Haumea Ecoversity Mentoring

Use the calendar on this page to book a FREE 15 min to discuss your mentoring needs:

A mentor is someone who sees more talent and ability within you, than you see in yourself, and helps bring it out of you.

What others say about Cathy Fitzgerald’s mentoring…

Lisa Fingleton – Ecosocial artist, writer and grower

As part of my role as lead artist with Corca Dhuibhne Inbhuanaithe – A Creative Imagining to explore ways in which farmers on the Dingle Peninsula can diversify to address climate change (funded by the inaugural Creative Climate Action Fund), I was supported to work with Dr Cathy Fitzgerald as a mentor. Cathy provided crucial context for the work and references to other interesting creative-led community climate and biodiversity projects. I also took part in both Haumea Ecoversity Essential Ecoliteracy and Earth Charter ethos courses which were valuable and insightful. I’m also looking forward to working with Cathy again on my next Creative Climate Action… Read more “Lisa Fingleton – Ecosocial artist, writer and grower”

Grace Wells, ecopoet & writer, Co. Clare, Ireland and contributer to Hometree.ie

As the 2022 Platform 31 Artist for Clare County Council, I was able to avail myself of several mentoring sessions with Cathy. She’s a very intelligent and sensitive mentor who listened carefully to my many different needs, gave good advice and was very encouraging. Cathy was very empathetic about all the challenges I was facing. As an eco-arts practitioner, I’m well aware of the complexities of our multiple ecological crises, and of how overwhelming our reality can be. But Cathy has great vision and values in this area and was a true inspiration. She has a huge scope of knowledge, and easily directed me towards many inspiring eco-philosophers and artists whose work continues to support my… Read more “Grace Wells, ecopoet & writer, Co. Clare, Ireland and contributer to Hometree.ie”

Grace Wells

Deirdre Southey: multimedia, installation artist and curator, Wexford

Cathy was an excellent mentor to me, she opened me up to lots of new areas of research and inspired me with recommendations of similar artists working in my field. She has a vast knowledge of eco issues and how we can start to address them as artists. She has a holistic and gentle approach and you can tell how passionate she is for working towards an eco-inclusive worldview. After finishing the mentoring sessions I feel excited about my new journey – 14 June… Read more “Deirdre Southey: multimedia, installation artist and curator, Wexford”

Catriona Gallagher: UK Greece-based visual moving image artist

Ecoliteracy is a knowledge form I sought before I knew it had a name. Cathy’s mentoring gave me a framework to slot my thinking into and join up the dots I have been working to uncover through my artwork over the past decade. Her generous and careful approach to one-to-one mentoring came at a crucial time for me thinking about the use of plants in my work and helped me understand the wider concerns surrounding my research. Cathy helped me see that there is a greater international network of thinkers past, present and future that I can tap into. In the months after our mentoring session, I felt a definite shift into a new awareness and a passing of a significant threshold since thinking more consciously about ecological practice; which once passed, you can’t go back from. That ecoliteracy has a name and is a process that can be worked on (over a lifetime) is incredibly enabling. I thank Cathy deeply for her support and engagement with my… Read more “Catriona Gallagher: UK Greece-based visual moving image artist”

Navine G. Dossos- visual artist, London-Athens Aegina Greece

Cathy has been a wonderful mentor in the past few weeks, full of knowledge, thoughtfulness, and genuine deep love and care for ecology as a theoretical subject and a lived experience. Even from the first session I felt immersed in a new way of thinking holistically about this vital subject matter. It goes without saying that these sessions with Cathy have shifted my perspective and got me to ask some pretty fundamental questions of myself and my work. She has been a great teacher and support for my upcoming project at IMMA Dublin and I look forward to continuing the… Read more “Navine G. Dossos- visual artist, London-Athens Aegina Greece”

James Bridle: writer, artist – Greece

Working with Cathy was a wonderful experience, learning about the deep history of ecologically-engaged artwork, and being exposed to new ideas and processes which will continue to resonate in my own practice. Author of ‘Ways of Being: Beyond Human Intelligence’… Read more “James Bridle: writer, artist – Greece”

Jeni Roddy, theatre visual artist-teacher, Wexford, Ireland

It was a privilege to participate the Cathy’s Earth Charter course. I was so impressed by the breadth of her approach incorporating spiritual, moral and practical guidance on the Earth Charter. Also, I was moved by its relation to me as a human, an artist and a part of a World community. She and Nikos were inspiring and provided me with a huge injection of new knowledge. I will continue to pursue the path of the ecosocial path that I find my practice on but with now a framework of the Earth Charter and an awareness of other practitioners who are similarly… Read more “Jeni Roddy, theatre visual artist-teacher, Wexford, Ireland”

