Fergus O'Ferrall, Lay Leader of the Methodist Church in Ireland, is one of the contributors to "A Dialogue of Hope: Critical Thinking for Critical Times". In this interview with Pat Coyle he says that there were also people throughout the length and breadth of rural Ireland who were suffering from a variety of social issues. Their voices need to be heard and appropriate platforms need to be set up to enhance the democratic participation our citizens in all aspects of Irish life.