Engaged Research Starts with Everyone: How Is UCD Making It Happen?

Engaged research is increasingly recognised as essential to making university research more relevant, inclusive and responsive to societal needs. Yet translating this ambition into everyday research practice requires more than individual commitment.

Drawing on UCD’s experience, Emma will discuss the institutional approaches that help researchers build meaningful partnerships with communities, patients and other external stakeholders. The session will examine how universities can support researchers, address barriers to participation and create an enabling environment for engaged research.

Through practical examples and reflections, participants will gain insights into what it takes to move from isolated initiatives towards more systematic, institution-wide engagement, and how universities can build a culture where engaged research becomes a shared responsibility rather than the work of a few committed individuals.

This Fireside Chat will focus on:

1. How UCD supports and promotes engaged research across disciplines.
2. What institutional structures, resources and capabilities are needed to embed engaged research into everyday practice.
3. How universities can enable meaningful involvement of communities and external stakeholders throughout the research process.
4. How to address common barriers and build a research culture that values collaboration, participation and societal impact.

Dr Emma Dorris is Engaged Research Manager at University College Dublin (UCD), where she supports the development and integration of engaged research practices across the university. She also serves as Programme Manager for the PPI Ignite Network at UCD, supporting public and patient involvement in research.

With a background in biomedical research and public policy, Emma specialises in strengthening stakeholder participation, building institutional capacity for engagement and improving research culture. Her work focuses on developing policies, practices and support structures that enable more inclusive, collaborative and societally relevant research.

A UIIN Fireside Chat is a 30-minute interview session between a UIIN facilitator and an external industry expert on a high-level topic. Participants will leave with insights and inspiration after hearing the experiences and perspectives of the guest speaker, and have the opportunity to ask questions during the session. Fireside Chats are also recorded for UIIN podcasts and are available after the session.