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Cork Open Research Archive (CORA) is UCC’s Open Access institutional repository which enables UCC researchers to make their research outputs freely available and accessible.

 

UCC Research Communities

Recent Submissions

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Teaching tip: Embedding sustainability in information systems design education
(ISCAP, Information Systems and Computing Academic Professionals,, 2024) Rowan, Wendy; McCarthy, Stephen; Mebrahtu, Selam; Gauche, Christophe; O'Reilly, Kate; Odili, Damilola; University College Cork
Sustainability refers to the achievement of present needs without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. While prior research has highlighted the potential of Information Systems (IS) to support sustainability objectives - for instance, through supporting eco-efficient work practices and democratising healthcare access - our understanding of how to integrate the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) as a core aspect of IS teaching and curricula remains nascent. This teaching tip presents a pedagogical design and teaching method for embedding sustainability in systems design education using design thinking and ‘active learning’ techniques. We provide examples of how students translated the SDGs into design concepts that target real-world sustainability problems with feedback from subject matter experts. Recommendations are then provided for supporting students’ experiential journeys when exploring sustainability objectives in the classroom by providing opportunities for variation and experimentation.
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Intersecting vulnerabilities and compounded risks of women asylum seekers working in care during COVID-19 in Ireland
(Bristol University Press, 2024-02-28) Daly, Felicity; O’Riordan, Jacqui; Carolan Trust; Dr Geraldine Fennell
This article explores findings from a qualitative participatory study with asylum seekers in Ireland employed in the healthcare sector during the COVID-19 pandemic. By extending an intersectional analysis framework, we demonstrate how the vulnerability of care workers living within the international protection accommodation system ‘under the care’ of the state intersects with power exercised by the neoliberal care market and is compounded by global health controls instituted during the pandemic. Participants reveal a lack of autonomy and forms of precarity that were not faced by other care workers, particularly increased risk of exposure to COVID-19 and multiple forms of stigma.
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Framing transformative change
(Environmental Protection Agency, 2023-12) Moriarty, Róisín; Stefaniec, Agnieszka; Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland; Science Foundation Ireland; Department of Transport; Department of the Environment, Climate and Communications
Key messages: Transformative change is a fundamental, system-wide reorganisation across technological, economic and social factors, including paradigms and goals, and valuing the climate, the environment, equity and wellbeing within decision making (IPBES, 2018; IPCC, 2018). If Ireland is to achieve its goals under the national climate objective, the Paris Agreement and the Kunming–Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework, transformations will be necessary in the energy, food and land systems, urban systems (including planning, transport and buildings), livelihoods, lifestyles, development pathway, systems of governance and in participation. A clear long-term vision and plan for the transformation of each system will accelerate short-term action and enhance synergies while minimising and managing trade-offs and realising the benefits of transformative change.The decisions and actions taken this decade will reverberate for generations. Much of the groundwork for action has been lain and most technologies and solutions are already available. However, climate action is not occurring quickly enough: opportunities and benefits are being missed and the possibility of shaping a better future for all is being put at risk by not taking a holistic and systemic approach to change. Action needs to be scaled up and accelerated. An incremental approach will not deliver what is required. If Ireland is to address the scale, speed and depth of the change required to close the gap between ambition and action, an approach that focuses on rapid and systemic transformations is necessary. Equity is an important societal goal and an essential element of achieving transformative change both in terms of mitigation and adaptation to climate change. Including considerations of equity at the core of decision making is key to enabling transformative change that enhances living standards, while halving associated energy demand, reducing vulnerability and proactively preparing individuals, households, communities and systems for climate shocks. Climate change and biodiversity loss share many underlying drivers. These underlying drivers need to be addressed if Ireland is to achieve its national and international commitments. Just as the drivers of these crises are linked so too are the solutions. A long-term integrated strategic plan is necessary to drive action in the immediate and short terms, but also to deliver a strong signal on the direction of travel towards a climate-neutral, climate-resilient, biodiverse and sustainable future. Such a plan can leverage greater benefits and opportunities, now and in the future.
