The Whitaker Institute for Innovation and Societal Change at NUI Galway will hold its annual Research Day on 6 April. Building on the success of last year’s event, the 2017 Whitaker Institute Research Day is an opportunity for researchers from across multiple disciplines to meet and discuss how the multi-perspective research of the Institute on a range of social and economic issues can promote a more sustainable and inclusive society. The event involved a series of talks in the Lee Lecture Theatre, Engineering Building and a poster display of on-going Institute research in the foyer of the Engineering Building.
The day will comprised five sessions and encompassed research under each of the three thematic areas of the Institute: Sustainable & Inclusive Societies, Public-Sector Innovation & Reform, and Business, Innovation & Economic Development. Each of the sessions saw Whitaker researchers presenting some of the key ongoing projects of the Institute. The first session encompassed presentations under the Sustainable & Inclusive Societies theme, focusing on the topic “A Sense of Place.” The second session, under the Public Sector Innovation & Reform theme, focused on the topic “Addressing the Backlash.” Speakers in this session explored the question “How might research adapt to address the challenges presented by the current populist backlash against government policy and political systems?”
We were particularly pleased to welcome Professor Liam Delaney, AIB Chair of Behavioural Economics at UCD, who delivered the keynote speech on the day. Professor Delaney’s session lead into the third set of cluster presentations under the Business, Innovation & Economic Development theme on the topic “Understanding Behaviour.” Finally, a second set of presentations under the Sustainable and Inclusive Societies theme addressed issues related to “Place and Inclusivity.”
The Whitaker Institute Research Day is certain to provoke ideas, foster discussion, and create opportunities for new research collaborations.