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“THERE IS A big wave approaching,” says Colm Lyon, founder and chief executive of Fire.com. “We know it’s coming, we just don’t know how far away from the shore it is.”

Lyon, who graduated with a BComm from UCD in 1985, is used to catching big waves. In 2015, he sold Realex Payments for €115m. Now, with payments and financial services company Fire, he is hoping to build something even bigger.

The wave he talks about is the cashless economy – but not just living without notes and coins, but a whole ecosystem of businesses and services with frictionless, mobile-facilitated payments at their core.

Paying electronically, Lyons says, is a faster, safer way of doing business that will unlock new opportunities as it collapses the traditional walls of commerce and payments. “It’s a beautiful way to pay and it’s a superb way to get paid,” he says. “These are really fundamental improvements in the underlying infrastructure and the underlying attributes of how payments are going to work into the future.”

Around the world, and in Ireland, the numbers tell their own story. Emerging Asian countries are expected to see non- cash transactions grow by 29 per cent by next year; electronic payments make up 80 per cent of transactions in Sweden. Between February and May of this year alone, there was a seven per cent increase in the number of contactless payments per day in Ireland, with 19.1 million occurring every day.

On the ground, this is driving growth for businesses like Colin Barry’s. The UCD Business alumnus is founder of Brite Mobility, an e-scooter and e-bike sharing platform, aimed at making modern cities quickly and easily navigable for its users.

Barry knows all about rapid change. His family’s company, MotorPark, was the oldest Ford dealer in Europe, and had contracts with BMW and Mitsubishi as well. But by the end of 2018, the Barrys knew change was coming. The business was sold to Joe Duffy and Sheils Motors, and two years later, Barry is still in transport – but now, it’s a fundamentally different movement.

“We can’t run this business without being online, without it being an app. It’s not possible. Online apps bring an ability to create a networked, social, easy-to-use way of accessing transport devices or vehicles,” he says. “At it’s core, it’s about a service that allows you to find the device, start the device, travel on it, and pay for the trip, all done on your phone.”

For several years, the cashless economy has been growing at a steady pace, with the Covid-19 pandemic now locking in and accelerating this dynamic.

What will this future look like?

The explosion of the cashless economy has ushered in a new set of challenges for operators and regulators

A New Frontier

Experts in the field, like UCD graduate Laura Flood, a partner with PwC and a Council Member of the Fintech and Payments Association of Ireland, say that the move towards a cashless society is fuelled by several overlapping and reinforcing trends.

For Flood, it is “primarily driven by advances in technology, the development of new and innovative efficient payment solutions, and consumer preferences”.

“Speed, convenience and reducing the risk of theft of physical cash are also some of the key reasons we are seeing a marked reduction in cash transactions,” she says. Her work brings her into contact with the whole range of financial services companies making sense of this shift, from major domestic and international banks to “fintechs” – or financial technology companies – looking to disrupt their bigger, older brothers in the pillar lenders. The success of these interlopers goes a long way to explaining what is valued, and valuable, in this new economy.

Katherine Farrell has worked in communications with Web Summit since completing her BComm International at UCD in 2015, and that has brought her into contact with the firms trying to break new ground in the space. Fintech firms that have been attending Web Summit, and its sister conference Collision, have been “growing immensely” in recent months, she says, “purely by recognising what customers want in their financial journeys: access, speed, price and security.”

So-called “digital social payment” companies like Revolut, AliPay and Venmo “remove barriers such as paying in cash, forgetting to pay your pal, and owing someone money. They’re instant, so when friends are sitting having dinner they can immediately split a bill with far less hassle.”

On the ground, the last few years have seen rapid change. Counterintuitively, when he moved to Silicon Valley in 2011, Ger Dwyer found the digital infrastructure around him to be outdated and archaic.

The UCD BComm alumnus joined Google from Eircom in 2006, and now is chief financial officer of Waymo, the search giant’s driverless car venture. But, when he arrived to take up his new role at Mountain View, phone networks were frustrating, the traditional taxi network was “maddening”, and even as late as 2016, paying for services with Google Pay on his phone was “so awkward”.

In a few short years, that scene has been transformed by services like Google Pay and companies like Uber. When someone is leaving the office, the whip-around is done on Google Pay, not in an envelope, while a circle of Irish tech executives in Silicon Valley swap tips on the best currency exchange apps and services to use to circumvent the significant charges imposed by traditional banks. All this, Dwyer explains, has been accelerated by Covid-19, as consumer behaviours changed in ways that cut out the middle man and cut down on interactions. His wife, he says, now buys seafood directly from fishermen using digital wallet Venmo.

“That trend has been ongoing, the rise of the apps-based economy has certainly accelerated it, and now the pandemic is going to accelerate it even more.”

It’s a view shared by UCD alumnus Patrick Waldron, chief executive of international payments firm Planet. The company grew out of Galway- headquartered financial services firm Fintrax, which began life as a processor of VAT refunds for tourists. It now serves 400,000 merchants and manages transactions worth tens of billions every year. Recently, a sale worth up to €1.98bn was rumoured.

Pre-pandemic, around 70 per cent of customers wanted VAT refunds in cash. This has now plummeted to less than 20 per cent, Waldron says. And he is betting that this change will be permanent. “Once people get used to this type of behaviour, it tends to be sustained. I would think, without Covid-19, it would have taken another four or five years to make that change,” he says.

RISK AND RESPONSIBILITY

With rapid expansion, growing risk and responsibility comes along with a growing opportunity. The explosion of the cashless economy has ushered in a new set of challenges for operators and regulators, and risks to be recognised and managed by consumers.

Patrick Waldron says there is an onus on companies to be aware of emerging threats. “I would not underestimate the challenges for companies in making sure that they’re protected from cyber attacks, because we’ve seen a big increase in attacks in that area,” he says.

During the crisis, Waldron has seen more organised criminal elements involved in these incursions.

“In order to move to a fully cashless society, the financial sector’s digital products and services would need to allow for full participation by all members of society and enhance financial inclusion … ”

Web Summit’s Katherine Farrell says that while the 2008 financial crash caused many to lose trust in traditional financial services, and indirectly led to the rise of digital banks and decentralised digital currencies, the companies that win in the next phase of finance must be primed for risk.

“While customers demand convenience and speed from fintechs, security, safety from fraud, and privacy, are also major priorities. This is still an issue that hangs over massive payment companies such as PayPal, who dominate so many payment points across their portfolio,” she says.

Fintechs have enjoyed a windfall of customers during Covid-19, but “people are now being forced to use these payment systems, because we don’t have many other alternatives. It’s making consumers ask: ‘Are the same checks and balances in place with these larger payment companies?’

Where once there was a fear of the physical theft of cash, PwC’s Laura Flood says that fear has been transferred to online fraud and scams.

Flood also believes there is a need to ensure all members of society, not just tech-savvy digital natives, are catered for and have access to these new services and resources.“In order to move to a fully cashless society, the financial sector’s digital products and services would need to allow for full participation by all members of society and enhance financial inclusion with evidence-based design and transparency at the heart of progress in this area.”

These responsibilities aren’t just for companies and consumers to worry about. “For regulators, a world without cash presents some significant considerations,” says Flood. Designing monetary policy for stability and financial regulation as the use of cash declines and new innovations emerge will be a defining challenge for regulators.

“A number of forces, including these, have resulted in the concept of a Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) being widely explored by many Central Banks around the world to complement or replace traditional currencies. A recent Bank for International Settlements survey showed that more than 80 per cent of the 66 banks surveyed were working on CBDC, though many in an exploratory or ‘analytical’ phase,” says Flood.

Meanwhile, entrepreneurs in the area say not all areas of banking and lending will easily make the switch online. UCD Smurfit Graduate Business School alumna, Alison Fearon, formerly of Merrill nch and Goldman Sachs, last year founded Switcheroo.ie, which digitises the mortgage application process. “Payments of €50 or less are easy and low risk but other services are complicated and require advice,” she says.

“Financial services is rightly a highly regulated industry where advice for many areas is critical and will unlikely be digitised for some time. How comfortable would you be making the biggest financial decision of your life on the back of interacting with a chatbot?”

