Address by Professor John Fraher,
Director Biosciences Research Institute, UCC
At the conferring of Medical and Food Science Degrees
At University College, Cork on Thursday,
14 December, 2000 at 3.30 pm
 
Biosciences — for the 21C

My first word is congratulations. Congratulations to you the new graduates on the achievements which we celebrate today. And, no less important, congratulations to those who have helped you to this milestone: parents, family and friends. This is a time for celebration, celebration of the end of one phase of your education and the beginning of another. Education goes on for life.

Many of you will now be leaving this University. When you go from here, I hope you will bring with you more than just knowledge and information. I hope that we have helped you to cultivate your intellectual versatility, and above all your capacity for something essential: a sense of constructive self-criticism. The unique value of a university education is training in reflection. By working deeply in one field in particular we discipline our thought processes in general. As a result, you will have learned to analyse problems objectively, so that you can confidently surmount the unpredictable challenges of the future.

Some of you are taking your primary degrees. Others have completed postgraduate programmes. You belong to two Faculties, which might seem at first sight rather disparate. In fact this isn't so at all. For some time now, the Faculties of Food Science and Medicine have been moving closer through the development of collaborative research. Indeed this trend has been formalised recently in the establishment of the new Biosciences Research Institute here at UCC.

I would like to speak for a moment about this Biosciences Institute. UCC has received funding of over £10m to develop a new, purpose-built research building for biological and biomedical science. This is the most exciting development which has taken place in many years in our research lives here at UCC. It represents the realisation of a dream long held, namely, to bring a number of research groups, from the Food Science, Medicine and Science faculties together in one place, thereby pooling major resources in cell, molecular and tissue biology. Up to now, these labs have been scattered over the campus and indeed across the city. This initiative will create the ideal context for developing large scale interdisciplinary research programmes of the highest quality. The Institute will be a fundamental research resource for the Food Science and Medical faculties here at UCC. And indeed it will add a very significant new dimension to bioscience research in Ireland.

Bioscience is at the very forefront of 21C research. It is central to expanding our knowledge of fundamental life processes. In its applications to disease, it is continually yielding novel approaches to diagnosis and treatment. Most significantly, it underpins knowledge-based industries in the biotechnology field. Therefore, it has a potential for our national advancement which cannot be overestimated. The development of spin-off biotechnology industries will add significantly to the ability of this country to control its own economic destiny. We will as a result become progressively less dependent on the policy whims of multinationals. That lays a strong foundation for a predictable future.

The Bioscience initiative encompasses fields of study ranging from molecular biology to tissue structure and function. We are very fortunate in the variety of research skills which are being pooled. This places us in a very good position to take advantage of the new postgenomic era which is just beginning: Now that we know quite a lot about the genes, we can begin to relate them more fruitfully to the context in which they operate. The unifying strategy of the research which will be done in the Institute is improvement of quality of life. This encompasses two principal themes which are particularly relevant for today's graduates. One is food and health. This focuses on: enhancement of health-promoting qualities of the diet through the development of probiotic foods, improving the sensory qualities of food, promoting healthy ageing through diet, improvement of food safety and deeper understanding of microbial-host interactions. The other theme is health and wellbeing. Central objectives are to develop a deeper understanding of basic human biology, to understand disease and to devise new treatments. Thus, the Institute will contribute greatly to the quality of health care in the region. A key part of the Biosciences mission is to develop collaborations between basic scientists and clinical researchers here. On a broader scale, the Institute will greatly strengthen our ability to extend participation in international collaborative research programmes, where UCC is already particularly successful. And indeed synergy between the two strands will be enhanced through UCC’s newly established Chair in Food and Health.

The Biosciences opportunity is coming our way because the government is investing very heavily in research infrastructure. The Higher Education Authority’s Programme for Research in Third-Level Institutions will profoundly transform the current research climate in Ireland. We are also very fortunate that HEA funding has been matched by an equal amount from private sources. The Biosciences Institute has completed the planning phase and we expect to be functioning by late Spring 2002. Indeed, UCC remains at the forefront through winning further substantial funding recently, for a second Institute - for Environmental Research. These achievements have been coordinated by the energies of our Vice-President for Research, Professor Brian Harvey. So, all in all, we can be very optimistic, but never complacent, about the future of Biological and Environmental research here at UCC.

The Biosciences research initiative has a direct relevance for many of you graduating today and for those who will come after you. This is because it will create an ideal environment for research training. Through specific training initiatives as well as through participation in collaborative programmes, young researchers will learn the value and reap the benefit of the multidisciplinary approach. This will not only bring technical versatility; it will broaden horizons. These are invaluable qualities for a future in which the challenges are so unpredictable.

So, again, congratulations to you all. And we trust that in your time at UCC you have learned a good deal, not just academically, but also in ways which have equipped you for life in general. So, go forth from here and be proud of your links with UCC. At the same time, keep open the umbilical cord to your mother university, by joining the Graduates' Association. Therefore, on behalf of the President, on behalf of my academic colleagues and on my own behalf, I wish you every success in your future lives.

John Fraher
14.12.00