The importance of offering young people a space to discuss concerns and opinions surrounding mental health has been documented in a recent collaborative study in University College Cork. The research was undertaken in partnership with Youth Work Ireland, Cork and the Health Action Zone and informs the evaluation of the Mental Health and Wellbeing Programme, 'Mind Your Head' that has been running in Cork for over 10 years. 

Together with Gaisce, The President’s Award - Ireland’s national youth achievement award programme - a recent UCC Community-Academic Research Links (CARL) project explored the role of the youth mentor within a non-formal learning environment. Some 90% of the teacher PALs surveyed reported that they believed that they ‘made a difference’ to the lives of their Award students and 52% of them have been volunteering for more than 10 years. 

A recent community academic research partnership is informing practical ways to support health outcomes for older people by enhancing care pathways for audiology services and aftercare. The research will be used by Friendly Call Cork to focus efforts on supporting older people in the aftercare stages of accessing and managing hearing aids and audiology services over time. Hearing loss can be a factor for wider health outcomes such as decline in cognitive function and lonliness and it is anticipated that targetted supports willl have wide health and wellbeing benefits.

A Special Edition of Indie Cork Film & Music Festival ran this year from 4th-11th October with events being held on and off line. Real, physical events were able with festival partner partner, the Gate Cinema, whilst the generous support of Blacknight Solutions, meant audiences were able to ‘attend’ from home: view films, meet filmmakers, and enjoy live events and Q & As. 

The Citizen Engagement and Deliberative Democracy Festival is an annual event organised by the European Commission's Joint Research Centre in the framework of the EU Community of Practice on Citizen Engagement. This year, the 3^rd edition of the Citizen Engagement and Deliberative Democracy Festival will happen online, spread over the week of 6-12 December. 

SECAD Partnership CLG provides rural development and social inclusion supports to empower local communities to create a more vibrant, sustainable and inclusive society. They recently partnered with final year Geography student Matthew Williamson to examine how the organisation has changed, transforming traditional systems of local development and governance to create more integrated approaches that enable communities to set their own economic and social development agendas.

The very popular ‘GREENING OUR CITY’ series continues online at 2.30pm on October 20^th with a particular focus on the health impacts of greening by Dr Trevor Hancock presenting on Healthy One-Planet Communities: Creating planetary, community and personal health

The  Cork Volunteer Centre annual Cork Volunteer Awards announced their 2020 winners across the ten award categories at an on-line ceremony on Friday 9 October. UCC Student Vera Stojanovic, won Student of the Year and was awarded the overall C103 Cork Volunteer of the Year Award.

A 4^th year Ecology student at University College Cork, in partnership with Youghal Tidy Towns, has recently completed a study into the factors that effect Ballyvergan Marsh. Keith Dineen, supervised by Dr Simon Harrison from the School of Biological, Earth and Environmental Sciences, spent six months in the area working on the project.

Join us for this unique event which will form part of the largest global citizens’ consultation to date. For one day, citizens across the world will meet to discuss some of the most pressing issues of our time such as data privacy, cybersecurity, and inclusivity. ‘We the Internet’ is supported by a coalition of global strategic partners including the United Nations, World Economic Forum, and European Commission. Here in Cork, the EITIC research cluster at UCC in association with Missions Publiques (France) is seeking to recruit 100 citizens to deliver their vision for the future of the Internet.

The ERI is delighted to announce the beginning of a series of Autumn webinars in partnership with SHEP Earth Aware, Green Spaces for Health, Cork Chamber and Cork Healthy Cities. The Greening Our City series will concentrate on opening up a discussion on how we might make Cork ‘green’. Looking at what this means from many different perspectives, we will be inviting expert practitioners in this field from both Ireland and abroad to share their thoughts, ideas and experiences and providing ample opportunity for you to engage and discuss. 

Over the last three years, five social enterprises and ten early stage researchers have been examining social innovation and social entrepreneurship within rural areas throughout Europe. The work is delivered through an EU network and here in Ireland, Ballyhoura Development CLG, together with Cork University Business School have been connecting with this initiative. With the project coming to an end, they invite you to join them at two public events taking place 22-23 September. The events will share findings from the project and explore the relevance for policy makers. 

To celebrate World Mental Health Day, the National Suicide Research Foundation in collaboration with University College Cork, the Higher Education Authority, the Health Service Executive National Office for Suicide Prevention and Ulster University, is hosting a virtual seminar on Friday 9 October for those working in the areas of Suicide, Self-Harm and Mental Health.

