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COST Action Meeting in Paris on Gender, Health and Extended Working Life

23rd September 2017

An  international meeting and local policy workshop of COST Action IS1409, Gender, Health and Extended Working Life took place in Paris on the 21st and 22nd September, 2017. This COST Action, (running from 2015 to 2019) is an international network involving researchers from 34 countries involved in assessing the gender and health implications of extended working life policy. The COST Action with funding of  €450,000 approximately is chaired by Dr. Aine Ni Leime of the Irish Centre for Social Gerontology (ICSG), the grant-holder for the Action. Dr Nata Duvvury, Global Women’s Studies, is a Working Group leader in the Action.

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Official Launch of the Routledge Handbook of Global Child Welfare 

23rd September 2017

The official Launch of a new book entitled the Routledge Handbook of Global Child Welfare,  co-edited by Professor Pat Dolan, Director of the Institute for Lifecourse and Society,  is to take place at the House of Lords, Westminster, London on the 17th of October 2017. Providing a compelling account of child welfare, grounded in the latest theory, policy and practice, this ambitious and far-reaching handbook is essential reading for everyone working to make the world a better and safer place for children.

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CKI at ILAS Combine Comedy and Learning 

19th September 2017

The CKI were delighted to host a Bright Club event and incorporate stand up comedy to the programme of events for the International Symposium on Service Learning, which they hosted in June of this year. Bright Club, is known as the ‘variety night for lateral minds’ where academics perform stand up comedy and talk about their work. Bright Club provides a unique experience which takes academics out of their comfort zones. Audiences are comprised of the general population and therefore, speakers have to find a way to discuss their work and make it interesting to those who have no baseline knowledge in what is being discussed. 

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New HEPAC Project on Student Preferences for Mental Health Services 

19th September 2017

A new Health Economics and Policy Analysis Centre project will examine student preferences for mental health services in higher education institutions in Ireland. The project, which is funded by an Irish Research Council Research for Policy and Society award, will be undertaken by Sharon Walsh, John Cullinan and Brendan Kennelly. A survey-based methodology, known as a ‘discrete choice experiment’, will be used to explore what aspects of mental health service provision are valued by students. In particular, a survey of third level students across a range of institutions will be conducted in order to identify the attributes of mental health services that are most important to students. 

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ILAS supported European Policy Seminar addresses Exclusion in Place

19th September  2017

There is increasing recognition that places can play a significant role in determining the extent of social exclusion in the older adult life course. Bringing together international researchers and policy stakeholders, the second seminar of the ROSEnet European Policy Seminar Series addressed the many ways in which place can intensify susceptibility to old-age exclusion and/or help to protect and buffer against exclusionary processes. 

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CKI at ILAS Host the 17th International Association for Research on Service-Learning and Community Engagement Annual Conference (IARSLCE).

September 19th, 2017

From September 14th-16th 2017, CKI welcomed over 350 international delegates from across the USA, South Africa, Egypt, Europe, South America and Australia, to mention a few, to the 17th International Association for Research on Service-Learning and Community Engagement Annual Conference (IARSLCE).  National University of Ireland, Galway is particularly proud to host this important event as it marked the first occasion that it will be held outside North America.  NUI Galway had been chosen given its international reputation for placing civic engagement and service learning as a core pillar of the university experience.  For three days, the delegates discussed the role of higher education within society through community engagement and service learning. 

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Community Knowledge Initiative at NUI Galway hosted major international conference on University-Community Engagement
7th annual International Symposium on Service Learning (ISSL)

June 2017

The CKI at ILAS NUI Galway welcomed over 150 international delegates from South Africa, Egypt, Vietnam, Ireland, UK, Germany and across the USA, to the 7th annual International Symposium on Service Learning (ISSL) June 14-16, 2017.  The ISSL is an on-going partnership between the University of Indianapolis, the Stellenbosch University and the National University of Ireland-Galway and for three days the delegates discussed the role of higher education within society through service learning.

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Final Meeting of the Erasmus+ Funded Europe Engage Project hosted by CKI at ILAS

June 2017

The Community Knowledge Initiative (CKI)  in June 2017 hosted the final meeting of the Europe Engage Project with 12 European universities based in in Spain, Ireland, Germany, England, Finland, Italy, Portugal, Lithuania, Croatia, Belgium, Netherlands and Austria.   The project entitled Europe Engage – Developing a Culture of Civic Engagement through Service-Learning within Higher Education in Europe [Reference 2014-1-ES01-KA203-004798] is a 3-year project funded by the European Union with the purpose of identifying existing service-learning practice, promoting service-learning as a pedagogical approach, and creating a network in this region, where much remains to be done in terms of civic engagement and service-learning.   