Dagmara Pater:visual artist | post-grad. researcher Norway

I would like to thank you Cathy for the course. I think this kind of education, all you delivered–was so comprehensive and so good–I feel like I have been studying for two years! It is worth spreading and could be a part of a study program at a university 🙂 You inspired me to develop my activity as an ecosocial art practitioner. I aim to develop ecological art projects for junior high schools, take students to the forests and develop creative-learning situations in nature. Like the German artist Tino Sehgal, I lost the interest in creating pleasing decorative things to sell. I’ve became more aware of the urgency of other methodologies for art now. Eventually, I imagine I will work exclusively with natural material like plants, wood and stone, but the most important is to make people embrace different ways of knowing to live well with all of Earth’s… Read more “Dagmara Pater:visual artist | post-grad. researcher Norway”

Gillian Cussen: visual artist, Cork, Ireland

I found Cathy’s Haumea Online 6-week Essential Ecoliteracy course and mentoring inspiring on a number of levels. Educationally, I found Cathy to be a teacher who communicates with gentleness and conviction and the topics covered are varied and interesting with access to the work of many outstanding thinkers and artists. I learnt much and became a lot more ecoliterate ( although I still have a way to go). As a visual artist, I felt I had joined a community of people, a network of artists, both in Ireland and around the world who have a common understanding, who share information and have the potential to act as a support to one another. Personally, the course led me to begin meditating on a regular basis after trying unsuccessfully for many years. One of the artists/philosophers referred to on the Ecoliteracy course wrote: “When the student is ready the teacher will appear”. I am glad that Cathy and her course appeared when they did.    Thank you… Read more “Gillian Cussen: visual artist, Cork, Ireland”

Dr. Nikos Patedakis, philosopher and mentor, United States review

If life gifts you the opportunity to work with Cathy Fitzgerald, consider yourself lucky. If you are a policy-maker, please listen to her wise counsel. If you are considering signing up for one of her courses, do so posthaste. If you are a patron of the arts, get out your checkbook and put a lot of zeroes after that first positive integer. Cathy is an incredible resource for art education institutes, art organizations and individual artists of all kinds. Go to Cathy to increase ecoliteracy (eco-wisdom, eco-cultural skill) and rejuvenate your own art practice or that of your students and/or community. Bringing ecology and art together is essential right now, and Cathy understands the social, political, scientific, philosophical, and creative challenges it presents. Cathy has an excellent mind, both creative and analytical. She has education and training in the sciences, including a long stint as a research tech, yet she retains the sensitivity and soul of an artist. Cathy’s work as an artist reminds me of a lecture Toni Morrison gave, in which the Nobel laureate lamented that the problem with so much of the art these days is that it isn’t *about* anything. As a philosopher I can confidently… Read more “Dr. Nikos Patedakis, philosopher and mentor, United States review”

Carole Nelson – Musician, Composer, Ireland review

Cathy is an inspirational teacher, artist and friend who has enriched my understanding of ecocide and climate chaos immeasurably. I was embarking on a composition project and knew that I wanted to connect my music and creativity with an eco-practice but had no tools or deeper understanding other than my flailing sense of impotence in the face of climate chaos. Cathy guided me through resources, philosophers, activists, books and videos with a light and generous touch. I came to understand the importance of joining with others, of finding ways to express grief, of finding the courage to keep speaking truth to power and understanding the importance of every tiny action we make.My project is now ongoing with support from the Irish Arts Council. Cathy, you have my deep gratitude and my admiration for your knowledge and your dedication.… Read more “Carole Nelson – Musician, Composer, Ireland review”

Sarah Flynn – Visual Artist, Ireland review

Cathy helped guide me through one of my projects responding to the ecological crisis. Coming from Dublin and having had no formal education in the area of ecology, I found the research-heavy going at first. But Cathy gave me the confidence to pursue. She was clear and concise and generous with her knowledge. The project has since been selected for New Irish Works 2019 and I am indebted to Cathy for all her support!… Read more “Sarah Flynn – Visual Artist, Ireland review”

One-to-one transformative mentoring

Develop your creative practice with access to Dr Cathy Fitzgerald's deep holistic knowledge and expertise in ecoliteracy education and sustainability (ESD) policy developments across the creative sector.

Private Mentoring with Cathy is an effective way of customising professional development to accelerate your professional creative practice needs or gain knowledge for your creative programming or policy development work.