A recent University College Cork study identified the positive impact of volunteering on the life experiences of people who have migrated to Ireland. The research identified how volunteering made people ‘feel productive’ and gave them a ‘sense of fulfilment’. Research participants reported how volunteering allowed them to engage with their local community and build lasting relationships, which in turn positively affected their mental health.

A recent UCC Community-Academic Research Links (CARL) project explored the benefits and barriers/challenges that employers experience in hiring and maintaining employment of people with an intellectual disability. A Master of Social Work student, Emma Callaghan, undertook the research under the supervision of Fiona O’Gorman, School of Applied Social Studies.

A recent University College Cork study on the experiences of Older Gay Men in Cork highlighted that older gay men in Cork are optimistic about ageing.

“While we know from other research that Older Gay Men experience increased levels of loneliness and isolation compared to their straight counterparts; the findings from this research are positive as they suggest that those men who have access to dedicated LGBT+ community services like The Gay Project experience much lower levels of loneliness and isolation” says Michael O Donnell of The Gay Project.

A community group created to empower Irish girls and young women, recently collaborated with University College Cork to research adolescent girls’ experiences of using social media. The Shona Project (https://shona.ie/) named after her sister, was founded by Tammy Darcy to give young women a platform to share their own stories and celebrate the achievements of powerful, successful and inspiring women from Ireland and all over the world.

On Thursday June 18th young people from Cork addressed senior politicians and leaders of statutory and other organisations, presenting their many personal experiences of racial discrimination and abuse, and asked that solutions are developed that will begin to resolve continuing, both overt and subtle, violence. The event was supported by UCC's Africa Society, UCC University of Sanctuary and UCC Fáilte Refugees Society.

University College Cork has conducted the first ever Irish study of the cost of cancer care provided by a community-based cancer support service. There are an estimated 40 voluntary cancer support services across Ireland, this study examines such example to quantify for the first time the true cost of providing these services, which are crucial to many who experience a cancer diagnosis.

A statement from UCC President Professor Patrick O'Shea:

I am saddened and angered by the violence against George Floyd and other people of colour that we have witnessed. I know that members of our UCC community share these sentiments and frustrations. These events have, once again, brought our attention to structures that create and preserve racism. We are committed to dismantling and transforming them. We are not perfect, but we are driven in our resolve to work together, as a community, on these issues. UCC is committed to advancing equality, diversity and inclusion amongst our staff and our students. We stand in full solidarity with our black and minority ethnic community in the wake of the police violence against George Floyd and others witnessed recently in the US.

The Rainbow Club Cork Centre for Autism and a University College Cork Master of Applied Psychology student recently collaborated in a Community Academic Research Links (CARL) research project to investigate the supports provided to over 400 children with autism through the Rainbow Club’s services. Paddy Lynch, a Masters in Psychology student in UCC, undertook a small study as part of his placement experience with the Rainbow Club, under the supervision of Dr Sharon Lambert. The study identified a number of social and personal benefits that children acquire from participation in the Rainbow Club, and identified a strong sense of community that allows children and families to thrive.  

UCC's Sanctuary Scholarships is in its third year and helps address the cultural and financial barriers to accessing third level education faced by asylum seekers and refugees in Ireland. 

University College Cork’s Equality Week 2020 runs until this Friday, and among the events this week is ‘Muslims of UCC’ – an exhibition aimed at countering Islamophobia.

Quercus Creative & Performing Arts Lecture takes place on Wednesday 4th March, 2020 with Rosaleen Molloy, National Director of Music Generation. Rosaleen will be talking about transforming lives through access to performance music education.

Today, Wednesday 19 February, University College Cork will celebrate 10 years since becoming the first university in the world to be awarded a Green Flag from the Foundation for Environmental Education.

UCC has continued to lead the way on environmental and sustainable issues in the decade since it was the first globally to reach this milestone, and is currently ranked the world’s number one University for responsible consumption and production by the Times Higher Education.

UCC Civic and Community Engagement are pleased to work together with Cork Volunteer Centre throughout the year on projects and initiatives, so committee member Prof. Fred Powell was delighted to provide a key note at the recent National Volunteering Network Conference.

Talks on the rise of the far-right, and exploring the concept of sanctuary will be central to UCC’s third annual Refugee Week, which runs until Friday, 7 Feb 2020.

Quercus Active Citizenship Lecture takes place on Monday 27th January, 2020. David Donoghue, former Irish permanent representative to the UN will give a public lecture titled: 'Global action for a better world: the potential of the Sustainable Development Goals'.