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The UNESCO Child and Family Research Centre at ILAS hosts it's 8th Biennial International Conference: Rediscovering Empathy; Values, Relationships and Practice in a Changing World 

June 2017

Across the globe, the perceived decline in empathy, care and social solidarity is a cause for concern.  Empathy is the ability and/or inclination to understand and experience another’s state or condition and, where appropriate, to respond through supportive actions.  Research has shown that empathy in individuals is essential to healthy social and emotional functioning and contributes to the enrichment of civic society. Conversely, where levels of empathy are compromised, studies have found an increased propensity to engage in anti-social behavior, such as bullying, aggression and offending behaviour. This biennial UCFRC conference drew on national and international expertise to explore the concepts of empathy and relationship based working as they relate to policy and practice with children, youth and families.

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ICSG Launches International Spring Seminar Series at ILAS

11th April 2017

Marking over 10 years since the establishment for the Irish Centre for Social Gerontology (ICSG) at NUI Galway, ICSG has launched an International Spring Seminar series. Running from April to June, it showcases international expertise and interdisciplinary perspectives on ageing and the life course. Speakers will engage with global societal challenges that impact on ageing societies, and will draw on conceptual and empirical debates to address scientific gaps in ageing research. 

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New Research Project on Deprivation of Liberty from CDLP

11th April 2017 

The CDLP in conjunction with the UN Special Rapporteur on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities has commenced a global research project on disability-specific forms of deprivation of liberty, with funding from the UK Department for International Development. 

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Mid-term Conference in Zagreb for COST Action based in ICSG

24th March 2017

A successful mid-term conference of COST Action Network IS1409 Gender, Health and Extended Working Life was held in the Law Faculty, University of  Zagreb, Croatia on March 24th involving three international keynote speakers: Madonna Harrington-Meyer, Debora Price and Martin Hyde and highlighting the work of Action members. The Action website is www.genderewl.com

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Launch of the EQ5D-5L Value Set for Ireland

21st March  2017 

On Tuesday, March 21st, 2017 the Health Economics and Policy Analysis Centre (HEPAC) hosted an event to mark the launch of the EQ5D-5L Value Set for Ireland.  This project has been funded by the Health Research Board (HRB) and forms a central part of the research programme being led by HRB Leader Professor Ciaran O’Neill.

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UCFRC Speak about the Importance of Education in Preventing Violent Extremism and Radicalisation in Brussels

21st March, 2017

Professor Patrick Dolan from the UNESCO Child and Family Research Centre at NUI Galway spoke at a recent conference panel discussion in Brussels, on the eve of the first anniversary of the devastating terrorist attacks against Brussels on 21 March 2016. The event explored ‘How to Prevent Violent Extremism and Radicalisation through Education.’

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ILAS COST Action on Old-Age Exclusion Hosts International Policy Event in OSLO

8th March 2017

The Reducing Old-Age Social Exclusion COST Action – ROSEnet – Chaired by ICSG’s and ILAS’s Kieran Walsh, hosted its first International Policy Event in OSLO on March 8th. Drawing over 70 delegates from across European and international contexts, this event focused on exclusion from social relationships and the sort of health and well-being outcomes that can arise from exclusionary process in this domain in later life.  

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The Ombudsman for Children Dr Niall Muldoon launches two Youth research Videos  ‘It’s OK’ and ‘Dear Parents' at ILAS

4th February 2017

These videos resulted from work undertaken by a group of Youth Researchers aged 9 to 19 from various parts of Ireland who have, since 2014, been involved in research about how children and young people in Ireland experience parental separation, divorce and resulting changes in family life.

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2nd Biennial Distinguished Lecture: Leo Varadkar T.D. Minister for Social Protection visits ILAS

12th January 2017


Speaking at the 2nd Biennial Distinguished Lecture Leo Varadkar T.D. Minister for Social Protection  held on Thursday, 12 January at the Institute for Lifecourse and Society (ILAS) NUI Galway, Institute Director Professor Pat Dolan  highlighted the need to see the easing of austerity as an opportunity to provide better family support to those worst affected by the economic crisis over recent years in Ireland.

