The recent pandemic has reinforced the need for everyone to have local access to nature and green spaces. As communities, it has helped us to rediscover our natural and local environments. It has also shown how nature can have such a positive effect on our physical and mental well-being.

UCC's City-based campus is renowned not just for its impressive architecture but also for its abundant green spaces, making up more than two-thirds of the entire campus. The vibrant and open campus provides a wealth of benefits for both students and the broader Cork community.

Nestled along the banks of the River Lee, UCC boasts stunning grounds with formal gardens, informal green areas, and scenic riverside walks. The campus supports rich biodiversity, featuring various flowering plants, grasslands, a mix of native and exotic trees, extensive riparian zones, and associated wildlife.

There are well in excess of 2,500 trees throughout the UCC campus, existing as individual specimens and as woodland groups along the banks of the River Lee. These trees contribute greatly to the visual appeal of the campus, benefiting not only the city's inhabitants, tourists, and students but also enhancing the city's green corridors. These tree-lined paths can be followed eastwards, leading to the city and docklands or westwards, along the picturesque Lee Valley.

For more information on discovering UCC, click here.