Technology, Fearon says, has an increasing role to play “but it needs to be considered and with the interest of the customer in mind, not digitisation for the sake of technology deployment.”

A BRAVE NEW WORLD

If these challenges can be bested, entrepreneurs in the sector – and consumers – can look forward to a radically changed and improved vista, with traditional lenders vulnerable to losing large swathes of their traditional markets to agile and fast-moving usurpers.

Katherine Farrell relates the experiences of two fintech innovators who have appeared at Web Summit in recent years. Revolut’s founder and CEO, Nikolay Storonsky, was at Web Summit in 2019. He said it would take 14 committees to approve one of his ideas at Credit Suisse, and two years to get one product to market. Anne Boden, chief executive of digital-only lender Starling Bank, says what would have taken years to build out in a legacy bank can be processed and shipped in weeks at a so-called “neobank”.

Colm Lyon is now largely focused on the UK, where he is on the Payments Products and Services board of trade industry body UK Finance, and the open banking future steering committee.

Lyon says the changes afoot now will collapse the traditional walls of commerce and payments. Soon, he says, consumers will be able to scan a real-life ad for a product on their phone, and pay directly through their banking app in a way that means their details will never have to be shared with a vendor.

“This is an electronic payment of monumental difference to what we have had before, because it’s cheaper for the retailer to accept that payment, it’s faster, it’s almost real time … there’s little or no fraud because I authenticate myself to my bank or to my account provider who is responsible for that and the retailer is not responsible for it,” he says. He calls it “open banking”.

PwC’s Laura Flood agrees. “Open finance is seen by many as the next stage of payment innovation and is based on the principle that the data supplied by and created on behalf of financial services customers are owned and controlled by those customers.”

Customers who consent to sharing data could be offered tailored products and services, including highly targeted quotations and personal financial management tools, as well as alternative creditworthiness assessments, according to Flood. “Open finance will present a significant opportunity for those seeking to develop innovative new services for products including mortgages, savings, pensions and insurance.”

TEXT: Jack Horgan-Jones

WHAT MAKES A UNIVERSITY work? Its people. So how can a university work when people cannot be on campus? That was the challenge facing UCD as the Covid-19 pandemic moved rapidly across the world, bringing with it the need for enormous societal changes to protect public health. Educators and students alike were forced to accept that in order to achieve together, they had to stay apart. But with thoughtful leadership, the right technology and a huge community response, UCD students, lecturers and staff have been going the distance to teach, learn and work.

The Covid-19 virus was identified and reported on in Wuhan, China, at the end of December 2019, and very soon after this the University was alerted to the potential global changes that the virus could bring, notes Professor Mark Rogers, UCD’s Registrar and Deputy President.

UCD has a presence in China through the Beijing-Dublin International College, which it runs in Beijing in partnership with Beijing University of Technology (BJUT).

“We had a forewarning from seeing what happened in February at our campus in China,” explains Professor Rogers. “This new disease had been reported a few weeks beforehand in Wuhan, and very suddenly the 1,000 UCD students in Beijing moved online for teaching and learning.”

Planning For Change

Even before that, senior management at UCD had been thinking about how to move its entire population of 17,000 undergraduate and 7,500 graduate students to distance teaching, learning and assessment should the need arise.

“We started to plan how we should organise ourselves, so that if the virus came to Ireland we would be in a position to act,” says Professor Jason Last, Dean of Students at UCD.

He chaired the Coronavirus Monitoring Group, which brought in expertise from across the University in communications, health and safety, student health and international students.

“We drew up a contingency plan and we monitored the situation,” says Professor Last, who is a medical doctor. “We conveyed the messages about handwashing and isolation, about wellbeing and what to do if staff or students were concerned, and we put in place protocols should a suspected case of Covid-19 arise on campus.”

Then, in mid-March, the shutters came down. “The Taoiseach announced that educational institutions were to close, and we knew educational activities would have to be done differently,” explains Professor Last. “We realised this was going to be a huge challenge – everyone was moving to working from home and working in new ways.”

UCD had recently updated the Virtual Learning Environment software platform, where students and staff can share materials online, he notes.

“Thankfully, the new platform is well suited for remote delivery at scale, so it was good to have that in place,” says Professor Last. “The other aspect was that the lockdown started during the fieldwork/study break in March, so we had a window to get distance teaching and learning up and running, and to consider how to continue to make our many student supports available at a distance whilst maintaining health supports for those students who were living on campus or nearby.”

Rapid Changes

Lecturers across the University sprang into action, preparing and delivering lectures online to students in real time, and recording and uploading lectures for students to watch when they could and responding to student queries.

Then came time for exams. In some cases, the assessments had changed from end-of-semester exams to assignments. And where exams happened, they were either “live” and timed, or students were given a deadline to submit.

Across the board, the distance teaching and learning approach needed latitude, notes Professor Last, who experienced delivering tutorials remotely during lockdown.

Like others, he has been largely working from home – Co Wexford in his case – and he appreciates that the change in setup can bring challenges.

“For this transition to distance working, we had to take into account that everyone across the entire body of staff, faculty and students would have bandwidth issues during this time,” he says.

“And by that I mean not only their immediate access to the Internet, but they may also have caring responsibilities in their families. Also, if a student moved home, perhaps there was little space for them to get a quiet corner. Then if they were an international student, they could now be in a completely different time-zone to Ireland. So while a live online lecture meant students had the opportunity to ask questions and enter into discussions, there were also cases where a recorded lecture was going to work better in practice.”

Technology At Scale

For Trish Mountjoy, ensuring that the underlying technology did its job to keep everyone connected during lockdown was top of her list. As Head of Educational Technology Services at UCD IT Services, she delivers technology solutions and services for the University as a whole. Before Covid-19 hit, she had been focused on getting the new Virtual Learning Environment bedded down, and ensuring that staff and students alike could use it.

“When the lockdown happened, we had five weeks of the teaching term left, followed then by an assessment period,” says Mountjoy. “But we were in a good position for that, because the Brightspace platform we had introduced is delivered as SaaS (software as a service), hosted in AWS (Amazon Web Services), so we knew the platform would have the capacity to scale and adjust to the increase in demand.”

With confidence that the system would cope with the surge during lockdown, Mountjoy and colleagues tried to keep the user-facing changes to a minimum. “We were reluctant to heap more technology into the mix,” she explains. “We wanted to keep things as consistent as we could and not introduce new elements, to help minimise the stress for both faculty and students.”

During the “emergency pivot to online”, IT Services worked with several other departments to ensure a seamless delivery of teaching and learning and assessments, all happening at scale. “During the live exams, which ran over three weeks, we had just over 40,000 sittings of exams run on the platform with very few difficulties,” says Mountjoy.

“We had to make the change to at-distance out of necessity and very rapidly. Now that people have some time to reflect, I hope there will be some positive experiences, and we can consider what additional aspects of technology- enhanced learning could be integrated into teaching and assessment in the future.”

Resilience and Response

For Professor Marie Clarke, Dean of Undergraduate Studies at UCD, the transition to working at a distance has highlighted the resilience of the UCD community.

“There has been a huge generosity among students and faculty and staff working together,” she says. “We also had the UCD Teaching and Learning Unit led by Áine Galvin, IT Services Support led by Trish Mountjoy and Genevieve D’Alton and Assessment led by Karen McHugh all bringing their perspectives and skills to the problem, and it made the support so much richer. Then the fact that all could be achieved in a virtual environment and at such speed was amazing.”

UCD students also stepped up to the plate, and the preliminary findings of a survey show they generally rated the University’s transition to distance teaching, learning and assessment highly. More than 5,200 UCD students responded to the survey, and Professor Clarke and Maura McGinn, Director of UCD Institutional Research, have been analysing the results.

The students’ answers highlighted some of the challenges they faced during the Covid-19 lockdown, including loneliness, anxiety, a difficulty in sustaining concentration and a lack of structure to their day. And while the majority of respondents would not undertake online learning by choice, the students were largely happy with the rapid response of their lecturers and just over half of the students now feel more comfortable with learning at a distance than they did before the pandemic. “Reflecting on the experience of transitioning to working at a distance means we can now figure out what works well for the future,” says Professor Clarke.