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Community Living for Europe: Building on the Promise of European Structural and Investment Funds into the Future’

December 2016

The European Structural and Investment Funds (ESIF) regulations represent a significant step towards realising the rights of millions of Europe’s most marginalised and disadvantaged citizens by ensuring access to community based living for all and ending the practice of institutionalisation. Experiences from the national and local level however evidence a relatively low impact of the ESIF regulations to support community living for all. 

A roundtable in the European Parliament on 1st December, hosted by Mairead McGuinness, Vice President of the European Parliament and organised in partnership with the Community Living for Europe initiative, will share good practices from across the European Union and highlight areas for future improvement especially with a view to informing discussions about the content of the Regulations for the next programming period.

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3rd Annual Frontiers in Healthcare Conference

November 2016

The Health Economics and Policy Analysis Centre (HEPAC) hosted its 3rd Annual Frontiers in Healthcare Conference on Thursday, November 10, 2016. The conference, which was organized in conjunction with Novartis Ireland, brought  together an exciting group of academics, industry professionals and clinicians to debate and discuss a significant issue in healthcare. The theme of this year’s conference was ‘Real World Evidence: its use and potential in improving healthcare decision-making’.

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Irish Pilot of Carnegie Foundation’s Community Engagement Classification

‌‌November 2016

The Irish Pilot of Carnegie Foundation’s Community Engagement Classification was conceived in 2013 by the CKI’s Lorraine McIlrath in partnership with Professor John Saltmarsh at University of Massachusetts and Dr. Elaine Ward at Merrimack College Boston and was subsequently funded by the Talloires Network and the Ireland funds with support also offered by the two Universities. This project marked the first time that a national pilot of this highly respected measurement tool was to take place with the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching and Learning offering full support.  Following an introductory workshop on the project process to all institutions of higher education in Ireland and invite to institution Presidents, 12 joined forces and created a critical friendship group to support the pilot and discussions therein. A significant part of the pilot is a research dimension in that the process may allow for the development of a national measurement tool that could be created and adopted to allow higher education institutions in Ireland measure community and civic engagement.

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International Conference on Old-Age Social Exclusion at ILAS

‌October 2016

Social exclusion of older people is a direct barrier to Europe’s social and economic development. That was the message from an international conference on ‘Old-Age Social Exclusion’ hosted on the 28th of October by the Irish Centre for Social Gerontology (ICSG) in ILAS. The international conference was also the opening event of a four-year innovative collaboration between researchers and policy stakeholders across Europe, entitled Reducing Old-Age Exclusion in Europe, or ROSEnet and chaired by ICSG’s Kieran Walsh. 

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Project FairTax at the Permanent Representation of Sweden to the EU

‌October 2016

On October 25, 2016, Project FairTax hosted an open research seminar on “Fair and Sustainable Taxation in the EU” at the Permanent Representation of Sweden to the EU in Brussels. The seminar, which was moderated by Dr. Emer Mulligan, ICSG, NUIG attracted an audience of over 100 participants from EU institutions, stakeholder organisations, lobby-groups, universities, and others with an interest in future tax issues in Europe. Challenging questions were rasied during the seminar, shaping, in part the future direction of Project FairTax. 

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Launch of the 3-Cities Findings by Minister Katherine Zappone at ILAS

‌September 2016

Revealing insights into the inclusion of city dwelling children, older people and people with disabilities, the 3-Cities Neighbourhood Report Series was launched by Minister Katherine Zappone T.D. on the 30th of September at ILAS. The launch was a part of a national conference that brought together speakers from local authority and public health agencies.

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StudentVolunteer.ie Shortlisted for National THINKTECH Award

‌September 2016

An online volunteering resource developed by a Lorraine Tansey has been shortlisted for THINKTECH, a €1 million project to grow ideas for a better Ireland. Studentvolunteer.ie, which connects students and community groups, charities, schools, hospitals, public bodies and NGOs across Ireland, was co-founded by Salthill native Lorraine Tansey. In total, 11 finalists will compete for access to an award fund of up to €750,000 in grants as well as support and mentoring to further develop their social innovations.

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VOICES Project holds seminar on criminal responsibility and the CRPD

‌September 2016

On the 22nd and 23rd of September the VOICES project held the first of their thematic workshops on criminal responsibility in the Institute for Lifecourse and Society. The first day of the workshop was a private day where the storytellers and respondents who have chosen this theme worked together with international experts in the area and a creative writing facilitator to develop their pieces for the final edited collection.

