Healthy peatlands are globally important wetland ecosystems providing a variety of benefits including climate regulation, water filtration, and habitat for biodiversity. Peatlands also have important cultural and social values relating to heritage, community, education, sense of place, recreation and spirituality. In Ireland, there has been a gradual transition from the exploitation of peat for fuel and horticulture towards conservation, restoration and rewetting for ecosystem services, although domestic turf cutting and unregulated peat extraction are still significant issues. Industrial scale peat extraction has come to an end and ‘Just Transition’ programming aims to retrain industry workers and enable communities in the regions affected to develop new economic, social and cultural relationships with peatland landscapes.

This paper examines recent research on the role of community involvement and engagement in the management of peatlands as linked social-ecological systems. It explores the cultural context and experiences of communities in the midlands regions of Ireland as they transition from extractive systems providing labour and employment to more regenerative models that emphasise recreation, restoration, conservation, and education. Such transitions are key aspects of the transformational changes needed in society to address the current climate and biodiversity crises and achieve sustainable development and biodiversity goals. These transitions require ‘social-ecological’ investment and resourcing, both for the scientific aspects of peatland restoration, rewetting and conservation and the relational networks that are crucial to building the collaborative communities, cultures and economies of the future.

Finally, the paper provides a brief overview of the Peat Hub Ireland project which aims to collate evidence, identify knowledge gaps and integrate knowledge from a variety of disciplines and sources for the future sustainable management of Ireland’s peatlands. Just Transition is a key research theme and we welcome input on knowledge gaps in this area to support local communities and regional organisations negotiating the transition to more sustainable futures.