2016 Summit
The 2016 UA Summit, November 2016, in Dublin, Ireland was hosted at a range of venues including Farmleigh House, St. Patrick’s Cathedral, and the Lighthouse Cinema. It provided a richly engaging mix of student-led research, high‑impact keynote talks and global networking, all aimed at nurturing the next generation of academic and professional leaders.
Further reinforcing the Summit’s commitment as a prestigious platform for outstanding undergraduate work.
Keynote & Featured Speakers
Dr Mae Jemison – Physician & Astronaut Mae Jemison is an American physician and retired NASA astronaut. She was the first black woman to travel into space when she went into orbit aboard the Space Shuttle Endeavour in 1992. She left NASA in 1993 to set up her own company, which researched the application of technology to daily life. Prior to this, Dr Jemison practised medicine as a volunteer in a Cambodian refugee camp and with the Peace Corps in West Africa.
Dr Ruth Casey, Dublin Institute of Technology – Ruth is a lecturer in EU Affairs and Communications in the College of Business in Dublin Institute of Technology (DIT). She was awarded a Teaching Fellowship by the DIT in 2016 and has been responsible for the creation and development of programmes at undergraduate and postgraduate levels. Ruth’s current research has two main strands: intelligence cooperation and the decision-making process of EU foreign policy in relation to European security, and Russian foreign policy.
Ms Stephanie Duhaime Privy Council Office – Stephanie Duhaime graduated in 2003 from the University of Western Ontario with a Bachelor of Science in Biochemical Engineering and a Bachelor of Arts in Economics. Since joining Canada’s Foreign Service in 2004, Ms Duhaime has worked to advance Canadian policies and interests in some of the world’s most challenging environments. Prior to her current assignment in the Privy Council Office, she completed assignments in Beirut (Lebanon), Dhaka (Bangladesh), Kandahar (Afghanistan) and Damascus (Syria). In 2013, She established Canada’s diplomatic mission in Iraq where she served as Charge D’Affaires until 2014.
Joel Faflak, Western University – Professor of English and Theory in the Department of English and Writing Studies at Western University, where he is Director of the School for Advanced Studies in the Arts and Humanities. He is author of ‘Romantic Psychoanalysis’ (SUNY, 2008), co-author of ‘Revelation and Knowledge’ (Toronto, 2012), editor of De Quincey’s ‘Confessions’ (Broadview, 2009), and editor or co-editor of ten volumes, including ‘The Handbook to Romanticism Studies’ (Blackwell, 2012), ‘The Public Intellectual and the Culture of Hope’ (Toronto, 2013), and ‘Romanticism and the Emotions’ (Cambridge, 2014).
Dr Batoul Khalifa, Qatar University – Associate Professor in Mental Health and Coordinator for B. E. D. in Special Education in Qatar University. Dr Khalifa completed her PhD in Educational Philosophy (Mental health), from Ain Shams University. Dr Khalifa has engaged in research for over 21 years in Psychology of Women and Family, Child abuse, Creativity of Youth, Special Education, and Quality Assurance in Higher Education.
Dr Rhona Mahony, National Maternity Hospital – Dr Rhona Mahony graduated from University College Dublin and is now an Obstetrician & Gynaecologist and a Specialist in Maternal and Fetal medicine, she has over 70 publications in the national and international academic press. Dr Mahony is currently Master/CEO of the National Maternity Hospital (NMH) in Dublin, one of Europe’s largest maternity hospitals, and is the first woman to be elected Master in Ireland.
Rob Mather, Founder & CEO of the Against Malaria Foundation – Rob’s business background is in strategy consulting, event management and publishing. He studied at Cambridge University and has an MBA from Harvard. The Against Malaria Foundation provides long-lasting insecticidal nets (LLINs) to populations at high risk of malaria, primarily in Africa.
Kris Nelson, Dublin Fringe Festival – Festival Director of Dublin Fringe Festival, Ireland’s largest multi-disciplinary arts festival. Before moving to Dublin in 2013, Kris was based in Montreal. Throughout his career, he has been devoted to enabling artists’ mobility and the delivery of ambitious and ground-breaking projects. In 2009 he founded Antonym, a producing and touring agency working with some of Canada’s most acclaimed experimental dance, theatre and interdisciplinary artists. As a dramaturg, Kris has worked with leading theatre companies across Canada and on several award-winning plays by emerging writers. He is a graduate of Langara College’s Studio 58 Conservatory (Vancouver).
