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Context: Researchers are intrinsically motivated to find answers to some of the world’s greatest challenges. In order to find these answers, it is essential to preserve a spirit of curiosity and openness underpinned by rigour.
UL’s strategic approach is to embed the UN Sustainable Development Goals across every facet of University life, to ensure deep and meaningful engagement and alignment across the entire organisation.
In responding to grand challenges, we have seen new research areas within and across disciplines emerge to make significant contributions for social good such as psychology, energy, data science and advanced materials. Our strong academic disciplines provide the foundations upon which these contributions are made. By embracing a mission-orientated approach we seek to enhance our foundations and harness our collective creativity towards building a sustainable society, a more resilient society, a healthy society and a smart society.
Objectives
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Champion research excellence across disciplines and focus on investments which complement and amplify our strengths.
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Build our interdisciplinary capacity to better position UL to respond to global challenges.
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Diversifying our research funding income to support resilience, growth and excellence including a focus on growing EU and non-exchequer funding
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Establish internal funding mechanisms aligned to support research excellence.
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Enhancing our research capacity through strategic investment into research infrastructure.
Key Actions
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Build on existing areas of excellence to develop interdisciplinary initiatives that address global challenges.
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Enhance UL’s research portfolio through the establishment of a new Institute for Humanities and Social Sciences.
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Scale and enhance our health research portfolio to solidify our leadership of keys areas of digital health and integrated care and build our partnerships with our clinical partners including University of Limerick Hospitals Group and Community Health Organisation for the Mid-West.
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Incorporate research infrastructure needs (capital and digital) into the new UL Capital Development Plan.
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Develop the business case and generate investment to establish the Science Quadrangle accommodating growth across interdisciplinary research areas.
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Identify gaps and further expand other research areas as part of the performance and review of institutes and centres.
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Continue to champion good research practice and progress Open Science initiatives supported in the development of policy, resources and systems.