Mentoring has been defined as “a partnership between a more experienced and less experienced practitioner” and it can mean that you advance more quickly with this topic.

Cathy Fitzgerald supporting a creative practitioner: Photo: Grace Wells

Ecological insights can be overwhelming, confronting and can challenge conventions of creative practice and cultural policy that you may have been taught. Cathy can help you navigate these challenges and environmental science easily (she worked in research science for a decade before attending art college). As an accredited Education for Sustainable Development Earth Charter Educator, she can help you get clearer about integrated/holistic values to guide your creative work for a better world. And as a nominated member of the International EcoArt Network since 2016, Cathy has far-sighted perspectives on emergent practices and policies.

Cathy can tailor specific resources for you and your work, to enhance the effectiveness and credibility of your creative activities, curating, research or cultural policy work aims. If you live in Ireland, she can alert you to possible eco-creative funding opportunities.

Who is Haumea Ecoversity mentoring for?

Cathy's mentoring is most useful for emergent and mid-career creative and cultural professionals who have developed a body of creative work and are self-motivated and keen to new absorb new ideas, concepts and practices or for those who require expert advice on sustainability developments for the creative sector. She is also very happy to advise people new to applying ecological insights for their art education theses and research, from undergraduate to doctoral and post-doctoral levels.

Cathy's experience in advising creative and cultural professionals: Since 2019, Cathy has offered popular ecoliteracy training to 250+ creative practitioners from all art fields, and also to Irish Local Authority Art Officers, art managers/administrators, curators, art educators, BA, MA and doctoral-level creative practice researchers and cultural policymakers, across Ireland and abroad.

She has given talks on ecoliteracy for the London College of Art doctoral programme, the Irish Arts Council, Irish Arts Offices for their art networks, and Irish and UK Universities. More recently she has contributed ecoliteracy workshops for writers and poets workshops and presentations to ecological education organisations like Ireland's Home Tree Ardnaculla Summer School.

Cathy is an accredited Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) Earth Charter Educator (courtesy of a 2020 Irish Arts Council Professional Development Award) which gives Cathy a high-level international overview of Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) developments for the Irish creative sector.

She has been a nominated member of the International EcoArt (Ecological Art) Practice Network since 2016 and her essay was included in the first EcoArt in Action (New Village Press, New York) textbook compiled from the network in 2022.

How does mentoring work?

A mentor focuses on an individual's (mentee's) work to assist their career progress and confidence. Through dialogue, a mentor can assess conceptual aspects, and new knowledge from other fields to advance your professional creative practice or cultural programming or policy.

Unless you live close to where Cathy lives in Ireland, she offers bespoke mentoring online. When it's convenient for you, she will host a series of 90-minute, one-to-one sessions on Zoom (these sessions can be recorded for you). Cathy follows up the mentoring sessions with notes and selects resources that she feels would most help you, your creative project or your organisation.

Please be assured all mentoring sessions are private and confidential.

Cathy can tailor specific art and ecology knowledge, and knowledge about the challenges and rewards of ecological art practice, introduce you to key ecological thinkers, provide you with deep foundational understandings of why ecological ethics, values and language promote a cultural paradigm shift to envision or inspire refections or actions for a better world.

Fees:

Generally, before mentoring individuals, and to save you money, Cathy advises people to do a Haumea Ecoversity course first. But she's also happy to advise on new projects or arts research or policy too.

One-to-one mentoring can be more costly than doing a workshop or online course as in a group situation the costs are shared. Also, group learning via a Haumea course is generally recommended first as it can accelerate your learning as you encounter rich, diverse perspectives from many others and you can connect with others to support your work.

Mentoring is also time-consuming for Cathy, as she spends the effort to engage deeply with someone else's creative practice. When she looks at your creative practice, it's not just about the hour(s) she spends talking with you to get to know your practice and your key concerns. Her brain gets hooked on thinking about your practice for you and bringing the most relevant ecoliteracy knowledge to you to consider and explore. So she spends more time than you would imagine when she mentors someone.

Cathy's suggested fee reflects these aspects of having individual access to her expertise and time.

Her suggested fee to creative practitioners to sustain her livelihood is:

€150/1.5 hr session. (Recommended three sessions = €450).

This rate sustains Haumea Ecoversity and is based on the Continuing Professional Development rate art organisations pay Cathy to mentor others.

For those with limited means, Cathy suggests a fee of €75/session.

Professionals can of course pay more.

In line with the Earth-aligned ethos of Haumea Ecoversity, Cathy uses the global Open Collective platform for transparent fee payments and donations. This global platform allows people to support the communities they highly value more transparently than corporate financial systems.