Six Science Foundation Ireland (SFI) Research Centres were awarded funding in May as part of Project Ireland 2040, with three of these centres located within UCC.

The €230 million investment by the Department of Business, Enterprise and Innovation, through SFI, will directly benefit approximately 850 researchers employed by the six centres.

The UCC-based SFI Centres which are to receive funding under the initiative are:

• APC Microbiome Ireland, the Alimentary Pharmabotic Centre
• MaREI, the Research Centre for Marine and Renewable Energy
• IPIC, the Irish Photonic Integration Centre at Tyndall National Institute

UCC co-leads the Insight Centre for Data Analytics, which was also awarded funding, and is also a partner in the remaining two centres, AMBER (the Centre for Advanced Materials and BioEngineering Research) and SSPC (the Synthesis and Solid State Pharmaceutical Centre).

In the announcement, Minister of State for Training, Skills, Innovation, Research and Development, John Halligan TD, highlighted the importance of emerging research and innovation for Ireland's economy.

“SFI Research Centres are a huge draw for high-quality, sustainable jobs both directly and indirectly,” he said.

“They are agents of change, providing new ways of thinking, and offering alternative solutions to issues and challenges that we face in many sectors.”

"SFI Research Centres are agents of change, providing new ways of thinking, and offering alternative solutions to issues and challenges that we face in many sectors" - Minister John Halligan

Professor Anita Maguire, Vice President of Research and Innovation at UCC, added that the funding announcement heralds an exciting future of possibility in the research landscape.

“The SFI Centres have had a very significant impact on the research landscape nationally, in particular in catalysing the expansion of collaboration with key national and international industry partners,” she said.

“We now look forward to further exciting advances as the Centres build on the momentum developed during the first phase of investment.

“Importantly, the Centres also provide an exciting and supportive interdisciplinary environment for early career researchers in areas as diverse as renewable energy, the interface between food and health, photonics, and data analytics.”

Follow this link for more information about Research and Innovation at UCC.