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