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New report published by the UCFRC on Lone parents and Activation

‌September 2016

Funded by the Irish Research Council's research project grants, Department of Social Protection Research Innovation Award (SPRIA), this report by Dr Michelle Millar and Dr Rosemary Crosse of the UNESCO Child and Family Research Centre NUI Galway investigates best practice and innovative approaches to the labour market activation of lone parents internationally. It examines policies, programmes and practices which enable lone parents to engage in employment which will lead to adequate living standards and improved well-being for them and their children. 

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Speech & Language Therapy Joins ILAS

‌September 2016

The speech and language therapy team is delighted to join ILAS. We are excited about developing new collaborations, enhancing existing ones, and we believe that our research themes are closely aligned with ILAS. We have been in NUI Galway since 2003 and will be celebrating the 10 year anniversary of our first graduates in 2017! In 2016, we launched two new MSc programmes (MSc in Childhood Speech, Language, and Communication Needs and an MSc in Advanced Healthcare Practice and Research). 

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How diverse is Irish teaching?

Unofficially at least, as a nation we have known for decades that there is an often startling lack of diversity in terms of gender and socioeconomic status in various professions and walks of life in Ireland; and that something needs to change. However, the Irish Government has always lacked the hard facts and statistics necessary to demand and drive this need for change, and a major shift in governing policy – until now.

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ILAS stages Food Fair in preparation for Saol café’s official opening

On Thursday, October 29th, SCCUL Enterprises Ltd. (managers of the new Saol café on the ground floor of the ILAS building) invited the campus-wide and local community to sample the best of locally-sourced food and produce at a Food Fair from 12.30-2pm. 

All present were provided with complimentary tea and coffee, and had the opportunity to sample delicious food products from local suppliers who specialise in a wide range of food and produce.

ILAS staged the informal event is to give its staff a flavour of the type of food the new café will be serving over the coming months; and the opportunity for staff to invite to their key stakeholders and community partners to enjoy what it has to offer.

Saol café, which is scheduled to open in the first week in November, is a unique social inclusion project: the café will be the first of its kind in the country – most of the people employed by the café will face some barrier to employment; and, almost all of the food and drink served by the café will be produced and/or sourced locally, thus providing a further boost to the local economy.

ILAS hopes that you will visit Saol café in its opening weeks; and that you will enjoy all that it has to offer for years to come.

President Michael D Higgins Gives Inaugural Lecture

On Monday 30 November, President Michael D Higgins gave the inaugural lecture marking the official launch of the Institute for Lifecourse and Society (ILAS), following the Tánaiste’s visit to open the Institute less than two weeks before.

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The impact of social support on relationships and loneliness

Asking as many thought-provoking questions demanding further enquiry as it provided research-based answers, the lunchtime lecture entitled ‘Current Issues in Social Support’ was an engaging experience for all who attended it on November 24th in the ILAS institute.

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Dr Crystal Tremblay visits ILAS

On Wednesday, September 30th, ILAS had the pleasure of the touring Dr Crystal Tremblay from the University of British Columbia, Canada, who attended to present the methodology and initial findings of the study she conducted using participatory video-based research entitled, “Participatory Water Governance in Urban Africa: Building Citizenship through Participatory Video”, focusing more specifically on how the communities of informal settlements in Cape Town, South Africa and Accra, Ghana access and use water, in addition to their water sanitation, whilst also reflecting on similar research she conducted with recycling cooperatives in Canada and Brazil.

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ILAS Launch!

On Wednesday 11 November, The Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection Joan Burton T.D. conducted the official launch of the Institute for Lifecourse and Society (ILAS) at NUI Galway. Representing a nine million euro investment consisting of significant philanthropic contributions from The Atlantic Philanthropies and Galway University Foundation, the ILAS centre is a rare example of an interdisciplinary research hub designed to examine and re-imagine important social issues, especially for vulnerable populations.

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Ghent University’s Approach to Community Service Learning

On Wednesday, September 9th, ILAS staged CKI’s seminar hosting Guillaume Tuytschaever of Ghent University, Belgium. Tuytschaever, Ghent University’s Community Service Learning Project Officer, attended to present an overview of the community engagement and service learning work that takes place at Ghent University.

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Touchstone celebrated by the ILAS

To coincide with the local and national launch of Touchstone, on Wednesday, September 16th, 2015, the ILAS staged a speaker series and forum fair consisting of over 30 different local and national organisations to celebrate Touchstone’s ongoing work with people aged 55 and over, using this unique opportunity to develop awareness about the organisation’s activities and to recruit volunteers through discussion and showcase of similar organisations’ work.

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