University of Limerick
The UL Research Impact Podcast Channel features interviews and seminars exploring research that makes an impact beyond academia. It highlights the work of University of Limerick researchers and how their findings translate into real-world benefits. The podcast aims to bridge the gap between academic scholarship and wider society. It offers insights into various fields through engaging discussions with experts.
Episodes
Episode 57: Music for parental and infant wellbeing: From pregnancy to early parenthood
Associate Professor Triona Mc Caffrey, joint winner of the Presidents Research Excellence and Impact Early Career Researcher – Starting Award 2025In this episode we hear from Triona Mc Caffrey, Associate Professor of music therapy, at the Irish world academy of music and dance, a member of the Participatory Health research Unit, and the Health Research Institute here at the University of
Episode 56: Catalysing the Future: How Catalysis Drives the Green Transition
Associate Professor, Bar Mosevitzky Lis, President's Research Excellence and Impact Early Career Researcher – Starting Award Winner 2025In this episode Associate Professor Bar Mosevitzky Lis Department of Chemical Sciences, Faculty of Science and Engineering and a member of the Bernal Institute, discusses his research which is driven by examining catalysts, using in situ techniques, captu
Episode 55: Transforming care for musculoskeletal pain: Impact through Partnership
Professor Karen Mc Creesh, President's Research Excellence and Impact, Early Career Researcher Consolidator Award Winner 2025In this episode we hear from Professor Karen Mc Creesh, Professor of Physiotherapy at the School of Allied Health, a Member of the Ageing Research Centre and the Health Research Institute at the University of Limerick. Karen discusses her research, which is driven b
Episode 54: Mind the Gap: Bridging the Policy - Practice Divide Through Interdisciplinary Hate Crime Research
The European Centre for the Study of Hate is an interdisciplinary research hub committed to deepening our understanding of hate in all its manifestationsIn this episode Professor Jennifer Schweppe, School of Law and the Director of the European Centre for the Study of Hate, and Professor Amanda Haynes, Department of Sociology who co-founded the Centre, will discuss leading a pioneering in
Episode 53: Physical Activity for Health Research Centre (PAfH), Outstanding Research Collaboration award winners 2024
Established in 2019 through funding received from the Health Research Institute in UL, the Physical Activity for Health Research Centre is, the first of its kind in Ireland, with a vision is to become “World Leaders in physical activity research that demonstrates real-world impact in policy and practice”. In this episode Professor Catherine Woods, Director of PAfH Research Centre, Healt
Episode 52: Music Therapy hitting the right note in improving health and wellbeing
Professor Hilary Moss, the winner of the Presidents Research Excellence and Impact Early Career Researcher – Consolidator Award 2024. Hilary is Professor at the Irish World Academy of Music and Dance and a member of UL’s Health Research Institute. Hilary’s interdisciplinary research integrates humanities, health sciences and other areas including computer science. Her research is an impo
Episode 51: Nothing as practical as a good theory: A Social Identity approach to applied psychology
Daragh Bradshaw, the winner of the Presidents Research Excellence and Impact Early Career Researcher – Starting Award 2024. Daragh is Associate Professor at the Department of Psychology and a member UL’s Centre for Social Issues-research. Daragh’s research specialises in the application of theory and method to address real-world issues. Focusing on the creation of ambitious applied projec
Episode 50: Crafting Tomorrow’s Materials One Molecule at a Time
Damien Thompson is Professor of Molecular Modelling in the Faculty of Science and Engineering, and Director of SSPC, The Research Ireland Centre for Pharmaceuticals. He leads a research team, in computational design of structured materials at the Bernal Institute at the University of Limerick. In this episode Damien discusses the importance of research collaboration and the impact of his
Episode 49: Sustainable high-performance batteries enabling the fight against climate change
Dr Tadhg Kennedy, Associate Professor in the Department of Chemical Sciences, Faculty of Science and Engineering, Bernal Institute – winner of the Early Career Researcher – Consolidator Award 2023. Since 2016 Tadhg has established a well-funded group, securing more than €5 million in funding. Notably, €2.14 million has been granted directly to Tadhg as the principal investigator, highlig
Episode 48: Improving musculoskeletal and general health in chronic conditions and injured populations
