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The Global Greening has begun, with the first of an expected 150 landmarks around the world lighting up for St. Patrick’s Day. The Global Greening is a Tourism Ireland initiative that encourages iconic structures around the world to go green for March 17 – throwing a spotlight on the island of Ireland.

The initiative began in 2010 with just a single building – the Sydney Opera House

New participants for 2015 include the Colosseum, the Sacré Cœur basilica in Paris, Nashville’s Grand Ole Opry and Edinburgh Castle.

“Being able to put ourselves front and centre on the world stage in this way reaps unrivalled dividends in terms of publicity, promoting Ireland and getting the message out about our recovery,” said Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport Paschal Donohoe TD.

“It is estimated that last year, the Government’s St Patrick’s Day efforts secured €5 million in new business,” the Minister added.

Check out the photos here at Independent.ie

As Irish celebrity chef Rachel Allen says, “there isn’t a definitive recipe for Irish stew simply because each household has adapted their own family recipe”. Some people use lamb, some beef, some people add carrots, some not. Many recipes call for celery and parsnips, and who doesn’t like parsnips!? Check out Rachel’s recipe here and tell us how you make yours!

The Irish Times video team is putting together a compilation of clips from Irish people around the world celebrating St Patrick’s Day this week, so if you’d like to send a greeting home to Ireland, say Happy St Patrick’s Day to friends and family, or share your plans for the day, record a short video clip (under 30 seconds) and send it via WeTransfer to video@irishtimes.com by next Monday morning Irish time (March 16th).

WeTransfer is a file sharing service that is incredibly simple to use – log on to wetransfer.com, upload the video file, enter your own email address and send to “emigration@irishtimes.com”.

You can also email your photographs to emigration@irishtimes.com, with a line saying who is in the photograph and where it was taken.

The debate continues, or perhaps rages, as to whether Ireland’s style of play will be good enough to win a World Cup, as we gear up for the match in Cardiff this Saturday 14th, and Joe Schmidt’s side leads with three wins from three.

Ireland were unconvincing in their opening win over Italy, but then toughed-out a home win over France and maintained their Grand Slam hopes with a 19-9 win over England in Dublin at the Aviva Stadium last time out.

Looking to the bookies in Ireland, the All Blacks are favorites once more, but then again they always are. Paddy Power, a little surprisingly, make England second favorites at 4/1 – as much down to them having home advantage as anything else. Only time will tell, and with Ireland most recently seeing out a 19-9 win against England, this Saturday’s match against Wales is sure to be a lively game!

The program for St. Patrick’s Festival 2015  in Dublin includes four days of exceptional city-wide events to celebrate Ireland’s national holiday!

The theme of the parade this year ‘Celebrate Now’ will see leading street theater and pageant companies draw inspiration for their artistic creations from Ireland’s present, embracing ‘nowness’ and savoring the moment.

Highlights to look forward to include the return of the Festival’s hugely popular and distinguished cultural program, ‘I Love My City’, the Festival Treasure Hunt in association with Ethiopian Airlines, Céilí House Live presented by RTÉ Radio 1, the Festival Big Day Out in Merrion Square, and of course the Parade which will feature pageants, bands and music from around the world!

For more info click here.

Ireland just got a lot closer for the hundreds of thousands of Irish people living abroad, with RTÉ unveiling a new global online Irish television service for international audiences. The new service, RTÉ Player International, provides a new online television offering to international audiences (outside of Ireland) with 500 hours of free and paid-for Irish television content, including just-aired television content refreshed daily.

Spanning RTÉ News and Current Affairs, drama, comedy, entertainment, documentaries, lifestyle, Irish-language and kids content, the content offering will continue to expand with new programmes added regularly. The app will also feature editorially selected collections of content, themed around events, seasons, genres and people to bring a unique selection of contemporary and classic Irish television to audiences internationally.

Speaking at the launch, Jimmy Deenihan T.D., Minister for Diaspora Affairs, said “The launch of RTÉ’s new Player International service is wonderful news for our Diaspora abroad. It will provide them with a quick, convenient and immediate link with home which ensures they remain connected and engaged in the public and cultural life in Ireland. As Ireland’s first Minister for the Diaspora I have met with many members of our Irish community all over the world. The ability to hear Irish voices and see Irish programming is an extremely tangible connection with home. This new service will remind them that Ireland is just a click away.”

The new enhanced RTÉ Player International service is available for iOS devices, supporting iOS7 or greater. To learn more click here. 

The increasingly popular Irish Film Festival, Boston will take place over four days from Thursday, March 19th to Sunday, March 22nd, 2015 at the Somerville Theatre, Davis Square. The festival sells out fast every year,  so be sure to check out the full schedule of films being announced at the end of this week on their website.

Congratulations to all the award winners!

Best Feature, GOLD
Directed by Niall Heery

Best Short, BOOGALOO AND GRAHAM
Directed by Michael Lennox

Director’s Choice Feature, ONE MILLION DUBLINERS
Directed by Aoife Kelleher

Director’s Choice Short, THE WEATHER REPORT
Directed by Paul Murphy

Special Jury Prize, AN BRONNTANAS
Directed by Tom Collins

To check out the official website click here!

The first ever Irish diaspora policy has been published by the Irish Government, just as Irish-American Heritage Month begins in the US. The policy was launched yesterday by Taoiseach Enda Kenny, Tánaiste Joan Burton, Minister for Diaspora Affairs Jimmy Deenihan and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade Charlie Flanagan in Government buildings.

According to the Mayor of Boston, Marty Walsh, South Boston’s annual St. Patrick’s Day Parade will go on as planned on March 15th, despite the record-setting snow this year. Some changes to the route will be made, but changes have yet to be decided on.

Organizers of the parade met with Mayor Walsh Monday night to iron out some of the details. Brian Mahoney, the Commander of the Allied War Council, says the 3.2-mile route will have to be reconfigured.

“We’re all committed on going forward on the 15th but we have to finalize the best route to take,” Mahoney said. “The route will be pretty much what it is right now there will just be some minor changes.”

Each March, the United States celebrates Irish-American heritage month, coinciding of course with Ireland’s national holiday on March 17, Saint Patrick’s Day. Irish-American heritage month is a special proclamation issued yearly by the United States President to honor the achievements and contributions of Irish immigrants and their descendants living in the United States.

On Tuesday, March 17, 2015 President Obama will welcome Taoiseach (Prime Minister) Enda Kenny of Ireland to the White House. In the morning, the President will meet with the Taoiseach in the Oval Office, and subsequently he will attend the traditional St. Patrick’s Day lunch at the U.S. Capitol. In the evening, the President and the First Lady will host a reception to celebrate their fifth St. Patrick’s Day at the White House. During the reception, the President and Taoiseach (Prime Minister) will participate in the annual Shamrock ceremony. It symbolizes the profound kinship between Ireland and the United States. According to records, the ceremony first began in 1952, when the Irish Ambassador John Joseph Hearne sent a box of shamrock to President Truman at the White House. President Truman was out of town at the time, but later sent Ambassador Hearne a message, in which Truman said that he hoped “relations between the two countries will continue to be on a good and effective level for generations.”

To read more about the Irish-American heritage month and see a video on the history of the Shamrock ceremony click here!