital Media Awards

LookWest.ie has been shortlisted for this year’s Nokia Digital Media Awards in the 'Government to Consumer Innnovation' category. The Awards, now in their 10th year, celebrate and showcase excellence within the digital media sector in Ireland.

The winners will be announced at the Nokia Digital Media Awards ceremony which will take place on March 30th at the Convention Centre in Dublin. 

LookWest.ie's social media community continues to grow; we now have almost 5,000 likes on our Facebook page, over 2,200 Twitter followers and over 800 members in our LinkedIn group.  >> More here

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New Wood Biomass Plant for Claremorris

Wood as an alternative energy source is already being championed by the Western Development Commission (WDC), and now there is to be a second biomass-fuelled power plant in Claremorris, Co Mayo, joining the existing plant at Asahi in Killala.

Both enterprises are owned by private energy company Greenbelt, and will create a market for almost a million tonnes of output a year from forests in the west and north-west. The company is owned by New York-based Irish lawyer Paul O'Dwyer, investing in his native Co. Mayo. >> More here

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Are You Brave Enough For The Inis 'Iron' Meáin?

Feeling energetic?  Don't miss this year's Inis "Iron" Meáin which will take place on Inis Meáin on Sunday March 18th.

This unique island walk/run is now in its eighth year attracting hundreds of participants annually which includes top athletes from all over the country, raising much needed funds for the island's secondary school, ensuring the continued viability of this independent island community.  >> More here

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Picturing Home: Lokofoto's Gallery of Memories

With emigration very much part of Irish lives once more, it's natural that those leaving - and staying - will want to connect with home now and then.

That's the thinking behind new photo-sharing website Lokofoto, founded by Donegal man Daire Irwin and Sligo's Eddie Johnson, which has just received €50,000 in funding from Enterprise Ireland.

With the site, Irish people at home and abroad can not only buy beautiful images but upload and curate their own photographs too. >> More here

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Galway Welcomes First Food Festival

As one of the key locations for the Slow Food movement in Ireland it's high time Galway City celebrated its passion for good food - and now it will, with the debut Galway Food Festival being held over Easter weekend (6-9th April 2012).

Prominent local food producers and renowned Galway chefs will host a weekend packed with events aiming to showcase the best of the region's food, with cookery workshops and demonstrations being held throughout many hotels, bars and restaurants in the city.>> More here

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