Up to 45% of us will get knee osteoarthritis in our lifetime, yet it is often not prioritised, people with joint disease are being under-served in terms of delivery of evidence-based rehabilitation in the form of exercise and education, particularly for hip and knee osteoarthritis. Evidence suggests that exercise and education is very effective for people with osteoarthritis but often pat
Episode 47: Developing collaborative innovative healthcare models and improving outcomes for older adults
The Ageing Research Centre members are winners of the UL Presidents Research Excellence and Impact Outstanding Research Collaboration Award for 2023. The Ageing Research Centre (ARC) comprises an interdisciplinary group of academic researchers across the University of Limerick, external academic collaborators, clinical collaborators and a Public and Patient Involvement (PPI) panel of olde
Episode 46: Music and Movement for Health and Wellbeing of Older Adults
Arts-based health programmes that combine arts with science can enhance the physical and psychosocial health and wellbeing of older people. This podcast discusses the benefits of music and dance for older adults and in particular their experience of the Music and Movement for Health study which examined the feasibility and potential for benefit of such programmes in Ireland. The primary a
Episode 45: Creating bespoke breast prostheses for women post-mastectomy
This project creating bespoke breast prostheses for women post-mastectomy, using state of the art digital manufacturing aims to roll out this year and to be available nationally in all symptomatic breast clinics. Research Team Dr Lorraine Walsh, Consultant Radiation Oncologist, Mater Private Network Limerick, and collaborator on the project; Siobhan Meaney, Clinical Lead at the Rapid Inno
Episode 44: The Mathematical and Statistical Modelling Collaboration Guiding Ireland’s Covid-19 Response
March 2020 changed the lives of everyone around the around. We were all worried about the spread of COVID-19, fascinated with R number and hoping lockdowns would not last long.Working in the background was the UL team from MASCI (Mathematics Applications Consortium for Science and Industry) who as part of the Irish Epidemiological Modelling Advisory Group (IEMAG), provided expert advice,
Episode 43: Advanced materials to purify the worlds air and water
Researchers at University of Limerick are designing advanced materials which can purify the air and our water. Meet Dr Soumya Mukherjee, President’s Research Excellence and Impact award winner who has established his own research group, “NanoSorb,. With funding from Science Foundation Ireland, NanoSorb is at the forefront in the development of energy-efficient porous materials, particul
Episode 42: Music therapy to support women’s perinatal wellbeing during pregnancy: Using music to nurture?
University Maternity Hospital Limerick is the first in Ireland to offer music therapy within its maternity care services. Meet the team behind this innovative approach to supporting wellbeing during pregnancy, Dr Mas Mahady, Consultant Psychiatrist, Dr Tríona McCaffrey, lecturer in Music therapy and Pui Sze Cheung, PhD researcher. Based on feedback from women who took part in this study
Episode 41: Tackling the global energy storage challenge, one ion at a time
Global energy crisis has never been more critical in the race to deploy more electric vehicles, better utilise wind, solar and alternative energy solutions, many challenges emerge. Among them is the need for faster, smaller, and environmentally friendly battery technology. Meet Dr Hugh Geaney, President’s Research Excellence and Impact Award winner who is, taking on the global challenge o
Episode 40: Covid-19 heroes, how the pandemic affected key frontline workers
The term heroes have been widely used to describe those working in the frontline during the global Covid-19 pandemic. Dr Elaine Kinsella, President’s Research Excellence and Impact Award winner at University of Limerick and Dr Rachel Sumner, Cardiff Metropolitan University discuss their survey of these key workers, focussing on the wellbeing and attitudes of those working in the frontline
Episode 39: “Nothing about us, Without us” President’s Research Excellence and Impact Award 2022 Winners
How do social and cultural changes occur, and how can policy be influenced to encourage these changes, particularly in terms of aiding people who are marginalized and stigmatized in our society? The award-winning research team from the University of Limerick's Centre for Social Issues Research is collaborating with government and advocacy groups to help those who are directly affected by
Back pain: Treating the human - not the scan
The personal, societal and economic costs of low back pain are enormous, and the likelihood of being disabled by back pain has worsened in recent decades. Prof Helena Lenihan, Chair of the UL Research Impact Committee is joined by Dr Kieran O’Sullivan, Senior Lecturer in Physiotherapy, School of Allied Health and winner of the President’s Research Excellence and Impact Early Career Award.
