News & Events

Three University of Galway professors have been elected as members of the Royal Irish Academy for their exceptional contribution to sciences, humanities and social sciences.   Kieran Conboy, Anne O’Connor and Abhay Pandit are among 28 individuals honoured with the prestigious membership.   Professor Peter McHugh, Interim President of University of Galway, said: “I warmly congratulate our three esteemed colleagues on their election to membership of the Royal Irish Academy. The excellence of their ongoing contributions to their respective academic fields is truly commendable. Their achievements in research and scholarship are a source of great pride for University of Galway and a testament to the strength of our academic community.”   The Royal Irish Academy has been honouring Ireland’s leading contributors to the world of learning since its establishment in 1785.    The new members were admitted to the RIA by Professor Pat Guiry, President of the Royal Irish Academy, at a special ceremony on Friday May 23rd.    The University of Galway new members of the RIA are:  Kieran Conboy is the chair of Analytics and Society in the School of Business and Economics at the University of Galway. He leads the ‘ROSETTA’ project, examining the development, use and regulation of technology from a time perspective across all aspects of life. He is a fellow of the Association of Information Systems and is the editor-in-chief of the European Journal of Information Systems.   Anne O’Connor is Established Professor in the School of Languages, Literatures and Cultures at the University of Galway. A leading figure internationally in the fields of Translation Studies, Migration and Material Culture, she is the Director of the Emily Anderson Centre for Translation Research and Practice. In 2022 she received a €2m ERC Consolidator Grant for her project ‘PIETRA’, the first large-scale, multilingual study of the translation processes that underpin communication in global religion. She has also led funded projects on translation spaces in society, and has edited and translated 3 volumes of the Italian correspondence of Ireland's first cardinal, Paul Cullen.    Abhay Pandit is Established Professor of Biomaterials at the University of Galway and Founding Director of CÚRAM, the Research Ireland Centre for Medical Devices, which recently marked its tenth anniversary. He is president-elect of the Tissue Engineering and Regenerative Medicine International Society-Global. He recently received the George Winter Award from the European Society for Biomaterials, the most prestigious European accolade in the field of biomaterials. ​ ​Professor Pat Guiry, President of the Royal Irish Academy, said: “We are delighted to welcome the newly elected Members of the Royal Irish Academy. Our mission is to recognise and foster academic excellence, and to create, curate and share knowledge for the good of society. Your election today embodies this mission, and your insights and achievements will enrich the work of the Academy as we continue to lead trusted and independent dialogue and analysis across the island for the benefit of all.”   Ends

The Mary Robinson Centre and University of Galway, along with partner Mayo County Council, will host the third Mary Robinson Climate and Nature Conference. The conference will bring together climate justice advocates, scientists, activists, community groups and policymakers to address local, national and global challenges and opportunities in relation to climate justice and nature conservation. Centering on the theme “Courage in Crisis”, the annual conference will take place in Ballina, Co Mayo, on May 26th and 27th where the former president grew up, and where the new Mary Robinson Centre is located.             Mary Robinson said: “The Mary Robinson Nature and Climate Conference will centre on a call to courage in the face of the climate and nature crisis, a crisis that touches every part of our shared world. In these urgent times, it is through meitheal, the Irish tradition of coming together in collective effort, that we find strength, purpose and hope. Only by standing together can we meet this moment with the boldness it demands. I’m looking forward to being in community in my hometown of Ballina, imagining together what each of us can do to build a better future.” Along with Mary Robinson, the conference will feature a distinguished lineup of Irish and international speakers including: Dr Aoibhinn Ní Shúilleabháin, DCU; Anja Murray, ecologist, policy analyst, broadcaster and author; Dearbhla Richardson, youth climate justice activist; Dr Elaine McGoff, An Taisce; Dr Gerard McCarthy, physical oceanographer and climate scientist; Professor Hannah Daly, UCC; Professor John Barry, Queens University Belfast; Professor Navjot Bhullar, University of Canberra, Australia; Tom Arnold, Ireland Africa Rural Development Committee; Dr Omnia El Omrani, Global Climate and Health Alliance; and Laura Cook, Project Dandelion. The conference will feature a diverse range of workshops, panel discussions, walks, music and art, and aims to create space for people to connect, share ideas, and collaborate, with several of the conference events open to the public.              Dr Caitríona Carlin, School of Natural Sciences and Ryan Institute at University of Galway and conference co-chair, said: “It was uplifting to hear Mary Robinson recognise the interconnections between climate and biodiversity, when she changed the name of the conference to climate and nature in 2024. This is the first year that the conference formally addresses climate and nature and we are grateful to the funders and sponsors who have supported us. The conference enables us to acknowledge that actions for climate, for nature are also for us. We are part of the environment, and in finding common ground, we can make space for courageous conversations and actions to meet the multiple challenges ahead.”             Dr Sinéad Sheehan, School of Psychology and Ryan Institute, University of Galway and conference co-chair, said: “This year, while we are bringing the conference to Ballina, we also want to bring Ballina to the conference! There’s a great programme of events planned around the conference, including an art exhibition at the Mary Robinson Centre, a 'Connecting With Trees' walk in Belleek Woods on Sunday, and an eco-gathering on Tuesday featuring groups working on climate and nature. We’re also looking forward to a special ‘Oíche Cultúr agus Craic’ on Monday night with music, poetry and storytelling – it should be a brilliant few days for Ballina and the wider community.”             Dr Alma Clavin, Lecturer in Sustainability at University of Galway and conference co-chair, said: “This conference creates a necessary courageous space for those activated in climate and nature work to connect with each other and new ideas. The conference is taking place in a county that has a fantastic network of community-led climate and sustainability initiatives and a distinctive biodiversity-rich landscape. We’re delighted to host this important conference in the town of Ballina, the birthplace of Mary Robinson, a global leader in climate justice.”             Keynote speaker, Dr Aoibhinn Ní Shúilleabháin said: "I am truly honoured and excited to be invited to speak at the Mary Robinson Climate and Nature conference in my home county of Mayo. There are wonderful examples of Nature being valued and protected across the county and I look forward to referencing these as positive stories of community impact. Mary Robinson has been such a wonderful role model for people across the world and it is a privilege to contribute to this conference celebrating her work and encouraging others to take on her message of urgency and hope with regards to Climate and the Environment."             Keynote speaker, Professor Hannah Daly said: “For decades, Mary Robinson has foregrounded the voices of those most affected by the climate crisis, bringing a moral urgency to global audiences like no other leader. It is a great privilege and honour to give a keynote address at this conference.” The conference is sponsored by University of Galway, the Sunflower Foundation, Mayo County Council, Eirgrid, Failte Ireland, FutureEnergy and IBP Insurance. The full conference programme, including the schedule of public events, is available at https://www.maryrobinsoncentre.ie/agenda.html. Ends

