AONTAS, the Irish National Association of Adult Education, held a series of regional meetings throughout Ireland during autumn 2005. 

AONTAS, the Irish National Association of Adult Education, held a series of regional meetings throughout Ireland during autumn 2005. 

These meetings focused on the theme of ‘Adult Education and the Local and National Agendas´ and explored how adult and community education groups working at local level can feed into, and influence, national policy.

Meetings were held in Donegal, Waterford, Offaly, Louth, and Clare, and were well attended by AONTAS members in each region.  The regional meetings culminated in the AONTAS general meeting, which was held in Dublin on 16th November.

The general meeting featured a keynote address by Professor Anne Ryan, Head of the Department of Adult and Community Education at NUI Maynooth.  Berni Brady, Director of AONTAS, and Niamh O´Reilly, Membership Development Officer, also spoke at the meeting, outlining the issues raised at the regional meetings, and the ways in which these issues can be addressed.

The findings from the regional and general meetings will now be taken on board by AONTAS in the organisation´s policy, communications and lobbying work for 2006.

Further information on the meetings is available from Niamh O´Reilly, Membership Development Officer, AONTAS, Tel: 00353 (0) 1 4068220, Email: noreilly@aontas.com

www.aontas.com