Síológ: An Óige Ghlas Podcast

Due to some technical difficulties in Belfast our next episode, which will be with Cllr. Áine Groogan of the NI Green Party has had to be delayed slightly! So to make up for it we will be releasing our full AMA series earlier than expected, join us today to hear the wise words of Senator Malcolm Noonan. On Thursday we will be interviewing Green Party Cathaoirleach Cllr. Janet Horner and next week we will have Cllr. Feljin Jose and European Greens Co-Chair Ciarán Cuffe.

From climate action getting booed at public meetings to why Danish cities can build trams while Irish councils are left begging for funding, this episode pulls back the curtain on how Irish politics actually works (and why it often doesn't). Councillor Oisín O'Connor chats with Tony from the Young Greens about the reality of being a councillor in 2025, explains why most "green" policies are just good policies in disguise, and reveals his ambitious plan to solve the housing crisis by forcing every council to build around train stations. Whether you're politically minded or just curious about how decisions get made in your community, this is an honest, engaging chat about the challenges facing Ireland – and why local democracy might be the key to fixing them.

Our first bonus episode! Our Co-Chair Adam quizzes Green Party leader Roderic O'Gorman with questions submitted by Óige Ghlas members. Tune in next week for our second full episode with guest Cllr. Oisín O'Connor and for another AMA, this time with Senator Malcolm Noonan

Welcome to the first episode of Síológ, where young Green Party members spill the tea on this week's political chaos, both at home and across the pond. We're buzzing about Zohran Mamdani's brilliant primary win in New York. Brad Lander backed Mamdani despite also being on the ballot, and it's the kind of political maturity Irish politics could use more of. Could Ireland's centre-left/left parties learn a thing or two about collaboration instead of throwing jabs? Speaking of things that don't work properly—Dublin's planning system is having another moment. Metrolink has officially spent 1000 days in An Bord Pleanála purgatory, which is roughly 999 days too many for a city desperately crying out for decent public transport. Meanwhile, Parliament Street got pedestrianised, and suddenly Dublin feels a bit more like, well, a place for people to live in. And finally, the great J1 exodus continues—applications are down 25% this year as Uncle Sam tightens the surveillance screws on Irish students. Because nothing says "land of the free" like extra monitoring of teenagers desperate to work in summer camps, right?