Tackling multi-drug resistant infections through research collaboration
A 10 year partnership between UL and HSE has benefited patients dealing with multidrug-resistant infections, patients with cystic fibrosis and those with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Winner of the 2020 Outstanding Research Collaboration, President’s Research Excellence and Impact Award, the collaboration involves microbiologists, designers, engineers, nurses, physiotherap
Zero Hours and Low Hours Work in Ireland
Zero hours work is work with no guaranteed hours. Researchers at the Kemmy Business School, have been examining the prevalence and impact of zero hours work and low hours work amongst Irish employees. Dr Lorraine Ryan, lecturer in Employment Relations & Human Resource Management in the Department of Work & Employment Studies at the KBS discusses the prevalence of these work contra
Technology in Education: Why content is key
Dr Ann Marcus-Quinn, a lecturer in Technical Communication and Instructional Design at the University of Limerick asks whether the move from book to tablet is the right one for the education system. She discusses how digital teaching and learning resources can be used, developed and shared in order to enhance teaching and learning in Irish education. She also talks about her involvement i
Engineering Physical Activity in Breast Cancer
Dr Michelle Norris shares how her project, ‘BREASTech’, is working to better understand how software and technology can impact the physical activity levels of breast cancer patients and survivors. She also discusses how her training as an ALECS Marie Curie COFUND fellow is helping her to share the impact of her research with a wider audience.This work was supported, in part, by Science F
Importance and challenges of getting the right wheelchair
Dermot Hayes, disability community activist from Ennis in conversation with Dr Rosie Gowran, School of Allied Health, UL and Leigh Gath, disability rights campaigner on the importance and challenges of getting the right wheelchair nationally and globally and the difficulties that wheelchair users face when proper supports are not available.
Personalised medicine and the pharmacy of the future
Oisín Kavanagh is a pharmacist and PhD researcher with the Synthesis and Solid State Pharmaceutical Centre (SSPC), the SFI Pharmaceutical Research Centre, at the University of Limerick. He discusses how advances in the distribution and production of medicines might shape the pharmacy of the future and how these could help to alleviate the financial burden on the State while in turn easing
Research Soapbox
The Research Soapbox event highlighted how research can make a real difference. The lunchtime showcase event took place in the Fab Lab in Limerick’s city centre and involved researchers from PhD to Professor with voices from the University of Limerick Thesis in 3 Competition as well as the Research Impact Podcast Series. The event was moderated by Prof Helena Lenihan, Chair of the UL Rese
Using psychology and the power of collective identities to combat adversity
Psychology has traditionally focused on biological, genetic or personality factors to explain why some people cope better or worse than others in adverse situations. However such a focus can lead to a therapeutic dead end as it is very difficult to change a person’s temperament or genetic predispositions. In the first of a series of guest host podcasts, Psychology Masters student Ilyana K
Creating a Positive Energy City Centre in Limerick
In 1900, only 14% percent of the world’s population lived in a city. Today, for the first time in history, more than half the planet’s population reside in urban areas. These urban centres are now racing to become the smart cities of the future. Limerick has received a major boost in the race to become a smart city through its designation as Ireland’s first ‘Lighthouse Smart City’ throug
Music Festivals, Inclusion and Public Spaces
Ethnomusicologist, Irish traditional musician and lecturer at the Irish World Academy of Music and Dance, University of Limerick, Dr Aileen Dillane talks about her research project FestiVersities: European Music Festivals, Public Spaces, and Cultural Diversities. This research is supported through Humanities in the European Research Area (HERA), European Commission.
Cracking the code for personalised medicine
Personalised medicine is the next great global challenge for the pharmaceutical industry. The vision of the pharmacy of the future is one which employs disruptive technologies to enable on-demand manufacture of drugs designed to individual needs. Central to this vision is the concept of continuous processing. The Bernal Chair in Pharmaceutical Powder Engineering, Prof Gavin Walker, discus
Why involve the public and patients in research?
Anne MacFarlane, Professor of Primary Healthcare Research at the Graduate Entry Medical School, University of Limerick and member of UL’s Health Research Institute talks about her research in the area of Public and Patient Involvement in Research, specifically participatory health research with socially excluded communities. Recorded by GK Media Ltd.
