Centre Governance

Our governance structure and associated committees support and advise our leadership team ensuring optimal performance and oversight of activities and development.

Governance Committee

Role

To provide oversight of BiOrbic’s strategic vision and measure performance against this vision.

Committee Members

Ms Patricia Reilly (Chair)
Head of Animal Welfare Division
Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine

Mr George Burke
Head of Economic Infrastructure, Regulation and Climate Change
Department of an Taoiseach (Prime Minister)

Prof Kevin O’ Connor
Director
BiOrbic, Bioeconomy SFI Research Centre

Dr Paul Connolly
CEO
Marine Institute

Prof Wolfgang Schmitt
Dean of Research
Trinity College Dublin

Prof Pat Dillon
Director of Research
Teagasc

Prof Orla Feely
Vice President for Research, Innovation & Impact
University College Dublin

Mr Rory Caren
Founder and Business Development Director
Caren Meicnic Teoranta

Aine Hallihan
Director of R&D
Carbery

Scientific Advisory Committee

Role

Provide the Centre with independent and impartial advice on recent scientific trends and developments worldwide, to ensure that the Centre is at the forefront of international state-of-the-art.

Committee Members

Prof Alexander Steinbüchel (Chair)
Westfälische Wilhelms-Universität Münster
Germany

Prof Roger Sheldon
Technische Universiteit Delft
Netherlands

Prof Diana Sousa
Wageningen University and Research
Netherlands

Prof Sarah McLaren
Massey University
New Zealand

Industry Advisory Committee

Role

Advise Centre as to prevailing industry trends and needs and review and advise on the commercial impact of research intellectual property developed by the Centre.

Committee Members

Mr Peter Corcoran (Chair)
CEO
MBIO

Ciaran Behan
Associate Partner
EY

Mr Michael Murray
Managing Director
NVP Energy

Dr Michelle Collins
Head of Nutrition and Sustainability Innovation
Glanbia, Ireland DAC

Executive Committee

Role

Develop and maintain a long-term strategic plan for the Centre and ensure on-going, smooth operations of the Centre through the effective implementation that its long-term strategic plan.

Committee Members

Prof Kevin O’Connor (Chair)
Director
BiOrbic, Bioeconomy SFI Research Centre

Prof Nick Holden
Deputy Director
BiOrbic, Bioeconomy SFI Research Centre

Prof Maeve Henchion
Teagasc

Prof Eoin Casey
University College Dublin

Prof Yurii Gun’ko
Trinity College Dublin

Prof Pat Guiry
University College Dublin

Prof Gerard Cagney
University College Dublin

Prof Fionnuala Murphy
University College Dublin

Prof James Lyng
University College Dublin

Prof Brijesh Tiwari
Teagasc

Prof Ramesh Babu
Trinity College Dublin

Mr Derek O’Brien
Executive Director
BiOrbic, Bioeconomy SFI Research Centre

Research Programme Committee

Role

Monitor research progress across all Centre-funded projects.

Committee Members

Prof Pat Guiry (Chair)
University College Dublin

Prof Nick Holden
University College Dublin

Prof Yurii Gun’ko
Trinity College Dublin

Prof James Lyng
University College Dublin

Prof Cathal O’Donoghue
NUI Galway

Prof J.J. Leahy
University of Limerick

Dr Liina Rae
Research Programme Officer
BiOrbic, Bioeconomy SFI Research Centre

Industry/Spokes Committee

Role

Review proposals brought forward for allocation of available funding to industry targeted projects.

Monitor connections and access to Platform Research expertise for industry focused projects and will make recommendations for integration where needed.

Recommend a strategy for industry spokes (individual spokes and collective spokes).

Committee Members

Mr Seán Douglas (Chair)
Industry Engagement Manager
Biorbic, Bioeconomy SFI Research Centre

Prof James Lyng
University College Dublin

Prof Nick Holden
Deputy Director
BiOrbic, Bioeconomy SFI Research Centre

Prof Maeve Henchion
Teagasc

Prof Eoin Casey
University College Dublin

Prof Fionnuala Murphy
University College Dublin

Prof Brijesh Tiwari
Teagasc

Prof Ramesh Babu
Trinity College Dublin

Prof Vincent O’Flaherty
NUI Galway

Postgraduate and Postdoctoral Researcher Committee

Role

The BiOrbic Postgraduate and Postdoctoral (PG/PD) Researcher Committee plays an important role in the BiOrbic Centre. The Committee influences the Centre’s development by representing and advocating on behalf of BiOrbic’s PG and PD researchers.

The Committee supports the development of a thriving BiOrbic Community through organising networking, professional and social events.

Committee Members

Kieran Harrahill
Chairperson
University College Dublin

Burcu Akkoyunlu
Welfare and Inclusion Officer
University College Dublin

Manuel Bruch
International Officer
University College Dublin

Ajay Menon
Education and Engagement Officer
University College Dublin

Lea Braud
Social Officer
University College Dublin

Nishtha Talwar
Postgraduate Officer 
University College Dublin

Sorcha Daly
Postdoctoral Officer
University College Dublin



Education and Public Engagement Committee

Role

The BiOrbic Education and Public Engagement (EPE) Committee  has an important role in influencing the centre’s EPE programme. While there are many avenues for BiOrbic members and engagement colleagues to advise on the centre’s EPE activities, there are minimal opportunities for the public groups we engage with to have oversight. Therefore this committee has been established to ensure our programme is relevant, targeted and has the maximum impact possible.

Committee Members

Brendan Mulry
Irish Rural Link
Focus: Rural Communities

Cathal O’Donovan
Pig Farmer
Focus: Primary Producers

David Dolan
Dairy Farmer
Focus: Primary Producers

Kelli Howard
Dept. of the Environment, Climate and Communications
Focus: Policy

Laragh McCann
Climate Love Ireland
Focus: Citizen Action

Noeleen McDonald
Dept. of Food, Agriculture and the Marine
Focus: Policy

Rachel Loughrey
Irish Green Building Council
Focus: Citizen Action