Look to the Future

And what might that future look like for UCD students, faculty and staff? With so much uncertainty baked into the global Covid-19 pandemic, anticipating the finer details of how UCD will operate in the coming academic year is not easy. But UCD Registrar Professor Rogers and colleagues want to ensure that people can have as much of an in-person experience at UCD as they can while keeping safe and healthy.

“It is likely that many lectures will remain at a distance, and small groups can be present on campus for discussions and practicals and in labs to carry out research, but in a manner that they can maintain social distancing,” says Professor Rogers. “We want to ensure that people can have as much of an engaged campus experience as possible while keeping safe and healthy.”

Text: Dr Claire O’Connell

THE SUPPORT WE receive from UCD alumni is extraordinary in its generosity, transformative in its impact, and deeply appreciated by the students who benefit directly and by the UCD staff who nurture their progress.

In this issue of UCD Connections, we bring you some insight into the difference your donations make to your University and to the young (and not so young) students following their journey through UCD. Last year alone, thanks to the incredible support of close to 4,000 alumni, we raised €10.36m in support of students, research and teaching facilities. I thank each and every one of you.

“Within the constraints of the national and public health guidelines, we strive to provide a real campus experience for our students, academically and socially”

Of course, since January, we have all been consumed by the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic. We have lost friends, family and colleagues to this awful virus. Its impact has meant that our normal social interactions have been so curtailed that we have not been able to extend the normal personal sympathy and support to those who are grieving the loss of their loved ones – whether from Covid-19 or in other circumstances. Because so many of us have been affected, I know that we will rally, and, when the time is right, we will come together to share, commemorate and celebrate.

UCD has been very proud to play its part in tackling the impact of Covid-19  at a national level – through the work of staff, students and alumni – to such an extent that we have dedicated much of the magazine to their efforts.

Managing the impact of Covid-19 meant that last March we had to transfer all of our teaching, learning and assessment to remote delivery. As early as January we had to look after students in China or due to travel to China, so we had a level of preparedness for the massive impact when the virus hit Ireland. In addition to looking after the learning needs of our students, we also ensured that our on-campus residences remained open in order to support the hundreds of students who had no safe alternative.

Planning for the new academic year was, I will readily admit, a challenge. We know the critical importance of personal contact for both the teaching and research components of college activity. The Student Experience Survey, completed by 5,000 UCD students in June, highlighted the importance of face-to-face contact for students, particularly in relation to mental wellbeing and health, and so, within the constraints of the national public health guidelines, we strive to provide a real campus experience for our students, academically and socially, as we continue to grapple with the impact of the pandemic.

In September, we begin our Belfield 50 celebrations as we mark 50 years since the administration and faculties of law, arts, social sciences and business moved from Earlsfort Terrace to Belfield (page 76). Although some of the Belfield 50 programme we had planned cannot currently take place physically, I would like to invite you, our alumni, to join in and engage with the tours, exhibitions and conversations taking place at www.ucd.ie/belfield50. Belfield campus has come of age, and with the plans for the Centre for Creativity and the Centre for Future Learning progressing, I believe that we are putting in place world-class infrastructure that will support the next 50 years (and more) of this great University.

IN MANY WAYS, UCD’s success as a global university is evident from a simple scan. Thirty per cent of staff at UCD are from outside Ireland and some 60 per cent of UCD research publications are co-authored with researchers from other countries. Twenty-nine per cent of UCD’s student body in Dublin is now drawn from overseas, and the University enrols a further 4,000 students in transnational education programmes in Asia. UCD is home to academic centres with a focus on the USA, Canada, China and Japan (among others) and runs 40 global alumni chapters, recognising that 30 per cent of alumni live overseas.

For UCD, this concentration of international activity flows from the conscious adoption of a strategic institution-wide approach to global engagement, as reflected in UCD’s leadership and management structures and written strategies. UCD seeks to nurture the international dimension of all of its activities – in teaching, research and outreach – through the involvement of all members of the UCD community, be they faculty, professional staff, students or alumni.

As part of the National University of Ireland system, UCD’s approach to global engagement is closely aligned with Ireland’s national priorities, including the Irish strategy for international education –“Irish Educated, Globally Connected: An International Education Strategy for Ireland, 2016-2020”– and the Global Ireland strategies pursued by the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade.

Government strategies recognise that international engagement is crucial to Ireland’s economic success, and that the Irish diaspora represent an invaluable opportunity for the promotion of Irish values and Irish culture abroad. Universities similarly reflect on the fact that global engagement is not an optional extra, but embedded in the fabric of what it means to be a university, given the fundamentally collaborative nature of research and discovery and the pressing need to prepare graduates for an increasingly competitive global jobs market.

As Director of UCD Global, the University’s international office, Dr Douglas Proctor is tasked with supporting UCD in the implementation of its Global Engagement Strategy and with implementing key international programmes on behalf of all Colleges and Schools, specifically in relation to student exchange and international student recruitment and support.

“One key responsibility of UCD Global is to run the five Global Centres which UCD has established,” he says. “UCD Global employs some 20 staff across the network of UCD Global Centres in the USA (New York, Chicago and Los Angeles), China, India, Malaysia and Dubai. The international office at Ireland’s Global University now operates six days a week across eight timezones in support of UCD’s global engagement.”

UCD Global Centres have been central to growing UCD’s reputation overseas from a scholarly and research perspective, as well as enabling key activities locally, whether focused on student recruitment or alumni engagement.

“Through the coordinated work of UCD Global, Colleges and Schools, UCD now enrols over 8,000 international students in Dublin, with students from over 140 countries,” says Dr Proctor.  “This diversity is valued on-campus and by the broader Irish community, with many international students contributing to the Irish workforce during or after completion of their degrees.”

UCD’s global reputation is further enhanced by its capacity to teach a range of programmes in Asia, with over 4,000 students enrolled in programmes delivered in Malaysia, China, Hong Kong, Singapore and Sri Lanka. Flagship transnational activities include the RCSI-UCD Malaysia Campus (RUMC), one of only ten foreign university branch campuses approved by the Malaysian Government and the only such branch campus affiliated with Ireland. Founded over 20 years ago as the Penang Medical College, RUMC has been a pioneer in transnational medical education, and has significantly boosted awareness of Irish education in South East Asia.

UCD was also the first Irish university to receive approval from the Chinese Ministry of Education to establish a joint international college in China.  Founded in 2012, the Beijing-Dublin International College (BDIC) is run in partnership with Beijing University of Technology and offers programmes to over 1,300 students in computer science, internet of things, electronic and information engineering, and financial economics.

In early 2020, UCD gained further approval to establish two new joint international colleges in China – Chang’an-Dublin International College of Transportation in Xi’an and Guangzhou- Dublin International College of Life Sciences and Technology in Guangzhou. “Through dual degree programmes, research collaboration and jointly supervised PhD students, these new partnerships mark a major milestone for UCD’s collaboration with one of the world’s fastest opening and most significant economies,” says Dr Proctor. “They will serve to cement the University’s place as an international and global university.”

UCD is also responding to the disruption of its international activities due to Covid-19. Having called exchange students home when Ireland went into lockdown, and encouraged international students to return home and continue their studies at a distance if they wanted to be close to their families, UCD has since made the difficult decision to suspend student exchange for the first semester in 2020. In relation to staff, UCD has suspended all overseas travel until further notice, and international research conferences and other collaborative activities have moved online. Although UCD has seen very strong interest from prospective international students to commence their studies in September, continued travel restrictions and concerns for public health will prevent many of these students from travelling to Ireland for the start of the academic year.  “UCD  was  well-prepared for the global health crisis, and is using the lockdown as an opportunity to re-think its global engagement activities.” The UCD Global Lounge moved quickly to develop virtual offerings for students, and live and recorded webinars are now being produced faster and more professionally than ever before. Major improvements to the IT systems which support student exchange were also finalised over the summer.

“Ireland’s Global University is resilient,” says Dr Proctor. “International collaboration and a global mindset have never been more important, even if international travel is difficult in the short-term. With the support of our alumni community in Ireland and around the world, UCD is well-positioned for future success in its global engagement.”