A Europe-wide approach to combatting tax fraud and evasion
Tax fraud and tax evasion affects us all. Within the European Union, huge sums of revenue for public investment are being lost due to tax evasion and avoidance with estimates in the region of 1 trillion euros. Prof Sheila Killian of the Kemmy Business School talks about her research as part of the EU funded project called COFFERS - Combatting Fiscal Fraud and Empowering Regulators. The te
Research Week - Open Science in The Netherlands
Lecture as part of Inaugural UL’s Research Week by Prof Karel Luyben, former Rector Magnificus of TU Delft and an expert on Open Science. During his lecture Prof Luyben poses questions such as; What concrete conditions should be met first, for your organisation to embrace Open Science? What do you hope that your organisation will gain from open science? What is the number one prerequisite
Next generation battery technology for electric vehicles
The advent of the electric car heralds a new era of environmentally friendly transport. However, battery cost could put a brake on the rollout of electric vehicles (EVs) for a mass market. Prof Kevin M Ryan, Chair in Chemical Nanotechnology, at the Bernal Institute, University of Limerick and his team are co-ordinating European research projects, Si-Drive and NEILLSBAT looking at next gen
Sepsis, a worldwide problem crying out for a solution
Dr Jakki Cooney, co-founder of UL spinout Cala Medical, based in the Nexus Innovation Centre in UL discusses her research. Cala Medical have designed and patented a unique device containing a specific immobilized enzyme which treats the excessive inflammatory response in the blood of sepsis patients. The treatment could dramatically cut the death rate from sepsis which is a highly preval
Maths for the Digital Factory
Digital transformation impacts many areas of our lives and has given rise to a booming digital economy. This new commodity of data is continually growing and changing. The challenge however, is how this digital transformation can be harnessed to do what we already do, but much better. Mathematics Applications Consortium for Science & Industry (MACSI) and Confirm, the SFI Research Cen
The good fight – breaking down barriers to create better policy and practice
Researchers at the University of Limerick are developing skills in interdisciplinary working and using this to inform policy and practice. The model involves multiple stakeholder engagement where ideas are expressed early and often, and are open to critique and contribution from other voices of interest. This model allows the group to fail faster by getting ideas tested and thrown out to
Giving a voice to victims in the Irish criminal process
Many of us will become a victim of crime at some point in our lives, yet many victims chose not to report these crimes to the police. Ultimately, a large number of victims in Ireland are not engaging in the criminal justice system. Prof Shane Kilcommins, Dr Susan Leahy & Dr Eimear Spain from the Centre for Crime, Justice and Victim Studies (CCJVS) and the School of Law have sought to
Biomaterials and Biotechnology: From the discovery of the first angiogenesis inhibitors to the development of controlled drug delivery systems and the foundation of tissue engineering
Advanced drug delivery systems are having an enormous impact on human health. new drug delivery technologies including nanoparticles and nanotechnology are now being studied for use in treating cancer. Approaches for synthesizing new biomaterials, which can be used in fighting brain cancer and new approaches for engineering tissues are being developed that may someday help in various dise
Nutrition supports for age related muscle mass loss
In Ireland, only 30% of women and 45% of men over 65 remain disability-free for life. Dramatic changes in cells start in our 30s, while in our 40s, health and functionality are impacted by increasing weight gain, decreasing bone density and loss or weakening of muscle. People with low lean tissue or muscle mass are classified as sarcopenic. Conservative estimates predict that the incidenc
Mathematics and the identification of ‘superspreaders’
In the world of social networks, “superspreaders” are users whose retweets can make information travel faster than everyone else. Prof James Gleeson from the Mathematics Applications Consortium for Science and Industry (MACSI) explains how his latest SFI funded project is using mathematics to help identify these superspreaders. He outlines how a better understanding of how information spr
Towards a cleaner carbon fibre future
Carbon fibre is a key material in a range of industries from automotive to wind energy. Dr Maurice Collins is leading a €4.9m EU wide project called LIBRE to create a cleaner and cheaper alternative means of carbon fibre production using lignin, a polymer found in wood and bark, rather than current petroleum based methods. He discusses the environmental and financial benefits of this enha
Fix the Fixing – Defeating match fixing in sport
More than 12% of athletes have played in a match that was fixed and nearly 15% suspect they have, according to the findings of a European survey. Dr Deirdre O’Shea and Dr Tadhg MacIntyre are two psychologists who have been involved in a pan-European Erasmus+ project called Fix the Fixing. Their research seeks to tackle this global phenomenon, and understand its impact on the athletes invo
Growing up with domestic violence and abuse: The impact on young people
The pervasive occurrence of domestic violence and abuse poses many challenges to Irish society. Dr Catherine Naughton talks about her PhD Research which was supervised by Prof Orla Muldoon and Dr Aisling O’Donnell in the Dept. of Psychology and Centre for Social Issues Research. Catherine discusses their research which explores the negative social and emotional consequences that growing
Phos"Fate": Where have all the nutrients gone?
