We are making steady progress in our pursuit of UNESCO Heritage status for the Transatlantic Cable ensemble at Valentia in County Kerry which in the mid 1850’s was propelled into the centre of world communications thus beginning Ireland’s transformation from being at the edge of the old world to being at the centre of the new globally connected world.
On the afternoon of Friday July 22nd 2022, we hosted the 6th Valentia Lecture revisited the topic of globalisation with the theme “Globalisation – Our Interconnected and Interdependent World”. The lecture took place at the historic Cable Station in Knightstown and was followed by a gala dinner that evening at the Royal Hotel for our contributors and guests.
Established in 2017, the Valentia Island Lecture Series has featured speakers from the worlds of academia, politics, diplomacy, commerce and technology underpinning the impacts that the birth of global communications, originating from Valentia Island in 1866, have made on every facet of modern society. Videos of the speeches from the lecture are available below and on our YouTube channel at https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCUS3eKQvO1ESFGbcRxX7sVw
The History of the Transatlantic Telegraph Cable
In 1858, Europe and North America were connected via the undersea transatlantic telegraph cable, that reduced communication times from weeks to minutes, in an achievement now considered the 19th century equivalent of putting a man on the moon.
Valentia Lecture
Globalisation – Our Interconnected and Interdependent World
The Valentia Lecture 2022 Part 1
Uploaded by Valentia Cable on 2022-08-22.
| 14:00 |
Welcome to the 6th Valentia Lecture Leonard Hobbs, Chairperson Valentia Transatlantic Cable Foundation |
| 14:10 |
Greetings Shay Walsh, MD of BT Ireland |
| 14:15 |
Keynote Eddie Hobbs, Wealth Management Advisor, Author, Broadcaster and Commentator
|
| 14:45 |
Keynote Ambassador Claire D. Cronin, United States Ambassador to Ireland
|
| 15:15 |
Panel session – Regional Development Redefined in a Remote Working World Chair Ambassador Nancy Smyth, Canadian Ambassador to Ireland June O’Connell, Founder and Director, Skellig Distillers Limited Garry Connolly, President and Founder, Host in Ireland and other guests
|
Connecting with Canada
The Valentia Lecture 2022 Part 2 Connecting with Canada
Uploaded by Valentia Cable on 2022-08-22.
| 17:30 | Greetings from the Ambassadors Eamonn McKee and Nancy Smyth |
| 17:45 |
The Future of the Global Citizen
Fireside chat with young adults across the Atlantic
|
| 18:30 |
Music exchange between Valentia and Hearts Content |
| 20:00 | Gala Dinner @ Royal Hotel Valentia |
- All talks are being recorded and all times listed are local Irish Summer Time (IST) & may be subject to change.
The first message transmitted over the 3,000 kilometre cable was a note of congratulations from Queen Victoria to US President James Buchanan, sent from Valentia Island in County Kerry to Newfoundland, Canada.
This was the first step and a permanent connection was established in July 1866 between Valentia and Hearts Content in Newfoundland. Instant communication was now a reality – and Valentia was at the centre of the revolution: a small island off the coast of Ireland became the point at which modern globalisation began.
“Now, almost every considerable expanse of water will be traversed by the slender cords which bind continents and islands together and practically bring the human race into one great family “– American Scientific, 1870
Communication technology has evolved rapidly since the first transatlantic message from Valentia in 1858 and continues to shape how we live, learn and work – particularly in a COVID-impacted world.