Ireland’s first course to examine the modern history of the Irish LGBT+ community has been launched at University College Cork.

A new programme to provide farmers with the skills to work with people with disabilities has been launched by UCC. 

Over 500 delegates will attend a mental health conference in University College Cork on the 13^th & 14^th November.

Over 50 free public and community sector events are planned for Cork, as University College Cork (UCC) launches its inaugural Community Week.

Cork will join 24 other capitals across Europe in celebrating research, with a series of free public events across the city on Friday 27 September.

Calling all families and sports enthusiasts, this Saturday, University College Cork stages its first Festival of Sport.

NEWS: Three CARL-projects with CUBS-students have resulted in the creation of apps for tourism and wildlife purposes.

EVENTS: 17th-18th MAY

Cork Community Art Link and Community Arts Partnership associated with Blue Drum together with The School of Applied Social Studies UCC have developed an all-island initiative to explore, through a range of discussions and deliberations, the power of community arts to promote, advocate for and ultimately deliver positive change.

EVENTS: Last Friday of Each Month 

Cork Alzheimers Café is a safe place for people with Alzheimers and other dementias, their carers, family and friends along with social and health professionals to meet. 

EVENTS: 1st-5th JULY 

Fun-filled, hands-on science camps in the Eureka Centre in UCC. This year we are running two camps; the first from the 1^st to the 5^th July inclusive and the second from the 8^th to the 12^th July inclusive.

EVENTS: 13th MAY 2019

Cork Traveller Women's Network &  the Traveller Equality & Justice Project, (Center for Criminal Justice and Human Rights, University College Cork) invite you to the launch of the Traveller specific resource guide "Know your Rights: Responding to Discrimination in accessing Goods and Services"

EVENTS: 7th-27th FEB 2019

Creating Autism is an exhibition of images and words by Stuart Neilson exploring the processes that mould autistic identity and the portrayal of autism in our shared language, media and public spaces.

EVENTS: 5th APRIL 2019

Children & Adults - You are invited to an evening of discovery and celebration! On 5 April, we will launch the most innovative and creative website on Ireland and the European Union designed for primary school teaching. Children are most welcome to come along. A small reception with finger food and drinks will follow the launch.

EVENTS: 8th MARCH

On International Women’s Day, UCC 98.3FM are delighted to announce the launch of a new radio series created in collaboration with the Development and Alumni Office. The Walk and Talk Series features trail-blazing female graduates, who return to campus to re-trace their footsteps and remember the music that sound-tracked their college days.

NEWS: Our congratulations to the Douglas Matters research partnership - community group, UCC graduates and supervisor on being shortlisted for the Education Award in the Research category at The Education Award Gala in Dublin on Thursday 21st February. 

NEWS: The CARL community-academic research partnership and projects with the Eating Disorder Centre Cork raise awareness about eating disorders and helps connect people with specialist support. This week the research partners came together to promote the value of this type of research and as part of the wider effort to raise awareness during Eating Disorder Awareness Week 2019 #EDAW2019. 

EVENTS: 22nd FEB 2019

Join policymakers, business and social entrepreneurs and academics as they come together to discuss the challenge of maximising the growth potential of peripheral and rural Ireland. Join us in Creative Zone in University College Cork.

EVENTS: 24th JAN 2019

Oxfam Ireland together with Centre for Global Development host public workshop to coincide with the annual meeting of the World Economic Forum and the publication of Oxfam’s annual report on Economic Inequality, 

EVENTS: 21st-25th JAN 2019

An exhibition of artworks in the Glucksman Foyer Space by young refugees, asylum seekers and migrants is just one of over 20 events and activities across UCC as part of Refugee Week.

EVENTS: 12th May 

UCC was honoured to host National Famine Commemoration.

The state ceremony took place on the Quadrangle, University College, Cork on Saturday, 12 May 2018. The National Famine Commemoration was attended by President Higgins and is hosted by An Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs Simon Coveney, TD, on behalf of the Government. The ceremony was open to the public.

A recent study on the impact that community crime and violence have on the welfare of children growing up in high crime communities has recently been completed by a University College Cork student. Laura Walsh, a MA of Social Work graduate, collaborated in a CARL project with professionals and community members located in the Moneymore housing estate in Drogheda Co. Louth.

A recent University College Cork study on the role of NICHE, Niche Health Project Cork, highlights how wider policy changes has impacted on community development over the last 20 years. The qualitative study combines a review of the literature with 10 semi-structured interviews documenting the thoughts and experiences of people who have worked at NICHE.