Analysis of over 70 spider venoms finds potency depends on a spider’s diet   A new study by researchers at the University of Galway’s School of Natural Sciences has revealed why some spiders possess venom that is far more potent than others. By analysing the venoms of more than 70 different spider species, the team explored whether factors such as body size, prey type, and hunting method, including the use of webs, could explain the wide variation in venom strength. The research was published today in the journal Biology Letters. While spiders are infamous for the widespread arachnophobia they induce for a multitude of reasons, including erratic movements, eight spindly legs, sticky webs, and most notably, their venomous bites, the actual effects can vary dramatically depending on the species. For instance, a bite from the Brazilian wandering spider can result in serious medical complications, whereas the venom of a giant house spider typically poses no threat to humans, raising the question, what drives such differences in venom potency? The researchers discovered that diet is one of the most important drivers influencing the potency of spider venom. They found that spider venoms are what is called prey-specific, meaning if a spider primarily hunts insects, its venom is likely to be particularly effective at killing insects in general, such as crickets and flies, but far less effective against other non-insect prey, like small mammals.             Lead author Dr Keith Lyons from University of Galway’s School of Natural Sciences, said: “Our results show that spider venoms have evolved to be especially potent when tested on animals found in their diet in the wild. This may explain why species that are known to occasionally prey upon small mammals, such as the Brazilian wandering spider or Black widow, have venoms that can cause medically significant effects in us humans, whereas species that only prey on invertebrates, such as the Giant house spider, have evolved venoms that target invertebrate physiologies rather than our own, posing little threat to us.” The researchers also tested whether the use of webs to capture prey was related to the potency or volume of a spider’s venom.             Dr Kevin Healy, Senior author and Head of the Macroecology lab at the University’s School of Natural Sciences, said: “We predicted that web-hunting spiders might have less potent venoms because they may have evolved to rely more on their webs to immobilise prey. Surprisingly, we found no relationship between whether a spider used their web and the potency of their venom, suggesting that webs are likely important for restraining prey in web-hunters, regardless of how deadly their venom is.             “This study helps us to understand the evolution of spider venoms and aids in our understanding of why some spiders, such as the Noble False widow become invasive species in some parts of the world, or how some venoms may be of particular interest for future drug discovery, or the development of pest species-specific, pollinator-friendly insecticides.”             Dr Michel Dugon, Head of the Venom Systems Lab, Ryan Institute, University of Galway, said: “By understanding the fundamental drivers of venom evolution we can better predict the types of biomolecules in spider venoms that have yet to be explored for drug discovery and why some species of spiders are more likely to become invasive species.” Ends