By Donncha Ó hÉallaithe

A Conamara-born physiotherapist who returned to home after several years in Australia couldn’t find a place to live in her home place – and spent the summer sleeping in a camper van.

But now Adhna Ní Bhraonáin from Cois Fharraige is fighting back – demanding a change to housing and planning policies to ensure young Gaeltacht people can find a suitable place to live in their own Irish speaking communities.

The initial steps to establish a new lobby group were taken at a public meeting last Sunday; at Adhna’s suggestion, it will be known as Bánú which, on the one hand, means depletion – but Bánú an Lae means the dawning of a bright new day.

Adhna is steeped in the culture of the Gaeltacht, coming from a family renowned for Sean Nós singing.

And after returning from a few years in Australia, she quickly found work in her profession locally – but she couldn’t find suitable accommodation in her own community.

She decided to highlight the difficulties experienced by young people who wish to live in the Gaeltacht – and that led to last Sunday’s public meeting.

Caption: Adhna Ní Bhraonáin…leading a new Gaeltacht housing lobby.

Get the full story in this week’s Connacht Tribune, on sale in shops now, or you can download the digital edition from www.connachttribune.ie. You can also download our Connacht Tribune App from Apple’s App Store or get the Android Version from Google Play.