The bogs of Roscommon and Westmeath will host this year's Bog Bothy tour throughout the summer.

Bog Bothy is a touring, purpose-built shelter and community gathering space designed to reimagine the future of peatlands through architecture, culture, and climate action.

When it is touring, it can be used as a space for reflection, workshops, and exhibitions in communities across Ireland.

Th new tour is made possible through a partnership of the Irish Architecture Foundation (IAF) and architects 12th Field with Tóchar, one of Ireland’s major wetlands restoration programmes, which is co-ordinated by the National Parks and Wildlife Service.

Following Bog Bothy's inaugural successful tour in 2025, which was funded by Creative Ireland, the organisers said it returns this year with a "renewed focus on community co-design, capacity building and long-term engagement with Ireland’s peatland landscapes".

Bog Bothy 2026 will be hosted by three communities across the midlands following a competitive national open call:

Milltownpass, Co. Westmeath: May to June;
Cornafulla, Co. Roscommon: mid-July to mid-August;
Ballymore, Co. Westmeath: mid-August to mid-September.

"Through this new partnership, the project deepens its commitment to exploring how architecture, placemaking and collective action can shape evolving relationships with these sites of ecological and cultural transformation," the organisers said.

Minister of State with responsibility for nature, heritage and biodiversity, Christopher O’Sullivan, said the restoration of nature is crucial for livelihoods, wildlife, climate and a healthy environment for everyone.

He said: "My department recognises this challenge,.

"As we make a shift to nature recovery, initiatives such as the Bog Bothy tour will become even more significant as communities come on board with the collective objective of a healthy environment for all.”

IAF director, Emmett Scanlon, said that Bog Bothy has already placed architecture and placemaking at "the heart of community-led action in these precious landscapes", demonstrating the value of co-design practices in building capacity among communities.

He added: "With this new tour we will reach even more communities, who we hope will be excited and empowered to develop sustainable ways to use their local knowledge and ambition to offer leadership and imagine new futures in the Irish peatlands.”

Shirley Clerkin, Tóchar project manager, said Bog Bothy creates space for communities to actively participate in the future of their peatlands.

"As part of our restoration work, Tóchar encourages people to get involved in the profound shift that is underway in the midlands landscapes, and to explore their relationships with wetlands and these interwoven futures. 

"Providing communities with places and spaces to engage with local landscapes in new ways is at the very heart of this collaboration with the IAF and 12th Field architects, and the wonderfully vibrant structure that is the Bog Bothy," she said.

The tour kicked off in Milltownpass, where the bothy has been installed from this May Bank Holiday weekend, with a programme of locally led activity including engagement with schools and community groups.

Every host community will work closely with architects 12th Field through a series of site-based workshops, mapping sessions, and discussions, collectively exploring new futures for their peatlands.

12th Field architects said Bog Bothy places communities at the centre of conversations around their bogs.

A spokesperson said: "We are excited to work with Milltownpass, Cornafulla and Ballymore and to explore their relationships with these landscapes and to support new ways of thinking about their future."

Meanwhile, the IAF and Tóchar will convene a series of public conversation and events addressing themes of community capacity, energy transition, and ecological entanglement, connecting local knowledge with wider dialogues on climate and land use.