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Ireland's Climate Change Assessment Synthesis Report
(Environmental Protection Agency, 2023-12) Thorne, Peter; Boucher, Jean; Caulfield, Brian; Daly, Hannah; Deane, Paul; Gallagher, Danielle; Heaphy, Liam; McClean, Deirdre; McDonagh, Shane; McElwain, Jennifer; McGookin, Connor; Menon, Abhay; Moriarty, Róisín; Murphy, Conor; Nolan, Paul; Noone, Clare; O’Brien, Enda; Ó Gallachóir, Brian; O’Mahony, Tadhg; O’Riordan, Tim; Quinn, Tara; Stefaniec , Agnieszka; Torne, Diarmuid; Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland; Science Foundation Ireland; Department of Transport; Department of the Environment, Climate and Communications
This is the first Ireland’s Climate Change Assessment (ICCA) and is a major contribution to the national dialogue and engagement on climate change. It tells us what is known about climate change and Ireland. It also provides key insights on gaps in our knowledge. The development of ICCA was modelled on the work of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change and the Sixth Assessment Cycle, completed in 2023, with the use of and localisation of its information for Ireland. ICCA will support the national response to climate change, ensuring that it is informed by the best available science. It also points to how and where that science can be improved through further investments in innovation, in research and in systematic observations. These collectively form the essential backbone of the science and data required to understand how Ireland is being impacted by and responding to the climate change challenge.The full Assessment has been developed through a co-creation process between leading academics in Ireland and officials from across state agencies and government departments. Funding was provided by the Environmental Protection Agency, Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland, Science Foundation Ireland and Department of Transport. The process was collaborative, involving mutual development and agreement of the scope, preparation and review of drafts, wider stakeholder consultation through a series of workshops and meetings, and a detailed sign-off process. We see the publication of ICCA as a real innovation for Ireland and as a resource for understanding climate change in an Irish context across the underlying science, mitigation and adaptation measures, and opportunities. It is a starting point for further dialogue on the findings and their utility for policymakers, practitioners, researchers, research funders and people. This engagement phase should continue far beyond the publication of this Assessment and support climate action in Ireland.
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Transforming landscapes
(Environmental Protection Agency, 2023-12) Moriarty, Róisín; Daly, Hannah; Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland; Science Foundation Ireland; Department of Transport; Department of the Environment, Climate and Communications
Key messages: Transformative change across multiple systems interconnected in the landscape offers a myriad benefits and opportunities in the fight against climate change and biodiversity loss, with wider gains for society and the economy. Of all transformations, inappropriate land management can have ‘severe and unintended consequences’, particularly for biodiversity loss, with implications for climate action and society. While conflicting land-use objectives cannot be avoided, decisions that maximise synergies while managing trade-offs can significantly reduce conflicts while enhancing benefits and opportunities. A long-term integrated strategy for land-use management is necessary if this is to be achieved. Climate change and biodiversity loss share many underlying drivers related to unsustainable resource use, including the use of land. Tackling these crises together enhances synergies while managing the trade-offs that exist between them. Social benefits include sustainable job creation and the protection and enhancement of human wellbeing. Such benefits aid the social transformation required to enable action on climate change and biodiversity loss. If planned and managed in an appropriate manner, carbon stores on land can be maintained and enhanced. Afforestation is a cost-effective and scalable option for carbon removal. There is an emerging industry and bioeconomy around forestry in Ireland. Forests have the potential to become centres for cultural heritage, craftmanship, traditional knowledge and innovation, alongside diversifying livelihood options in rural communities. Nature conservation (immediate benefits) and restoration (longer-term benefits) are cost-effective, enhance carbon removals and reduce vulnerability and strengthen synergies between mitigation and adaptation actions. Benefits include improved food security, nutrition, health, wellbeing, support for livelihoods and sustainability and ensuring nature’s contributions to people.