UCD’s approach to global engagement is aligned with Ireland’s national priorities …

Michelle Tiong, Malaysia

“Studying at UCD, I made friends from all over the world and learned so much about various cultures. It broadened my mind.”

Shankar Kulkarni, India

“UCD helped me grow professionally and personally and I developed wonderful international connections with professors and costudents.”

Petter Opthun Wikdal,
Norway

“UCD is a great school with fantastic professors, and a wonderful social life. Dublin is a great city for international students.”

Sinéad McGowan,
France

“The Erasmus experience influenced the way I approached my studies, and career, and expanded my world view. I became more confident and independent.”

www.ucd.ie/global

ON DECEMBER 11 2019, in a packed O’Reilly Hall, then Special Minister for Higher Education, Mary Mitchell O’Connor TD, launched “Rising to the Future”, UCD’s new strategy for the period 2020-2024. This launch was the culmination of a year-long strategic planning process which engaged stakeholders within and outside of the University.

The starting point was an assessment of achievements made over the previous years under the last strategy, which was launched in November 2014. Over those years, UCD truly became “Ireland’s Global University”, establishing global centres in the USA, China, Malaysia, India, and the Middle East whose purpose is to facilitate research collaborations, alumni networking and student education. Engagement with the alumni community increased by 302% over the same period. UCD also increased engagement with industry, and built on its research quality, quantity and impact, and the number of spin-out companies increased by 100%. Despite cuts in Government funding, the University was able to increase the number of employees by 13.3%, supporting a 10.5% increase in students based in Dublin. This increase in students accommodated demographic increases in Ireland, augmented by a 50% increase in students from outside the EU. The result is a cosmopolitan campus and a higher likelihood of Irish students taking part of their UCD degree at a partner university overseas. Careful recruitment of faculty led to an improved student-to-staff ratio, which had been dramatically affected by cuts during the period of austerity, and together with some curriculum and systems reform, improved student satisfaction by 5%, as measured by the Irish Survey of Student Engagement.

These achievements were enabled by a significant increase (almost 40%) in non-Exchequer income and an increase of 53% in philanthropic support over the previous five years.

“The world is now a very different place to that of five years ago,” UCD President, Professor Andrew J Deeks told those gathered for the launch as he set the scene for the new five-year strategy. “The last strategy was about rebuilding out of an era of economic crisis. In today’s world there is much more awareness of the fragility of the environment in which we live; about the need to think of sustainability, but also transformation. We are more aware of the impact of human activity on the environment in which we live and at the same time, society is more connected than ever before.”

During the consultation process for the new strategy, four themes emerged organically. These strategic themes will shape our research, influence the teaching of our faculty and our students’ learning in the future, and impact on the way we behave and function as an institution.

THEME 1: CREATING A SUSTAINABLE GLOBAL SOCIETY

As a matter of urgency, humanity must learn to live sustainably, without degrading our shared planet. “This theme encourages thinking about sustainability in the biggest possible manner; beyond the campus, beyond Ireland, contributing globally through research as well as embracing those principles in everything we do,” said Professor Deeks.

THEME 2: TRANSFORMING THROUGH DIGITAL TECHNOLOGY

Digital technology has been truly transformative as huge swathes of society have had to adapt due to the impact of Covid-19.

At the launch of the strategy Professor Deeks said: “The digital technology transformation goes through every discipline and indeed everything that we do as a University. All of our graduates need to be equipped to make use of these technologies and to adapt to the changing society that these technologies are going to create.”

As the University prepares for the autumn semester with the uncertainty caused by the Covid-19 pandemic, the place of digital technology is central to guarantee teaching and learning, to ensure intergenerational connection, to enhance operations and decision-making, and to accelerate research for the benefit of society.

THEME 3: BUILDING A HEALTHY WORLD

Elsewhere are some of the stories of the UCD alumni, staff and students who play a role in tackling Covid-19. Although an enormous global effort is being exerted to treat and care for the victims and to develop a preventative vaccine, work must also continue to look at health and wellbeing more broadly.

UCD is the only Irish university which brings together human and animal health sciences, agriculture and food sciences, and environmental and social sciences.

“And UCD is very well-positioned to contribute to the One Health agenda: looking to the health of society rather than just the health of the individual,” Professor Deeks said.

THEME 4: EMPOWERING HUMANITY

Understanding what shapes human thinking and motivates behavioural change holds the key to successfully addressing the societal challenges represented in the first three strategic themes.

“As more and more work is enhanced by digital technology, human skills become more important. We need to prepare the transferable skills of our graduates, the interpersonal and intrapersonal skills, leadership, teamwork, and the ability to work with people from different backgrounds and different cultures,” Professor Deeks said.

The four themes are embraced in four core objectives and facilitated by six key enablers.

True to the vision and mission of the University, Objective 1 relates to the quality, quantity and impact of research, scholarship and innovation and seeks to nurture academic faculty to be the very best. Objective 2 focuses on students and the educational and life experience provided by the University to prepare them to thrive in present and future societies. Objective 3 sets out to build engagement locally, nationally, and internationally. And the fourth objective recognises the importance of diversity and excellence in the University community. The focus of the strategy is very much long-term, hence the title “Rising to the Future”. Of course, Covid-19 has put society into crisis mode and the University has responded – not only through adaptation of its teaching, assessment, and campus experience but also in its contribution to public health through expertise, healthcare and research. Rising to the Future remains a rallying call for everyone in the University community as we adapt to the impact of the pandemic and equip our students with the skills to really empower humanity.

strategy.ucd.ie

Covid-19 is having a profound impact on all of us. The pandemic has brought enormous uncertainty for students and recent graduates – and for established alumni who may find themselves gravely impacted by the economic downturn.

Now, more than ever, the team at the UCD Alumni office are keen to help our alumni community to weather this unprecedented challenge. These alumni staffers, along with volunteers from the alumni community as well as colleagues from across the University, are committed to doing all they can to support you in addressing the difficulties presented by the crisis and to help you to plan for the future.

And one of the key ways of doing that is through the UCD Alumni Network – a free online platform to help alumni build new relationships with other former students and to reconnect with old classmates.

“Together, we are stronger,” says Ria Flom, Alumni Relations Coordinator. “While it might seem like there are fears around every corner, the UCD Alumni Network has great strength in depth. This difficult period has shown us that there is a rich resource in the connections we make and the relationships that exist within the wider UCD community.

“This community encompasses a whole world of professional contacts from diverse industries and subject areas – all of whom already have one thing in common – they are fellow alumni. And through our online platform, they can forge relationships and foster support communities.”

WHAT DOES ALUMNI MEAN ANYWAY?

You may not know this but anyone who has studied at UCD is officially part of the alumni community – whether they graduated from the University or not. If you have studied here at any point, we welcome you. So, if you’ve done a short course, an Erasmus scheme or even if you started here and finished your studies elsewhere, you are regarded as a UCD alumnus.

That community is vast: there are nearly 300,000 alumni working around the globe in every conceivable sector. There’s a wealth of knowledge and contacts easily accessible to you on the online UCD Alumni Network.

MAKING THE MOST OF YOUR UNIVERSITY EXPERIENCE

“The benefits of your connection to UCD do not end when you turn in that final assignment,” Ria says. “The power of the alumni community is greater than you might have expected.

“University can be expensive and we all know it’s hard work. Education is a great deal more than just the qualifications you receive at the end. It’s about the lessons you learn, the people you meet, and the relationships you build. So why would you expect to leave all of that behind once you have left UCD?

“Support networks are often hard to come by once you leave university,” Ria adds, “so having access to a ready-made one, full of people who are already part of this new community you now find yourself in, with shared experiences, waiting and willing to connect, is a luxury filled with opportunity.”

Right now, there are over 7,500 registered members – and 70 per cent of these alumni have indicated that they are happy to help students and fellow alumni, whether it’s in a mentoring capacity, offering advice or helping with contacts.

“Looking for a career mentor or seeking support as you navigate various stages of your career and personal life can sometimes seem like a daunting task,” Ria says, “but the online UCD Alumni Network can make that process so much easier. It’s a ready-made tool to help you reach out to those who may be able to help you during this pandemic.”

