{"id":9799,"date":"2025-08-20T08:00:25","date_gmt":"2025-08-20T07:00:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/alumni.ucd.ie\/magazine\/?post_type=events&p=9799"},"modified":"2025-08-28T15:30:53","modified_gmt":"2025-08-28T14:30:53","slug":"festival-2025","status":"publish","type":"events","link":"https:\/\/alumni.ucd.ie\/magazine\/events\/festival-2025\/","title":{"rendered":"Festival"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

UCD Festival 2025 vibrated with live music, creative workshops, cultural performances and campus spirit<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

From the cosmos to self-driving tractors, the UCD Festival offered a day of demonstrations, talks, discussions, and creative workshops. This free, oneday public engagement event continues to inspire the next generation of thinkers to explore and engage with the impactful research undertaken by UCD students, staff, and alumni. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Thousands participated in over 120 free events across eight festival zones in June 2025. The diverse programme allowed curious minds to explore everything from accessibility, sustainability and space exploration to DNA profiling, letterpress printing, and farm safety. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Festival highlights included the debut of the UCD Lyons Farm Showcase, a unique educational experience where visitors met goats, chickens, and lambs, and viewed the high-tech self-driving tractor and crop robot. Attendees also learned from students of Agriculture, Food Science, and Veterinary Medicine about how they gain practical experience while the farm conducts vital research, shaping the future of farming and food production. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Another first was the Amgen Biotech Zone, where visitors explored the world of biotechnology and met researchers from Systems Biology Ireland. \u2018Fight Crime with Amgen DNA Detectives\u2019 allowed attendees to go undercover and use real forensic science techniques to solve a mystery. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Live experiments in the Intel Science and Innovation Zone saw scientists showcase their research and student projects with interactive displays and workshops, attracting visitors of all ages. Pepper, UCD\u2019s humanoid robot, welcomed guests to the Zone and in the Medtronic Engineering and Technology Zone, visitors engaged with student-built inventions and tech prototypes. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

A standout moment was the inspiring conversation between writer, academic, and disability activist Sin\u00e9ad Burke and UCD alumna and journalist Roe McDermott. Rick O\u2019Shea\u2019s literary programme featured musicians, writers, and thinkers. Special guests included Jan Carson, Claire Coughlan, Karl Geary, Maeve Stone, UCD\u2019s Paul Perry, P\u00e1raic Kerrigan, Sylvia Leatham, and UCD Writer in Residence 2025 Annemarie N\u00ed Churre\u00e1in.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Space enthusiasts were well catered for, as Dr Aidan Crowley from the European Space Agency (ESA) discussed some of the major challenges astronauts face in space. Dr Niamh Shaw and Andrew Smyth, aerospace engineer and Great British Bake Off<\/em> finalist gathered crowds at the \u2018Baking in Space\u2019 event. Sustainability remained a central theme in the expanded Discovery Zone, with the introduction of the UCD Greenacre Sustainability Hub, highlighting UCD\u2019s leadership in climate research and green innovation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

More than 100 science alumni celebrated their Milestone Reunion at UCD University Club and enjoyed a nostalgic look back at the evolution of UCD College of Science. The Festival commenced with the Michael Byrne Memorial Run on UCD\u2019s Athletics Track, honouring the memory of UCD\u2019s dear friend, \u2018Old Man Belfield,\u2019 and bringing together students, alumni, and friends in a community spirit event. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Festival concluded with a special celebratory performance arranged by Dr Ciar\u00e1n Crilly, Artistic Director of the UCD Symphony Orchestra. It marked the inaugural appearance of the UCD Alumni Orchestra, featuring 71 UCD alumni musicians in a concert created exclusively for the event, which ended the day on a powerful note. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

A heartfelt thanks goes to the more than 1,000 staff and student volunteers whose energy, passion, and dedication brought life to every corner of the festival \u2013 and to all our guests, whose curiosity and enthusiasm made it a truly memorable occasion. The UCD Festival would not have been possible without the generous support of our pillar partners: Intel, Amgen, and Medtronic. \u25a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n
\"Attendees<\/a>
Attendees getting up close with the UCD Lyons Farm goats.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"Great<\/a>
Great British Bake Off finalist Andrew Smyth.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"UCD<\/a>
UCD President, Prof. Orla Feely, with Hilda Mulvihill, Senior R&D Director at Medtronic.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"Rolling<\/a>
Rolling along at the UCD Festival.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"Ciar\u00e1n<\/a>
Ciar\u00e1n Crilly, Artistic Director of the UCD Symphony Orchestra, with the UCD Alumni Orchestra.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"Triona<\/a>
Triona McCormack, Vice-President for Strategy and External Engagement, with members of the \u2018Fight Crime with the Amgen DNA Detectives\u2019 team.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"Deciding<\/a>
Deciding what to do next.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"Sin\u00e9ad<\/a>
Sin\u00e9ad Burke in UCD O\u2019Reilly Hall.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"Dr<\/a>
Dr Aidan Crowley, European Space Agency.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"Hands-on<\/a>
Hands-on Fun at the Amgen Biotech Zone.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"Claire<\/a>
Claire Coughlan, UCD\u2019s Sylvia Leatham, R\u00f3is\u00edn O\u2019Donnell and Chandrika Narayanan-Mohan.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"UCD<\/a>
UCD staff performing on the bandstand.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"Twirling<\/a>
Twirling at the Chinese Cultural Experience in the UCD Confucius Institute.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"The<\/a>
The Teddy Bears Care Centre.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

UCD Festival 2025 vibrated with live music, creative workshops, cultural performances and campus spirit<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":11012,"template":"","event_categories":[227],"class_list":["post-9799","events","type-events","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","event_categories-227"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nFestival - 2025 Alumni Relations - UCD Connections<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/alumni.ucd.ie\/magazine\/events\/festival-2025\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_GB\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Festival - 2025 Alumni Relations - UCD Connections\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"UCD Festival 2025 vibrated with live music, creative workshops, cultural performances and campus spirit\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/alumni.ucd.ie\/magazine\/events\/festival-2025\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"UCD Connections\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"http:\/\/www.facebook.com\/UCD.Alumni\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2025-08-28T14:30:53+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/alumni.ucd.ie\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/MOSP1420.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1110\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"740\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Estimated reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"7 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/alumni.ucd.ie\/magazine\/events\/festival-2025\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/alumni.ucd.ie\/magazine\/events\/festival-2025\/\",\"name\":\"Festival - 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