On Friday, Loreto Primary School in Rathfarnham became the first of 72 schools to open capsules which were buried by students nationwide on February 1st, 1996. The 20-20 Vision, organised as part of the European Nature Conservation year, ran through 1995 with students across Ireland encouraged to imagine what the world would look like in 2020 and bury their thoughts in a time capsule. Letters from Irish public figures, who participated in the project following hand-written requests from students, were also unearthed from the capsule. Gay Byrne wrote that in 2020 cars would be banned and the Luas would be the only form of transport. Colm O’Neill, former principal of Loreto Grammar School in Omagh, said it was important to reflect on what the people of Omagh went through shortly after the capsule was buried.

Source: The Irish Times January 31, 2020 17:15 UTC