MAKING IT EASIER TO SUPPORT EACH OTHER

“UCD alumni can be found in leading roles in almost every industry all around the world,” Ria says, “so they are an invaluable resource for our students and recent graduates starting the next phase of their careers in these challenging times. Having this central place to connect virtually makes networking a little easier. It can open so many doors.”

A number of alumni who are active users of the online UCD Alumni Network say the resource is invaluable.

“My student life in UCD was amazing,” says one. “I learned and experienced so many new or interesting groups. It’s great now to have this online network where I can still network with current students and fellow alumni. You can advertise your business, find job opportunities and learn about upcoming events.”

Another alumnus is just as enthused: “I understand the value of mentorship and hope I can help others through my experience. I hope to maintain a connection with UCD as it played a significant role in shaping my life.”

LEVERAGING THE NETWORK TO SECURE EMPLOYMENT

Need to get a foot in the door for your next job, or curious about whether an organisation you are interested in is the right fit? The online UCD Alumni Network is the place to start.

“Reaching out online to fellow alumni and simply having a chat is a great first step,” Ria says. “Utilise our searchable online directory of alumni, join a group to keep up to date with your School, former society or assignment – the Alumni Network is a more powerful tool than you might expect.”

The mentoring section on the online UCD Alumni Network is especially useful. “It can help you to make contact with people who could help you learn more about an industry you are interested in,” she says. “It could lead to informal interviews, introductions or referrals. You can also keep up to date on in-person and virtual events and join interest groups.”

Ria Flom’s discussions with existing members demonstrate just how vibrant and useful the online UCD Alumni Network has already become. “Our members talk about the benefits and invaluable advantages to becoming a member of this network,” she says. “We look forward to meeting you there.”

www.ucdalumninetwork.com

THE GENEROUS SPIRIT of philanthropy that shines brightly in the UCD alumni community has a ripple effect. It touches every aspect of our University, from the great student experience to our beautiful and ever-evolving campus, where cutting- edge teaching, learning and research facilities are integrated within the unique natural landscape of Belfield.

Indeed, the effect of alumni giving extends far beyond our campus. It is evident in the excellence of our graduates as they go out into the world, bringing fresh ideas and strong leadership qualities into their communities and workplaces. It is evident too in our innovation and research, and in the significant breakthroughs we’re making as we tackle some of society’s most complex challenges.

A COMMON MYTH

A common misconception about philanthropy is that it is the exclusive preserve of wealthy individuals and organisations. UCD is fortunate and grateful to have received significant major gifts down through the years, which have had a transformative impact on our facilities, our faculty, our research, and the teaching and learning experience. While significant income is raised from major gifts, most of our alumni support the University through regular giving, and your collective generosity makes a profound and lasting difference for UCD and our students.

The many donations received through UCD’s annual giving programme enable the University to meet its strategic goals in a planned and sustainable way. They benefit students directly through vital scholarships and support programmes. They enable us to break down the barriers of social and economic disadvantage and provide life-changing educational opportunities for all of our students.

With state funding covering only one third of UCD’s running costs, and 32 per cent of incoming students hailing from underrepresented groups, the majority of eligible students in need receive no scholarship support due to lack of funds. That’s why every gift, no matter the size, is important. What’s more, 100 per cent of every donation towards UCD students goes directly to the cause.

YOUR IMPACT

Last year, thanks to the incredible support of close to 4,000 alumni, we raised €10.36m in support of students, research and teaching facilities. As a direct result of receiving €3.4m in cash and future pledges to support UCD  students, 120 new scholarships were awarded, including 104 Cothrom na Féinne scholarships. We also received dedicated funding for student mental health, Choral Scholars, Sports Development, the Men’s Graduate Boat Club and the library, and a significant founding gift led to the creation of a new Health Sciences student support fund.

This crucial alumni support enables talented students like Ellen O’Beirne to overcome barriers to university access. Ellen recently completed her first year studying Medicine. For her, the scholarship has relieved a huge burden of financial worry, meaning that she could take time off from her part-time job at exam time to focus on her studies and perform at a high level.

“I would like to express my sincere gratitude to everyone who has supported my scholarship. I find it really difficult to fully articulate or convey the difference that this scholarship has made to my studies and to my hopes for the future,” she says.

A YEAR LIKE NO OTHER

At the start of this year, few of us could have imagined what 2020 had in store. The devastating spread of Covid-19 through our communities has left no one unscathed. Normal life as we knew it was paused indefinitely, social interaction was curtailed, and many plans for the future were put on hold. An unnatural quietness descended on our campus.

Yet in these difficult times, generosity and community spirit have emerged as beacons of hope, not least in our own UCD community. Our students have stepped up to staff the  UCD  Contact Tracing Centre, to help with testing, to deliver medicines to the elderly and vulnerable, and to raise funds for healthcare workers. Our researchers have mobilised rapidly to design and manufacture critical medical equipment and to develop effective clinical treatments for Covid-19. Our faculty and students in Medicine and Public Health work tirelessly and courageously on the frontline in our hospitals. And our alumni have rallied to support us in these valiant efforts.

OUR COVID-19 EMERGENCY APPEAL

The Covid-19 crisis will undoubtedly have far-reaching impacts on UCD. Philanthropic support is more important than ever as the University moves forward into a post-pandemic world, guided by four strategic themes: Creating a Sustainable Global Society; Transforming through Digital Technology; Building a Healthy World; and Empowering Humanity. At this critical time, UCD Foundation is focusing its fundraising efforts on a number of key priorities under the umbrella of the UCD Covid-19 Emergency Appeal.

These include ensuring that students have access to the financial and mental health resources they need; funding pioneering research to address the immediate problems facing our society as well as ensuring that we are prepared to respond to emerging challenges and opportunities as they arise in the future; and adapting our learning environment for a changed world. We  are immensely grateful for the outpouring of goodwill and generosity from our alumni community as we endeavour to engage proactively with alumni on the areas that matter most to them.

SUPPORTING STUDENTS

Many students have struggled to deal with the challenges arising from the campus closure and the restrictions on their day-to-day lives. Some are under stress because they do not have access to essential technology, broadband, or a suitable study space. Others are faced with increased caring responsibilities, strained financial circumstances, and illness. There are fewer opportunities for summer or part-time work, resulting in hardship for the many students who rely on seasonal jobs to see them through the academic year.

Philanthropic support can help ensure that students experiencing disadvantage, hardship, or psychological stress will have the resources they need to excel in their education at UCD. We are mindful that today’s students have the potential to change the world in the future, and our society cannot afford to risk losing this potential or allow fate to leave talented students behind.

That is why we are committed to ensuring equality of access and opportunity for our students. Supporting underrepresented groups to overcome adversity, flourish and thrive broadens classroom diversity, which research suggests can improve career outcomes for every class member.

BREAKTHROUGH RESEARCH

As a leading research-intensive university, UCD is at the forefront of impactful, innovative research that makes a valuable contribution to society and transforms people’s lives. The projects showcased on pages 32-34 exemplify the breadth of our multidisciplinary research programme.

The current crisis underscores the importance of research investment as we urgently seek solutions to the many challenges posed by the Covid-19 pandemic across the spheres of medicine, science, engineering, psychology, economics, and social and public policy. UCD is driving critical clinical research to identify effective treatments for Covid-19 and understand the long-term effects of the disease. Our researchers are also seeking to address the longer term fallout from this pandemic, to identify and mitigate the social impacts, and to support Ireland’s economic recovery.

The new government has acknowledged the critical role universities and research play in driving investment and promoting social cohesion, equality and inclusion.

We welcome the creation of the Department of Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science, which recognises the significant role third-level institutions play in contributing to the economy and to society.

With the support of our alumni and friends, we can advance our research to make a real difference for the health and economic wellbeing of our society and respond effectively to emerging priorities.

A CAMPUS FIT FOR THE FUTURE

The face of university education will change in the wake of the pandemic. A hybrid approach that combines online teaching and learning with on-campus labs, tutorials, and socially distanced small-group activities will likely take shape as we prepare for the safe re-opening of the University. Before this became a necessity as a result of Covid-19, UCD was already working towards a strategic vision for a campus designed around flexible, adaptable spaces.