Phosphate is a limited resource vital for global agriculture. Dr Iain Moyles and Dr John Donohue discuss their work funded by Science Foundation Ireland on mathematical modelling of nutrient flow in soil. During the podcast Iain and John describe the phosphate crisis which acknowledges that phosphorus is a limited resource and only a few countries have significant reserves of it including
Scaling Agile Methods: improved software development
The software industry in Ireland is well established with 9 of the top 10 global software companies located in the country. Prof Brian Fitzgerald, Director of LERO the Irish Software Research Centre, discusses agile methods in software development and the exponential growth in the development of software across all industries. With €30 billion worth of exports annually, the software indus
The untold story - understanding the Multinational Sector in Ireland
Ireland’s economy is highly dependent on multinational investment with MNC’s employing well in excess of 160,000 people. Prof Patrick Gunnigle & Dr Jonathan Lavelle, Kemmy Business School discuss the influence that multinationals have on the Irish economy and our society as a whole and how the landscape of MNC involvement in the economy may evolve in the future. www.ul.ie/researchimpa
Generating clean energy by imitating plant photosynthesis
The world needs solutions for its rapidly growing energy consumption which is projected to double by 2050. The advancement of solar photovoltaic (PV) technology is vital to achieve environmentally sustainable progress. Dr Micheál Scanlon, from UL’s Bernal Institute, UL is working on a pioneering experimental approach that seeks to imitate photosynthesis in the leaves of plants, with the
Autonomous cars, a game changer for the future of the motor industry
The advent of autonomous cars provides a number of challenges from a technological and design point of view and also raises interesting legal, liability and ethical questions. Dr Finbarr Murphy from the Kemmy Business School discusses his involvement as Principal Investigator in two European projects VI-DAS and Cloud-LSVA which aim to solve these challenges while contributing to reducing
Atomic Action Movies - Revealing the world, one atom at a time
Dr Andy Stewart is joined by PhD Students Kalani Moore and Eileen Courtney to describe the atomic action motives brought to life through microscopy. Since their discovery in 2004, 2D materials have sparked a worldwide race to discover new materials with stunning new properties. UL has been part of this drive for discovery through the Bernal Institute which is now home to one of the wor
Achieving a research led university
The Research Office was delighted to welcome Prof Ritsert Jansen, Dean of Talent Development and Head of Bioinformatics Centre, University of Groningen to the University of Limerick. Prof Jansen gave a talk entitled Achieving a research-led university, detailing the University of Groningen’s experiences in developing young research talent and maximising the potential of researchers. The U
A nation of couch potatoes?
Low levels of physical activity are attributed to 6-10% of coronary heart disease, type 2 diabetes, breast and colon cancer and over 20% risk of Alzheimer’s disease in Europe. In their research Prof Alan Donnelly & Dr Ciaran Mac Donncha seek to objectively measure the health risk behaviours of physical inactivity and sedentary behaviour (time sitting, lying down) and also understand
Improving the quality of life for people living with MS
Twenty years ago people living with Multiple Sclerosis (MS) were advised to “take it easy”. Today, there is a growing body of evidence showing that exercise is beneficial for a number of key symptoms like walking and fatigue. Prof Susan Coote and her team at the University of Limerick are making significant contributions to this U-turn, her research has had direct positive impacts on the
Research with impact, why bother?
The University of Limerick has long had a tradition of translational research, meaning research which has impact in the real world. In this podcast, Prof Helena Lenihan provides insights and tips to achieve real impact in your research and how it is achievable across all disciplines. For Prof Lenihan, there is no trade-off between doing excellent research and research that makes a real d
Ecology to rehabilitate mine sites
More than 30 million jobs in the EU and many key economic sectors are dependent on a sustainable supply of raw materials, such as aluminium and zinc. However, the extractive operations to process and refine such raw materials generate approximately 300 million tonnes of potentially hazardous waste per annum. In this podcast Dr Ronan Courtney, Bernal Institute, University of Limerick talks
Helping voters to make an informed choice
Elections are about many things, but arguably their most important function is to give voters a say in how their country is governed. In this podcast, Dr Rory Costello, Department of Politics and Public Administration, University of Limerick talks about why elections often do not perform this function very well, as many voters are not sufficiently informed about the policy choices on offe
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