Living Leeside: Cork is the right place at the right time for Gavin

FROM Scotland to New Zealand to Co Cavan to Cork, Gavin Arneill took the scenic route to the rebel county but now that he has settled here, the Scotsman has no plans to leave anytime soon.

Leaving Scotland at the age of nine, he first moved to New Zealand with his family before returning to his grandparent’s home town of Cavan.

Originally moving to Cork for college, Gavin completed a BSc. in Zoology in UCC and went on to do a PhD at the Cork College also, funded by the National Parks and Wildlife Service.

“I knew there was a strong ornithology group in UCC that at the time was predominantly run by the current UCC president Prof John O’Halloran,” Gavin says.

“I was focused on doing a degree that would allow me to progress a career around ornithology. My late father was an environmental consultant so I spent most summers shadowing him while he was doing a lot of bird survey work on proposed renewable developments in Scotland.

“It turned out to be the best decision I could have made.”

Progressing his education, and following in his father’s footsteps, Gavin completed a PhD at UCC.

“My PhD was entitled Developing and Assessing Methods to Census and Monitor Burrow-Nesting Seabirds in Ireland allowing me to spend a lot of time on remote offshore islands all around the Irish coast.”

One of Gavin’s greatest memories in Cork was graduating at UCC with his PhD, surrounded by family and friends. Now a senior ecologist in Green Rebel, Gavin is here for the long haul. Green Rebel is an Irish-owned company, based in Cork, providing services for offshore windfarms.

“I work primarily within the Digital Aerial Survey division where we conduct offshore surveys of birds and marine mammals to support and inform baseline ecological assessment and monitoring for offshore renewable energy developments,” he explains.

“This is an exciting job allowing me to work with high-resolution imagery of the marine that we then analyse to estimate the density and distribution of marine megafauna.”

When he is not working Gavin said he enjoys the Cork coastline.

“Cork is ideal for me because I do like to try and get to places along the coast at the weekend. I grew up right next to the beach so I do like going along the coast and some sea swimming despite the cold.”

Gavin said he really likes living in Cork but the main motivation for him to settle here is career progression.

“I do like the balance between (small) city life and close proximity to some great outdoor spots,” he says. “I have a strong personal tie here, with my partner and a good friends network. From a career point of view, it’s exciting to be in an industry that is growing rapidly. This industry is set to create thousands of jobs in Ireland and Cork is set to be a major hub.

“From a personal standpoint, I am a marine ecologist and there appears to be ample opportunity to put my experience both academic and professional to great use by ensuring Ireland’s clean energy transition progresses in an informed and robust way. In Cork, there are great opportunities for work to be done in tandem between excellence in academia and industry, both of which have shaped my career.”

A key characteristic of Cork people, according to Gavin, is a deep and passionate love of Cork, something that he thinks he has managed to pick up himself.

“I don’t have any strong dislikes about living in Cork. Maybe that’s a sign I’ve settled because most people who are from Cork love being from Cork.”

Gavin said he thinks he is in Cork for the long haul for a variety of reasons.

“Career-wise, I feel this is such an exciting and crucial time to be in the offshore renewable energy industry and working with Green Rebel has been a great career move for me.

“I’m working with ambitious and like-minded people who are experts in their respective fields which makes for a very interesting workplace.

“Secondly, for personal reasons, I have a great partner and group of friends here in Cork.”

While Cork is where Gavin sees himself settling, he still makes the four-hour trip to Cavan from time to time to see his mother and his two older sisters.

Looking ahead, Gavin said this is a very exciting time to be in Cork.

“I feel Cork is changing. It is becoming a major player in the offshore renewable energy industry, it is certainly at the forefront and will be a major hub in the future.”