Our campus development plan has acquired a new urgency in light of the pandemic, as it will enable the University to safely accommodate a growing student population. The University has been able to access historically low interest rates to borrow funds needed to commence our plans – an opportunity that is likely to save money over time.

Progressing with these plans now is the right thing to do for the benefit of future UCD students. As part of this strategic plan we will invest in outstanding science facilities, cementing UCD’s position as a global leader in digital technology and innovation, advancing our reputation and standing globally to attract a diverse cohort of excellent students, faculty and staff from all over the world.

ONWARDS WITH GRATITUDE

We are thankful for our wonderful community of highly engaged alumni, who are very much a part of UCD’s success. Your generosity and commitment strengthen us as we pursue our mission to empower people through education, and create a better, healthier and more sustainable world through innovation and research. The students who have benefited from your support aspire to follow in your footsteps. In time, many of them will also become philanthropists, and will continue to pay it forward to help future generations of UCD students achieve their potential.

To learn more or to give to UCD, go to www.ucdfoundation.ie

FOR MORE THAN 50 years, the UCD campus at Belfield has witnessed the arrival of new buildings and the latest addition is among the most striking. It is the UCD University Club, located just across the road from the School of Veterinary Medicine.

Opened in May 2019, and designed by acclaimed Irish architects Scott Tallon Walker, this wonderful, light-filled building has been specifically built for UCD’s alumni and UCD staff.

With nearly 300,000 former students, it was only fitting that Ireland’s largest university created the country’s first on-campus centre dedicated for the use of alumni and UCD staff.

The idea, according to Anne-Marie Fisher, Sales and Marketing Manager at the UCD University Club and O’Reilly Hall, is to give alumni a world class private members’ club and venue at the heart of Belfield.

“We can cater for all alumni,” she says, “and we have wonderful facilities here for them to socialise with fellow graduates and UCD staff, enjoy family celebrations, have business meetings, conferences and even product launches. We like to think of it as a home away from home for our alumni.

“BMW chose the UCD University Club to launch the new all-electric Mini, while past pupils from Blackrock College had their Union lunch here – two very different events, with great feedback from both.”

It is not difficult to see why. The UCD University Club has been designed to accommodate virtually any need an alumnus might have, whether it’s a catch- up with a former classmate over artisan coffee or a delicious lunch in the Club Café, availing of one of the high-spec meeting rooms (each complete with the very latest in audio-visual technology), or using the large Bar and Restaurant for a professional or social function or family occasion.

Unlike many hotels and conference centres, natural light plays a key part in making the UCD University Club such a pleasant place to be. There are floor to ceiling windows throughout the ground and first floors and a huge skylight ensures that the foyer is bathed in sunlight.

“One of the things our members most love about the UCD University Club is the fact that it’s at the very heart of the campus,” Anne-Marie says. “Being here can bring them back to their student days and the time they spent at UCD.”

If you take a seat at the Bar, you can see what she means. The heart of the UCD campus, with its distinct library building designed by Polish architect Andrzei Wejchert, can be seen on the other side of the man-made lake, a familiar place, of course, to any student who studied at UCD over the past half-century.

The large scale of the UCD University Club makes social distancing considerations ideal. “We weren’t to know when we were building this space with large, well-ventilated rooms with high ceilings, just how important it would be for our members to be able to come here and be able to observe social distancing,” Anne-Marie says.

“We have fantastic staff who will ensure that any time you spend with us is as comfortable as possible. Your safety is of paramount importance to us and we guarantee that we will take each and every social distance and hygiene measure very seriously. If you visit us here you will be able to see for yourself just how easy social distancing can be. We have taken great care to follow the latest health and safety guidelines and we’re confident that you’ll have no concerns.”

Ever since the UCD University Club opened its doors, Anne-Marie has seen the positive impact on alumni. “They really love it here,” she says, “especially because it brings them back to their UCD days. And it has been really heartening for us to see just how alumni have been able to catch up with new friends here, and how they’ve formed new contacts and relationships too. That’s how we see it – very much as a club in a really great building that alumni and UCD staff can feel is their own.”

The UCD University Club adjoins O’Reilly Hall, which has long been regarded as one of Ireland’s premier conference centres. And that building, also the work of Scott Tallon Walker Architects, received a substantial makeover this summer, allowing it to be used in a host of different ways.

The latest refurbishment of O’Reilly Hall ensures that the venue, which can normally seat up to 1,200 people for conferences, concerts and gala dinners, can be quickly and easily subdivided into meeting rooms of various sizes. The new changes ensure that the space can be reconfigured with ease thanks to “moving walls” engineering and the latest in audio-visual technology.

“It means that alumni who require meeting rooms and conference facilities will be spoiled for choice at Belfield, with both the UCD University Club and O’Reilly Hall offering a range of facilities to suit all needs and budgets. Companies may opt for virtual or hybrid events, utilising the new technology facilities we have put in place. But while physical distancing and other measures must be observed, the ‘new normal’ does not mean postponing events which are important, or vital, for your business to survive and thrive,” Anne-Marie says.

The proximity of both the UCD University Club and O’Reilly Hall to the manicured lawns adjoining the lake ensure that large outdoor spaces can be utilised. “There’s so much room for outdoor events such as barbecues, drinks and canapés on the lawn in front of the lake,” says Anne-Marie. “And what a beautiful setting it is too. Again, having this extra space is invaluable when social distancing is so important. It means that we can accommodate a lot of people and we can ensure that everyone enjoys the requisite personal space.”

There are individual and corporate memberships and Anne-Marie says the rates are exceptionally competitive. “I think we’re offering something unique here,” she says. “Not only is it the first of its kind in an Irish university, but both the UCD University Club and O’Reilly Hall are world-leading in terms of design and facilities. And, for our alumni, there’s the fact that they’re getting to spend time again on a campus that, hopefully, meant a lot to them in their student days.”

Membership comes with numerous benefits, including the fact that each member is permitted to bring three people with them on each visit and they don’t have to have been former students of UCD.

“We would really love to see you here,” says Anne-Marie. “Let us know if you’re coming to Belfield and we will happily give you a tour. We think you’ll be impressed with what’s on offer.”

CORPORATE MEMBERSHIP

With fantastic facilities coupled with competitive corporate membership rates, it’s easy to see why corporate membership of the UCD University Club is growing. The flexibility of meeting spaces, private members’ lounge and superb dining facilities add up to productive time well spent away from the office. Corporate membership is open to companies on application and subject to meeting UCD University qualification criteria.

Membership and Event Enquiries
Anne-Marie Fisher, Sales and Marketing Manager
annemarie.fisher@ucd.ie
www.ucd.ie/universityclub
www.ucd.ie/conferenceandevents

“The UCD University Club is a refreshing new dimension to campus life, a place to bring visiting academics and corporate partners for meetings over lunch or dinner in a bright, cheerful setting with a very warm welcome from the team.”

Professor Gerardine Doyle, Director, Michael Smurfit Graduate Business School

“The UCD University Club is a super venue with excellent modern comms and catering facilities. Anne-Marie and the team are always on hand to make sure that everything works well. In the post Covid-19 world there’s lots of space, with safe solutions for our new ways of working. It’s also a great location with plenty of parking and transport options.”

Alan Holmes (BComm 1989) Consumer Digital Leadership, Websure

“The UCD University Club is fantastic. The Restaurant’s attentive service makes the experience extra special. Staff are friendly and helpful.”

Rosemarie Gannon, Project Manager, UCD School of Computer Science

“I enjoy meeting former classmates for coffee or lunch in spacious, bright surroundings. I attended one of the themed dinners in the Restaurant: the food was excellent.”

Patricia O’Loan, BA 1969, DipSoc Admin 1979

“The Club gives me access to so many activities. I use the Café every day.”

Mairéad Magee, Student Records Administrator, UCD Registry

“It’s so nice to step into the oasis of quiet and calm which is the UCD University Club. The food is great and you can recharge, catch up with colleagues and return refreshed to your desk.”

Emma Acton, Operational Purchasing Coordinator, UCD Finance Office

“The UCD University Club has become my daily starting point: I prepare my lectures and research while enjoying the Club’s excellent cappuccino.”