Prof. Brian Norton, Dublin Institute of Technology – He is the author or co-author of nine books, over 420 papers principally in solar energy research including 170 in major international learned journals and he has been awarded over €10 million in research grants.
Prof. Danne Ojeda, Nanyang Technological University – Associate Professor in the School of Art, Design & Media, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore. Danné Ojeda’ s work engages contemporary communication design, art practice and theory.
Prof. Colm O’Gorman, Dublin City University – Professor of Entrepreneurship at Dublin City University Business School. He has studied the growth strategies of SMEs, the nature of managerial work in high growth SMEs, mission statements in SMEs, and internationalisation processes and in International New Ventures.
Prof. Owen P. Priest, Northwestern University – presently a Professor of Instruction in the Department of Chemistry at Northwestern University. As a member of the Hoye group, Professor Priest trained as a natural products synthetic organic chemist and was a member of the team that was one of the first to carry out the total synthesis of Michellamines A, B, & C. After serving as the Director of Undergraduate Organic Laboratories, Priest continues to teach organic chemistry classes as well as upper-level courses for chemistry majors.
Prof. Ian Robertson – Co-Director of the Global Brain Health Institute which is a joint programme of Trinity College Dublin and the University of California at San Francisco. He is also Visiting Professor at University College London and was formerly a Fellow at Hughes Hall, Cambridge University and Visiting Professor at Columbia University, New York. A trained clinical psychologist as well as a neuroscientist, he is widely known internationally for his published research on the human brain.
Kevin Roland, Teneo Strategy – Managing Director of Teneo Strategy. Mr Roland has had an impressive international career and most recently served as the acting Consul General in Belfast, Northern Ireland, where he led U.S. efforts in support of Northern Ireland’s peace process. He has also worked as the Trade and Investment Team Leader at the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad and as First Secretary for Economic Affairs in Cairo, Egypt.
Tuomas Tahko, University of Helsinki – University Lecturer in Theoretical Philosophy and Academy Research Fellow at the University of Helsinki. He is the author of An Introduction to Metametaphysics (Cambridge University Press, 2015) and editor of Contemporary Aristotelian Metaphysics (Cambridge University Press, 2012). Before coming to Helsinki, Tahko completed his PhD at Durham University in 2008.
Prof. Una Beagon, Dublin Institute of Technology – Chartered Civil & Structural Engineer who worked in the industry for many years before joining the Dublin Institute of Technology in 2013. She is currently Assistant Head of School in the School of Civil and Structural Engineering. Her research interests lie in the pedagogies which prepare graduates for employment with an emphasis on professional skills.
Dr Martine Cuypers, Trinity College Dublin – Lecturer in Greek at Trinity College Dublin. She holds a PhD from Leiden University and has previously worked as a lecturer and research fellow in Hamburg, Leiden, Groningen, Chicago and Washington DC. Her research focuses on Greek epics and the Greek literature and culture of the Hellenistic period and Empire. Dr Cuypers also previously served as the former Chairperson for TENI, the Transgender Equality Network Ireland.
Prof.Fiona De Londras – After studying law at University College Cork, and lecturing at University College Dublin she became a full professor, at the University of Durham, at the age of 31. In 2015 she became the inaugural Professor of Global Legal Studies at the University of Birmingham and is now also Deputy Head of School of Birmingham Law School. She founded the blog www.humanrights.ie which has welcomed contributions from scholars, NGOs and government ministers. Her current work focuses on increasing accountability and effectiveness in counter-terrorism, and on achieving constitutional change in Ireland for the purposes of ensuring protection and respect for women’s reproductive autonomy.
Dr David Irwin, Institute of Technology Tallaght – Senior Lecturer who established and headed the Department of Humanities at Institute of Technology Tallaght from 2000-2014. Since 2014 he has worked on the largest change management project in Irish higher education to establish a technological university in Dublin. He is a graduate of UCC (MA), UUJ (D. Phil), GCD (LLB), and UCD (Prof Dip in Professional Regulation). His research interests have focused on Foucaultian discourses of power, and change management in higher education. He has been a judging member of various Undergraduate Awards panels since 2011.
