.png)
Research-for-Policy Conference 2025
Co-creating a stronger research-for-policy ecosystem in Ireland
About the event
This one-day conference was a collaboration between the Department of Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science; the UCD Policy Interface; and the Social Sciences Institute in Maynooth University.
The conference, on the theme of "co-creating a stronger research-for-policy ecosystem in Ireland", was held on 11 November 2025 at MoLI – the Museum of Literature Ireland, Dublin, from 10am to 5pm. It was also live streamed.
The aim of the event was to further the national conversation about how we build systemic, coordinated connections between research and policy, so that high-quality evidence can more readily inform all stages of the policymaking process. In particular, we sought to advance a systems approach to the development and coordination of research-policy engagement.
In so doing, the conference also:
- Promoted cross-sectoral and intra-organisational collaboration to increase impact
- Provided all-island and international perspectives on the challenges and opportunities
- Contributed to the co-creation of a ‘shared vision’ for a more systematic, inclusive and productive research-policy interface in Ireland
Keynote speakers
Addresses and keynote presentations will be delivered by the following. Panellists and other speakers will include leading figures across Ireland's research-policy ecosystem, as outlined in the agenda below.
Professor David Budtz Pedersen
Professor of Science Communication and Impact Studies, Aalborg University
Sarah Chaytor
Director of Research Strategy & Policy, UCL; and Co-Chair of the UK Universities Policy Engagement Network (UPEN)
Agenda and conference summary
Use the buttons below to download the agenda, background paper, speaker bios, and a short summary of the event.
Conference organisers
