I WATCHED ALL the Irish presidential debates. As a result, I know which candidate keeps their toaster in the cupboard; which pets will move to the Aras with them; and what their party pieces are. What I still don’t know is how either of them plans to confront humanity’s greatest existential crisis.

Climate change is the elephant in the room and in the race to the Áras.

In past general elections, it featured as a core question in national debates. It has also been a defining pillar of two Irish presidents, with Michael D. Higgins placing climate justice at the heart of his past 14 years as President while Mary Robinson spent those years championing climate action on the world stage.

Against that backdrop, the media’s silence on climate in the 2025 presidential debates is as curious as it is alarming. If climate was central to our previous presidents and general election debates, why isn’t it important enough to ask those seeking the presidency about it now?

Frustrated by this neglect, I decided to ask the candidates myself.

I wrote to both campaigns requesting their positions on climate policy and action.

To their credit, both Catherine Connolly and Heather Humphreys’ campaigns provided considered replies, though their responses revealed two very different worldviews.

How did the candidates respond?

Catherine Connolly framed both climate change and biodiversity loss as emergencies “requiring delivery over rhetoric”.

In her recent Dáil statement on Budget 2026, she criticised the Government for failing to acknowledge this emergency and for ignoring climate limits.

Her policy focus moves between climate, nature, invasive species, water quality and public health -an integrated view that contrasts with the siloed thinking which has long undermined environmental progress.

Examples of her previous climate engagement were locally focused, from her objections to the N6 Galway City Ring Road to advocacy for a Galway LUAS.

Connolly committed, if she was President, to “spotlight community projects, press for delivery on EU obligations, and elevate environmental protection in national decision-making”.

Humphreys, by contrast, rooted her reply in her ministerial experience.

She noted that the government she served in produced Ireland’s first whole-of-government Climate Action Plan in 2019 and highlighted her own role in promoting a Just Transition within that process.

Her letter emphasised social protection measures, such as expanding the Fuel Allowance and child payments funded by the carbon tax, as well as rural initiatives, such as broadband expansion and regeneration of heritage buildings.

She also took pride in securing funding for greenways and blueways.

If she was President, Humphreys feels she could have a role in leading national efforts to support a zero carbon future.

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Like Connolly, Humphreys also committed to progressing community-level climate initiatives, but did not commit to any other specific presidential actions on climate.

What we can take away 

Comparing an opposition TD with a former cabinet minister is not straightforward. Humphreys held real power to implement, while Connolly’s influence came through critique and accountability.

Both can claim clear engagement on climate from opposing ends of the political spectrum.

Connolly’s record reflects principled consistency and visible support for youth climate movements, though her opposition to the carbon tax may divide some environmentalists.

Humphreys’ record is complicated by her Government’s mixed climate performance: she helped deliver Climate Action Plans and supported the Paris Agreement, yet as Heritage Minister she advanced a bill permitting turf burning and out-of-season hedge-cutting, earning the dubious title as a “flat earth Minister” from broadcaster George Hook for voting against wildlife protections in supporting the Heritage Bill.

Neither of the candidates’ prior climate experiences are directly relevant to the role they now seek. The President of Ireland cannot set policy or criticise the government.

What they can do is influence tone and model leadership.

President Higgins did this by embedding climate and sustainability into the Áras itself (which no longer burns turf), working with the FAO on food security, championing the UN Sustainable Development Goals, and celebrating local environmental organisers, demonstrating how a head of state can use symbolic power to inspire change.

Neither of the current candidates has yet matched President Higgins’ level of climate ambition, nor, crucially, have they been asked to. Until journalists demand an answer to the simple question, “How will you integrate climate change into your Presidency?”, we remain none the wiser. In a decade when climate impacts define every aspect of our lives, that silence does a profound disservice to the people of Ireland.

Dr. Cara Augustenborg is an Assistant Professor in Environmental Policy at University College Dublin and a member of President Michael D. Higgins’ Council of State.