Maynooth University Social Sciences Institute

Maynooth University Social Sciences Institute Maynooth University Social Sciences Institute

Gaza’s Hidden Wounds: Daily Life and Psychological TraumaNext week, we welcome Dr Yasser Abu Jamei, Director of the Gaza...
15/09/2026

Gaza’s Hidden Wounds: Daily Life and Psychological Trauma

Next week, we welcome Dr Yasser Abu Jamei, Director of the Gaza Community Mental Health Programme (GCMHP), to Maynooth University for an important conversation on the situation and living conditions in Gaza and the profound psychological impact of ongoing trauma.

Dr Abu Jamei will discuss the impact of three continuous years of exposure to trauma, harsh living conditions and lack of basic supports, as well as the work of GCMHP in responding to the overwhelming psychological needs of the population.

📅 Thursday, 24 September 2026
🕑 2:00–3:00pm
☕ Lunch, tea & coffee from 1:30pm
📍 MUSSI Research Lab, Room 2.38, Iontas Building, Maynooth University

Hosted by MUSSI, Trócaire, Academia for Palestine, and the School of Law & Criminology’s Research Centre in International Justice and LLM Programme in International Justice.

🔗 Register to attend: https://forms.cloud.microsoft/e/atPgMLWSu4

This week, we're continuing to shine a light on some of the different skills and specialist roles that help make researc...
11/09/2026

This week, we're continuing to shine a light on some of the different skills and specialist roles that help make research happen at MUSSI.

Daire Walsh is a Data Software Developer with the National Centre for Geocomputation (NCG) and MUSSI, working across Earth Observation, geospatial technologies and research data platforms.

Working closely with Professor Tim McCarthy and the NCG team, Daire helps develop the software, platforms and technical infrastructure that enable researchers to work with complex Earth Observation and geospatial data.

His expertise contributes to a range of applied research projects, including DECAMAP, which brings together Earth Observation, drone technology, AI and geospatial data to support environmental monitoring and emergency response. Daire has also contributed to Terrain-AI and the development of EODataHub, supporting new ways of accessing, processing and working with Earth Observation data.

His work highlights the important role that software development and technical expertise play in research – helping to turn complex datasets and research ideas into practical tools and applications with real-world value.

Like our recent spotlight on Creative Technologist Oliver Dawkins, this week's spotlight is also an opportunity to recognise the breadth of expertise behind research at MUSSI and the specialist roles that help make ambitious interdisciplinary projects possible.

🔗 Learn more about DECAMAP and the work of the NCG team: https://decamap.com/team/

09/09/2026

Today we had the pleasure of gathering colleagues and friends to celebrate the retirement of our colleague Seán Ó Foghlú. 🎉

Seán joined MUSSI in 2022 as Senior Fellow in Public Policy, following a distinguished career in the Civil Service. During his time with us, he has played an important role in strengthening connections between research, public policy and practice, working closely with Professor Mark Boyle and Dr John O’Connor and helping to develop our Research for Policy work.

Professor Linda Connolly, MUSSI Director, thanked Seán for his commitment and contribution to the Institute, and we were delighted to present him with a framed relief map of Ireland as a small token of our appreciation.

Thankfully, it’s not quite goodbye yet, as Seán will continue working with us over the coming months as the current project draws to a close.

Wishing Seán a very happy retirement, with plenty of travel, music and adventures ahead! ☘️

🔦 **Researcher Spotlight: Oliver Dawkins**This week, we're taking a slightly different approach to our Researcher Spotli...
04/09/2026

🔦 **Researcher Spotlight: Oliver Dawkins**

This week, we're taking a slightly different approach to our Researcher Spotlight, highlighting one of the specialist roles that helps bring research to life at MUSSI.

**Oliver Dawkins** is Creative Technologist with the ERC-funded **Data Stories** project, led by Professor Rob Kitchin at the Maynooth University Social Sciences Institute.

Oliver's work sits at the intersection of technology, data, research and creative practice. He leads the technical development of interactive data stories, using approaches including spatial data, 3D visualisation, gaming technologies, mixed reality and data physicalisation to explore and communicate complex issues around housing, planning, land use and urban infrastructure.

His work demonstrates how emerging technologies can do more than visualise data – they can create new ways for researchers, policymakers and the public to engage with and understand the places and systems around them.