Professor Jan Rosier, Professor of Business and Biotechnology, School of Biomolecular and Biomedical Science

“We host our annual Blackrock Union lunch every year in O’Reilly Hall. The University Club Bar was the perfect spot for the reception. With over 600 members, friends and guests attending the event in November, we couldn’t have been happier with the service received from the events team. O’Reilly Hall and the UCD University Club are the perfect settings for our events and we look forward to returning again and again.”

Stephen Mullin, President, Blackrock College Union

“Aware hosted its Future of Mental Health conference at UCD in October 2019, its first conference involving both the general public and professionals from the medical community. UCD provided a convenient and accessible location with O’Reilly Hall the impressive focal point for keynote talks. The events team were very professional and responsive, dealing with all our queries and requirements quickly and efficiently. Their extensive experience is evident and their support, in advance and on the day itself, was invaluable.”

Dominic Layden, CEO, Aware

“Our three-day conference took place in O’Reilly Hall and the Conservatory. As news of the Covid-19 lockdown broke, the team quickly sprung into action and the programme was realigned to accommodate as many parallel sessions as possible. A big shout-out to the team at O’Reilly Hall, the catering team and the wonderful facilities at UCD.”

Lynne Hughes, Professor, UCD School of Veterinary Medicine

“We have used the UCD University Club on many occasions for individual meetings and larger group presentations. It is bright, modern and impressive. The Restaurant is excellent and the management and staff have always treated our team and our clients with great professionalism. The membership of the Club has proven to be very successful and adds great value to our business.”

John Molloy, Managing Director, Orca Financial

“Huge thanks for all your help with my event. The breakfast meeting went superbly well, feedback was brilliant, and breakfast buffet delicious. Pre-booked parking and the natural light in the meeting room was a big bonus along with excellent AV support. I am delighted to continue to recommend the UCD University Club to all my clients as my number one venue.”

Sarah Mortimer, Founder, Babylon events

“The launch event for BMW’s all-electric Mini was fantastic: it was great to work with an organisation that was very accommodating to our requirements and requests; the staff ensured the event was seamless and the food was spot on. We would love to organise more meetings and events at the UCD University Club as a result.”

Laura Condon, Communications, Sponsorship and Events Manager, BMW Group

Click to enlarge

The Conservatory at O’Reilly Hall

Socialising in the Bar at the UCD University Club

Informal meeting in the Lobby at the UCD University Club

The Member’s Lounge at the UCD University Club

The Mezzanine at the UCD University Club

Members’ event at the UCD University Club

Stephen Mullin and Joe Schmidt at the Blackrock College Union Rugby Lunch at O’Reilly Hall

Launch of the all-electric Mini at the UCD University Club

The Aware Conference

Private event in the Restaurant at the UCD University Club

HERE AT THE UCD Alumni office, it is our mission to maintain the important connection between the University and you, our alumni. Every year, this magazine, UCD Connections provides a valuable means for us to communicate with you. We love the great feedback it generates from alumni all over the world.

Like families, friends and colleagues everywhere, we are finding new ways to stay connected. In normal circumstances, we would meet you face to face through our extensive events programme but, with in-person events cancelled or postponed, that programme is now a virtual one.

From volunteering opportunities on the online Alumni Network to conversations with alumni, career-building sessions to fundraising activities, opportunities to expand your professional network to welcoming the Class of 2020 as new alumni, we look forward to continued engagement with you.

We remain committed to helping our community of alumni, staff and students who have all shown immense agility and resilience, whether juggling family life or dealing with isolation, adjusting to Zoom meetings and home study.

We will be in touch via our e-newsletter to tell you more – please update your contact details at www.ucd.ie/alumni/updateyourdetails so we can stay in touch. We would also ask you to visit our website www.ucd.ie/alumni or engage with us through our social channels. Email the team at alumni@ucd.ie. We would love to hear from you!

NICOLE BLACK

Director of Alumni Development

JENNIE BLAKE

Student Experience,
Corporate Engagement

SINÉAD DOLAN

Communications, Global Engagement

SHEILA MORRIS

Mass Events, College Engagement

GILLIAN DURNIN

Business

MELISSA BYRNE

Law

RIA FLOM

Alumni Volunteering

CAMILLE ROGERS

Arts and Humanities

JENNA BJORKMAN

Engineering and Architecture

JUDE CANNIFFE

Science & Clubs and Societies

JONATHAN WEIR

Social Sciences

FIONA BOLGER

Health and Agricultural Sciences

MICHELLE POWER

Global Alumni Engagement

PAULINA MARTYNIAK

Business

SELENA WALSH

Digital Engagement

1 Defending the coast

Coastal communities in Ireland face significant climate hazards such as coastal erosion, rising sea levels and flooding with risks to infrastructure, property and built heritage sites. Construction of physical barriers can often be problematic, so the focus is now on managed retreat from at-risk areas. The GeoPlan project by iCRAG, the SFI Research Centre for Applied Geosciences based at UCD, and UCD’s Dr Mick Lennon are developing a new framework to allow coastal communities best adapt to upcoming environmental changes.

2 Monitoring coastal waters

Led by Professor Wim Meijer from UCD School of Biomolecular and Biomedical Science, Acclimatize is a €9.2m EU-funded project that identifies and quantifies pollution streams and determines the impact on these waters. Work in Ireland focuses on large- scale urban at-risk bathing waters in Dublin Bay (Sandymount, Merrion and Dollymount strands) and Donabate and Portrane beaches in North County Dublin.

3 Spatial management of deep water ecosystems

Associate Professor Jens Carlsson from UCD School of Biology and Environmental Science is a principal investigator in ATLAS, a dynamic partnership between multinational industries, SMEs, governments and academia to assess the Atlantic’s deep-sea ecosystems and marine genetic resources to create integrated, adaptive planning products needed for sustainable ‘Blue Growth’. ATLAS is gathering new information on sensitive Atlantic ecosystems to fundamentally change our understanding of their connectivity, functioning and responses to future changes in human use and ocean climate. The ATLAS consortium has already developed a programme of 25 deep-sea cruises studying Atlantic wildlife including sponge, cold-water coral, seamount and mid-ocean ridge ecosystems.

Sustainably Powering Our Lives

4 Zero Carbon Power

The UCD Energy Institute plays an integral part in the energy transition, working towards a net zero carbon energy system. The Institute is involved in several major international research projects including PANTERA, the EU H2020 project led by Dr Paula Carroll, aimed at creating a European research and innovation forum focused on smart grids, storage and local/renewable energy systems, including policy makers, standardisation bodies and experts representing the EU-28 energy system.

5 Electricity Revolution

Led by UCD Energy Institute director Professor Andrew Keane and Dr Terence O’Donnell, the SFI-funded programme ‘Adept’ investigates new approaches to the operation of the electricity distribution network with a particular focus on exploiting the controllability of power electronics devices such as smart transformers. Driven by concerns about climate change, the electricity industry is in the midst of a revolution with increasing connections of variable renewable generation.

Other projects such as Professor Mark O’Malley’s RealValue (Realising Value from Electricity Markets with Local Smart Electric Thermal Storage Technology) use information- communications technology to encourage consumers to smarten their own energy usage through local small-scale energy storage. This solution brings benefits to market participants throughout the EU, while gathering techno-economic and behavioural analysis that will be used to inform regulation and policy decision makers, and business models which quantify the potential of small-scale storage.

Nano Technology

6 Nanofacturing Nanopharmaceuticals

Led in Ireland by Professor Kenneth Dawson, ‘Nanofacturing’ is an EU-funded project that brings together a number of expert companies throughout Europe to establish a manufacturing platform to tackle the bottlenecks in the delivery of new- generation nanomedicines to the market. The project also supports later stage products with large potential markets by developing clinically compliant, sustainable, large-scale manufacturing processes capable of taking these products through to commercial manufacture and supply.

7 Nanobubbles

UCD researchers Professor Niall English and Dr Mohammad Reza Ghaani have discovered a new energy-efficient method to make metastable, nano-scale gas bubbles in water that has the potential to disrupt several industries. The tech has multiple commercial applications, such as in the fermentation processes of the food and brewing industries.

