Search

06 Sept 2025

Laois cycling litter picker scoops eco hero award

Portlaoise's Stephen McEvoy has been litter picking while out on his bike for the last five years

Laois cycling litter picker scoops eco hero award

Portlaoise's Stephen McEvoy receiving his eco-hero award. 

Reporter:

Laura McLoughlin

23 Feb 2024 9:23 AM

Portlaoise's Stephen McEvoy, who has been litter picking while out on his bike for the last five years, has scooped an eco-hero award. 
Stephen, who is founder of TrashFreemtb, received the Outsider Eco-Hero of the Year award, in recognition of not only his litter picking but also his work in galvanising the Irish mountain biking community to look after the natural environment. 
The awards ceremony was hosted by the Irish Outdoor Publication, Outsider.ie and the accolades were handed out by Ireland’s first solo transatlantic oarswoman Dr Karen Weekes in the Sugar Club on Leeson Street in Dublin on Wednesday. 
Speaking about Stephen's work the organisers said: "Stephen – who is from County Laois – has been litter picking while out on his bike since 2019, and he decided to set up TrashFreemtb to encourage other mountain bikers to do the same. His aim was to highlight the importance of protecting our wild upland areas and raise awareness for the danger of litter for small animals and the importance of biodiversity."
The title sponsor of the awards was Sport Ireland Outdoors and they were also supported by Leave No Trace Ireland, Craghoppers, Salewa, The Sustainable Tourism Network, and Vagabond Tours.

To continue reading this article,
please subscribe and support local journalism!

Subscribing will allow you access to all of our premium content and archived articles.

Subscribe

To continue reading this article for FREE,
please kindly register and/or log in.

Registration is absolutely 100% FREE and will help us personalise your experience on our sites. You can also sign up to our carefully curated newsletter(s) to keep up to date with your latest local news!

Register / Login

Most Popular

Sponsored Content

Multimedia

We've got Donegal Covered...

Subscribe or register today to discover more from DonegalLive.ie

Buy a paper

Buy the e-paper of the Donegal Democrat, Donegal People's Press, Donegal Post and Inish Times here for instant access to Donegal's premier news titles.

Buy Now
Get the news

Keep up with the latest news from Donegal with our daily newsletter featuring the most important stories of the day delivered to your inbox every evening at 5pm.

Register Here
Iconic Media is Ireland's largest independently owned regional newspaper and media group, with an unrivalled audience in print, online and mobile. We have 19 regional newspapers and 21 digital sites.

Iconic Digital Titles

  • Carlow Live
  • Clare Live
  • Derry Now
  • Donegal Live
  • Éire Bheo
  • Inish Live
  • Ireland Live
  • Kildare Live
  • Kildare Now
  • Kilkenny Live
  • Laois Live
  • Leitrim Live
  • Letterkenny Live
  • Limerick Live
  • Longford Live
  • Louth Live
  • Mayo Live
  • Nenagh Live
  • Offaly Live
  • Tipperary Live
  • Waterford Live

    • Iconic Print Titles

  • Clonmel Nationalist
  • County Derry Post
  • Derry News
  • Donegal Democrat
  • Donegal Post
  • Dundalk Democrat
  • Homes in Donegal
  • Inish Times
  • Kilkenny People
  • Leinster Express
  • Leinster Leader
  • Leitrim Observer
  • Letterkenny Live
  • Limerick Leader
  • Longford Leader
  • Mayo News
  • Midland Tribune
  • Tipperary Star
  • Tullamore Tribune

    • This publication supports the work of the Press Council of Ireland and Office of the Press Ombudsman, and our staff operate within the Code of Practice of the Press Council. You can obtain a copy of the Code, or contact the Council, at www.presscouncil.ie, Lo-call 1800 208 080 or email: info@presscouncil.ie.

    © 2025 Iconic Media