Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 27 January 2026
1166. Deputy William Aird asked the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science the way in which investments such as the National Challenge Fund and COALESCE programme will measurably impact pressing societal issue including climate adaptation, flood risk, and social wellbeing beyond academic outputs; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [6242/26]
View answerTaighde Éireann - Research Ireland was established to build an internationally renowned research and innovation system – one that fosters talent, accelerates innovation, strengthens our economy, enriches our society, and delivers lasting impact for Ireland. Social and economic impact underpins the entire research funding portfolio. Challenge based funding programmes such as the National Challenge Fund (NCF) support academic researchers to work directly with government, enterprise, public sector organisations and societal stakeholders to address national priorities for Ireland.
Each research team is required to have a Societal Impact Champion as part of the core team to ensure that the projects they are developing produce tangible outputs directly with those most affected by the challenge they are addressing.
An impact pathway must be defined out the outset to ensure they are solving the right problem and are developing the best solution. Here is an example of some of some key projects that were awarded funding under the NCF in 2025 that will deliver real impact on pressing societal challenges:
- The StopFloods team, based in the University of Galway, working closely with the OPW, the Marine Institute, and Met Éireann, are developing a novel flood forecasting system for prediction of compound coastal-fluvial flood events at the highly local scale and in real-time. Beyond the scientific value, the project directly benefits society by mitigating flood risks in flood prone areas, increasing the efficiency and cost-effectiveness of flood risk management systems, and ultimately increasing the safety and security of the general population in flood prone areas.
- Sustainable peatland management is a major societal challenge in Ireland and worldwide. Under the EU’s Nature Restoration Law (EU NRL) Ireland is required to restore 30% of damaged peatlands by 2030, 40% by 2040 and 50% by 2050. The AI2Peat research team, based in UCD, working directly with the National Parks and Wildlife Service has developed an All-Ireland peatland monitoring platform that leverages AI and domain expert knowledge to generate maps that enable the estimation of Carbon Dioxide equivalent (CO2e) sequestration/emission values and indicate the ecology or condition of raised bogs at unprecedented accuracy and coverage. This publicly available platform aims to become a decision support mechanism for peatland restoration actions.
- The GroSafe team, based in TU Dublin, working directly with the ISPCC, are developing a technology-enabled solution designed to help build societal resilience against child grooming through an integrated, user-friendly digital platform. It was co-created and shaped directly by young people and stakeholders. The COALESCE Programme supports interdisciplinary research addressing national or global societal challenges as articulated in Ireland’s national challenge frameworks and more broadly in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainability Development. The programme aims to enhance links between the research system and public policy with applicants required to demonstrate the potential impact of their project and how the research aims to benefit society at proposal stage.
€4.7million Research Ireland funding was distributed this year, supporting 19 projects, nine of which arein partnership with Government departments and agencies, including the Department of Foreign Affairs (Irish Aid), and the National Monuments Service of the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage, in partnership with the Heritage Council.