Oliver has also contributed to research on urban digital twins, including recent publications with Professor Rob Kitchin examining their potential for mapping, participation and engagement in the built environment.

Before joining Data Stories, Oliver worked on the Building City Dashboards project at Maynooth University's National Centre for Geocomputation and previously held research roles at UCL and the Intel Collaborative Research Institute for Urban IoT in London.

This week's spotlight is also a reminder of the diverse expertise behind research at MUSSI – from academic research to the technical and creative skills that help turn research and data into something people can explore, experience and use.

🔗 Learn more about Oliver and Data Stories: https://www.maynoothuniversity.ie/people/oliver-dawkins

**Researcher Spotlight: Professor Linda Connolly**This week, our Researcher Spotlight features **Professor Linda Connoll...
04/09/2026

**Researcher Spotlight: Professor Linda Connolly**

This week, our Researcher Spotlight features **Professor Linda Connolly**, Director of the Maynooth University Social Sciences Institute (MUSSI) and Professor of Sociology at Maynooth University.

Linda's research spans Irish sociology, gender and women's studies, feminism, family, social movements and Irish Studies, with a particular focus in recent years on women's experiences of violence during periods of conflict and revolution.

Her latest book, ***Women, Violence and Twentieth-Century Warfare: The Irish Revolution and Its Legacies***, has recently been published by Routledge.

The book explores the often unspoken and hidden impact of war and violent conflict on women, using Ireland as a case study while placing these experiences within the wider context of twentieth-century warfare. Drawing on extensive archival research, it examines experiences including sexual and gender-based violence, forced hair cutting, psychological trauma and migration, and considers the lasting impact of violence long after conflict itself has ended.

The book builds on Linda's extensive body of research into women, gender and Irish society, including her previous work on the Irish women's movement, family, social movements and women's experiences during the Irish Revolution.

Alongside her research, Linda has been Director of MUSSI since 2016, supporting and developing interdisciplinary social science research across Maynooth University.

Congratulations to Linda on the publication of this important new work.

🔗 Learn more about Linda's research: https://www.maynoothuniversity.ie/people/linda-connolly
📚 Find out more about the new book: https://www.routledge.com/Women-Violence-and-Twentieth-Century-Warfare-The-Irish-Revolution-and-Its-Legacies/Connolly/p/book/9781032890517

Researcher Spotlight: Dr Lynsey BlackThis week, we’re shining a spotlight on Dr Lynsey Black, Associate Professor in the...
07/08/2026

Researcher Spotlight: Dr Lynsey Black

This week, we’re shining a spotlight on Dr Lynsey Black, Associate Professor in the School of Law and Criminology Maynooth University and a researcher with the Maynooth University Social Sciences Institute (MUSSI).

Lynsey’s research spans criminology, gender and punishment, historical and postcolonial criminal justice, the death penalty, and borders. Much of her work explores how histories of punishment, security and social control continue to shape contemporary society.

She is currently Principal Investigator of CONSPACE: Contested Space – Penal Nationalism and the Northern Ireland Border, a Research Ireland-funded project examining crime, punishment and security at the Ireland/Northern Ireland border across a 100-year period.

Most recently, Lynsey published Bordering a Contested State: Northern Ireland as the U.K.’s ‘Other’ Border in Oxford Intersections: Borders. Drawing on research from CONSPACE, the article considers the Northern Ireland border across two distinct periods – examining the historical response to security and movement during the Troubles alongside contemporary political debates around immigration and border control.

Through the concept of penal nationalism, the research explores how borders and security can become closely connected with questions of nationhood, sovereignty and political identity.

Lynsey’s wider research has also examined gender and punishment in Ireland, including women convicted of murder, the death penalty and histories of institutional confinement.

Through CONSPACE and her wider body of work, Lynsey brings historical perspectives into conversation with some of today’s most pressing questions around borders, security, migration and criminal justice.

Learn more about Lynsey and her research: https://www.maynoothuniversity.ie/faculty-social-sciences/our-people/lynsey-black

Researcher Spotlight: Violetta Di BucchianicoThis week, we’re shining a spotlight on Violetta Di Bucchianico, a research...
31/07/2026

Researcher Spotlight: Violetta Di Bucchianico

This week, we’re shining a spotlight on Violetta Di Bucchianico, a researcher with the ERC-funded LINLOSS (Social Loss in Contemporary Society) project at the Maynooth University Social Sciences Institute (MUSSI).