Sustainable Agriculture + Food Systems

8 Viable food value chains

Professor Nick Holden from UCD School of Biosystems and Food Engineering is a principal investigator in the Valumics (value chain dynamics) project to provide decision makers throughout food value chains with strategies and tools so they can evaluate the impact of their operations, and enhance the resilience, integrity and sustainability of food value chains for European countries. The project is driven by a consortium of 19 European partners from 14 countries and two Asian partners.

9 Green tech for crop growth

Feeding an increasing global population in the face of global climate change is a challenge for the agricultural sector and governments alike. The development of new species of crops with more desirable characteristics is critical, but so is their regulation. Professor Fiona Doohan is UCD lead on the InnoVar project (next-generation variety testing for improved cropping on European farmland). It addresses the need for fast, effective, harmonised testing of high-performance low-risk (HPLR) varieties for “value for cultivation and use”– using high-tech genomics, imaging and machine learning technologies.

10 Biomass answering natural food additive demand

The demand for phycocyanin, a natural food colourant, led to the establishment of SpiralG, an industrial biorefinery concept for the production of phycocyanin from the algae spirulina. The SpiralG project, with UCD’s Dr Fionnuala Murphy and Professor Kevin McDonnell, includes the construction of a demonstration plant with industry partners Greensea, Milis, Algaia and Mial. UCD is in charge of the Life Cycle Assessment, to undertake a sustainability evaluation over 48 months. The project aims to support new jobs, growth and investment in biomass production while ensuring environmental sustainability and a low environmental impact.

11 Food nutrition security cloud

Food and nutrition security (FNS) is about ensuring sufficient, affordable and nutritious food is accessible to all. Associate Professor Eileen Gibney’s EU-funded FNS- Cloud project is to federate FNS data on diet, health, and consumer behaviour as well as sustainable agriculture and the bio-economy. Ultimately, the aim is to facilitate informed and healthy choices by consumers.

12 Digital agriculture

Professor Greg O’Hare leads CONSUS, a five-year, €17.6m partnership between UCD and Origin Enterprises, supported through the Science Foundation Ireland (SFI) Strategic Partnership Programme. Its research areas include machine learning in farm decision-making, delivering farm innovation using augmented reality, optimising crop establishment to overcome soil compaction, enabling optimum nitrogen use efficiency and predicting disease outbreaks and biostimulants. Professor Colm O’Donnell also recently won funding for his part in DiTECT, the European project to develop an integrated framework for real-time detection, assessment and mitigation of biological, chemical and environmental contaminants throughout the food supply chain. Bringing together research, industrial and food authority partners from the agri-food industry in the EU and China, DiTECT aspires to establish the foundation for future food safety monitoring platforms, through the development of a Big Data platform.

13 Innovation Hub for Agriculture

Coordinated by UCD’s Centre for New Ventures and Entrepreneurs, NovaUCD, the new AgTech Connector Innovation Hub at UCD’s Lyons Farm in Kildare brings together the agriculture-technology ecosystem in Ireland to accelerate the launch and scaling of Ag-Tech companies. The hub provides these businesses with access to on- farm research, collaboration opportunities, a location to test and trial their products and services in a real-world environment, and access to dedicated acceleration programmes and incubation facilities – with a view to growing and evolving these industries in Ireland.

14 Sustainable farming with drones

The use of drones and other remote sensing tools in agriculture has seen significant growth in recent years. Drones have the potential to assist assessment of key decisions on the farm, such as when and where to spray for pests and diseases, predicting yields, how much fertiliser to apply and if the farm is compliant. Professor Nick Holden from UCD School of Biosystems and Food Engineering is co-founder of ProvEye, which aims to remove the barriers associated with poor data and consistency through the use of advanced processing software to derive quantitative data from images collected by drones and other platforms.

15 Climate friendly livestock farming

According to the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine, the vast majority of planted livestock pasture is perennial ryegrass (95 per cent of annual forage grass seed sales in Ireland), a nitrogen-hungry species that has serious negative environmental impacts including water pollution, increased emissions of greenhouse gas nitrous oxide, and loss of biodiversity. To address this, Dr Helen Sheridan and Professor Tommy Boland have developed SmartGrass on UCD’s Lyons Farm, with the aim of diversifying pasture to other species to match or even out-perform monocultures, while at same time needing much lower levels of nitrogen fertiliser.

Greener Urban Environments

16 Using citizen science for cleaner air and transport planning

Associate Professor Francesco Pilla from UCD School of Architecture, Planning and Environmental Policy has become a leader in UCD in the area of Smart Cities and sustainable urban environments, notable for their incorporation of citizen science. His project iSCAPE aims to integrate and advance the control of air quality and carbon emissions in European cities through the development of air pollution remediation strategies, policy interventions and behavioural change initiatives. It will tackle the problem of reducing air pollution at target receptors with an innovative SME-led approach, focusing on the use of Passive Control Systems and “Living Labs” in urban spaces. The project has created a guide for community groups, SMEs and local authorities in the six participating cities who want to explore low-cost air quality sensors and citizen science methodologies. Professor Pilla is also a principal investigator (PI) in “WeCount: Citizens Observing Urban Transport”, which follows participatory citizen science methods to co-create and use innovative low-cost, automated, road traffic-counting sensors and multi-stakeholder engagement mechanisms in five pilots in Madrid, Ljubljana, Dublin, Cardiff and Leuven.

17 Smart urban planning

In order to be sustainable, cities need smart planning. Associate Professor Francesco Pilla’s project SENATOR (Smart Network Operator Platform enabling Shared, Integrated and more Sustainable Urban Freight Logistics), aims to deliver just that by bringing together stakeholders within one multi-collaborative framework based on a new urban logistics model. The project considers factors such as new sustainable transport modes and urban space management.

18 Energy-efficient buildings and districts

Dr James O’Donnell is UCD’s lead in New TREND (New Integrated Methodology and Tools for Retrofit Design Towards a Next Generation of Energy Efficient and Sustainable Buildings and Districts) which seeks to improve the energy efficiency of existing European building stock by developing a new design methodology targeted to the energy retrofit of buildings and neighbourhoods. New TREND has received funding from the EU Horizon 2020 Programme for Research and Innovation.

Future Networks

19 Sustainable Communications

Professor Anding Zhu from IoE2 (Internet of Things Engineering) Lab at UCD is exploring how a new generation communications structure can make 5G available to more people, lowering the cost and power consumption. The European project is called ‘Transievers for 5G Base Stations based on GaN Technology’.

Bioeconomy: Turning Waste Into A New Economy

20 New products from by-products

UCD is a leader in the Bioeconomy space, and is home to BiOrbic, the SFI Bioeconomy Research Centre – established and led by Professor Kevin O’Connor from UCD School of Biomolecular and Biomedical Science. This fast-expanding new sector will transform the waste outputs of agriculture and industry and breathe new life into rural economies.

Approximately one third of all food produced globally is wasted every year throughout the whole value chain, from farmers to consumers. To extract the significant amounts of valuable compounds contained in these wastes, “AgriMax” (led in UCD by Professor James Lyng) will combine affordable and flexible processing technologies (ultrasound-assisted and solvent extraction, filtration, thermal and enzymatic treatments) to create valuable by-products with applications in many areas including food additives, packaging and agricultural materials among others. The project will disclose the holistic potential of four new agro-value chains – residues and by-products from the culture and processing of tomato, cereals, olives and potato – which can add value in a cooperative approach for local rural businesses.

Similarly, Dr Tom Curran’s vision, “AgroCycle” addresses converting low-value waste into highly valuable products. The project piloted a number of key waste utilisation/ valorisation pathways, using new technologies across the 25-partner multisectoral, multinational consortium, including China – and is commencing its commercialisation cycle.

Realising the commercial potential of UCD Bioeconomy research, “AgriChemWhey” saw UCD School of Biosystems and Food Engineering (through Professor Nick Holden and Dr Fionnuala Murphy) partner with a consortium from five countries to build a first-of-a-kind, industrial-scale biorefinery to convert over 25,000 tonnes per year of excess whey by- product into several added-value products for growing global markets – including lactic acid, polylactic acid, minerals for human nutrition and bio-based fertilisers. This offers society and industry the opportunity for greater resource efficiency, less food waste, more products from the same starting material, and integration of food and non-food material production.