Violetta’s research explores how people and communities experience, understand and navigate social loss. Working as part of the international LINLOSS team, she contributes to research that examines how changing social, economic and cultural conditions shape experiences of loss across different societies.

Her work draws on qualitative and comparative research methods to better understand lived experiences, with the aim of informing academic debate and contributing to more socially responsive policy and practice.

Earlier this year, Violetta participated with her LINLOSS colleagues at the Sociological Association of Ireland Annual Conference 2026, sharing insights from the LINLOSS project with the wider research community. Most recently, she also contributed to the publication of the LINLOSS study protocol, outlining the project’s innovative cross-national research approach.

Through international collaboration and interdisciplinary research, Violetta’s work is helping to deepen our understanding of one of the most important, yet often overlooked, aspects of contemporary society.

Learn more about Violetta Di Bucchianico and the LINLOSS project: https://lnkd.in/dcG4nzda

Researcher Spotlight: Eoghan McCarthyThis week, we are shining a spotlight on Eoghan McCarthy, Lead Data Analyst and Pro...
24/07/2026

Researcher Spotlight: Eoghan McCarthy

This week, we are shining a spotlight on Eoghan McCarthy, Lead Data Analyst and Project Manager with the AIRO (All-Island Research Observatory) (AIRO) at the Maynooth University Social Sciences Institute.

Since joining AIRO in 2011, Eoghan has worked across a wide range of applied research projects, using spatial, demographic and socio-economic data to support evidence-informed planning, policymaking and public services.

Most recently, Eoghan was part of the AIRO team involved in developing the new Dublin City Knowledge Hub, launched this week in collaboration with Dublin City Council. The online platform brings together more than 20 interactive dashboards and mapping tools, making detailed information about Dublin’s communities, housing, economy and environment easier to access and explore.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Eoghan was also seconded to support the national response, working with the Department of Health, NPHET and other public-health bodies on data management, analysis and the development of Ireland’s COVID-19 data dashboards.

Eoghan’s work demonstrates the important role that accessible, reliable and well-presented data can play in understanding communities, responding to national challenges and supporting better-informed decisions.

Learn more about Eoghan and his work with AIRO: https://www.maynoothuniversity.ie/airo

A huge congratulations to our colleagues in the AIRO (All-Island Research Observatory) team on the launch of the new Dub...
21/07/2026

A huge congratulations to our colleagues in the AIRO (All-Island Research Observatory) team on the launch of the new Dublin City Knowledge Hub.

Developed in partnership with Dublin City Council, the new online platform makes it easier to explore trusted data about Dublin through interactive maps, charts and dashboards. By making complex information more accessible, it supports better understanding of the city and helps inform future planning and decision-making.

It's fantastic to see Maynooth University research creating practical tools that can benefit policymakers, communities and the public alike.

Well done to everyone involved in bringing this project to life!

Read more via the link below.
https://www.maynoothuniversity.ie/news-events/mu-and-dcc-launch-new-online-platform-dublin-city-data

Researcher Spotlight: Caroline CreamerThis week, we're shining a spotlight on Caroline Creamer, a researcher at the Mayn...
17/07/2026

Researcher Spotlight: Caroline Creamer
This week, we're shining a spotlight on Caroline Creamer, a researcher at the Maynooth University Social Sciences Institute (MUSSI)

Caroline's work focuses on regional and spatial development, helping to bridge research, policy and practice. As the Irish ESPON Programme Contact Point, she supports researchers, policymakers and practitioners in accessing European evidence on territorial development, regional planning and place-based policymaking, helping to connect Irish stakeholders with research that informs decision-making across Europe.
Alongside her research, Caroline is committed to knowledge exchange and lifelong learning. She is involved in delivering the Micro-credential in Spatial Planning and Geographic Information Systems (GIS) with the Department of Geography, Maynooth University at Maynooth University, supporting professionals in developing practical skills for planning and spatial analysis.
Her work demonstrates how research can support better planning, stronger regional development and evidence-informed policy, while also helping to build capacity through education and professional development.
Learn more about Caroline and the ESPON Ireland project: https://lnkd.in/dtvK-_VX
https://www.espon.eu/

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