In the News..

Two University of Galway research projects have received funding from Met Éireann to further develop climate services and new flood forecasting models. The projects are among six at Irish universities which were awarded a total of €2.8 million in funding from the national meteorological service, with almost €1 million being awarded to University of Galway. The funding is being awarded to innovative projects aimed at addressing climate change, extreme weather events and environmental sustainability as part of Met Éireann’s Weather and Climate Research Programme, which aims to strengthen national research capacity and scientific expertise in weather and climate, through high-impact projects. The two funded projects are: Dr Paul Nolan leads the research project - T3UD: TRANSLATE-3: Underpinning Data. Dr Nolan is a climate scientist and project lead in the Irish Centre for High-End Computing (ICHEC) at University of Galway - the national centre for high-performance computing. Dr Indiana Olbert leads the research project - IMUFF: Integrated Multi-model multi-hazard Flood Forecasting. Dr Olbert is a lecturer in Civil Engineering at the School of Engineering in the College of Science and Engineering at University of Galway. Dr Paul Nolan’s T3UD project will deliver updated climate projections and related products for Ireland over the next four years, using global data  It will also explore how these projections are used in practice across different sectors, addressing uncertainty and risk management. Ultimately, the work aims to enhance national climate services by producing user-relevant, scientifically grounded projections while communicating the limitations and confidence levels of the data. Dr Nolan said: “We are delighted that Met Éireann has chosen a team of climate researchers from ICHEC to deliver this project with the mission to deliver updated standardised climate projections for Ireland. The combination of high-resolution local simulations from ICHEC and historical data from Met Éireann means that we can provide the best insights from the worlds of physics and statistics to inform the climate adaptation plans of Irish local authorities, utilities, and other end-users." Dr Indiana Olbert’s two-year IMUFF project will address the growing threat of compound coastal-fluvial flooding – when rivers and streams burst. It will develop an advanced system for three day flood forecasts using AI-generated time series and water depth maps. More than 300 Irish communities at risk from this type of flooding and the project will aggregate diverse data sources - such as meteorological forecasts, river flows, tidal record and satellite data - directly supporting Met Éireann’s flood forecasting, strengthening community resilience and improving Ireland’s readiness for compound flood events in a changing climate.             Dr Olbert said: “I am delighted to receive this funding award from Met Éireann. As floods are amongst the most common and deadly weather-related natural disasters, the project aims to develop a state-of-the-art AI-based compound flood forecasting system. The project will support the forecasting work delivered by the Flood Forecasting Centre at Met Éireann, increasing resilience of Irish communities and better preparing for the growing threat of compound coastal-fluvial floods.” Professor Lokesh Joshi, Interim Vice-President for Research and Innovation, University of Galway, said: “We are delighted that two projects, led by Dr Paul Nolan and Dr Indiana Olbert, have been selected for funding under Met Éireann’s research programme. These awards recognise the strength of University of Galway’s research in vital areas such as delivering advanced climate projections and improving flood forecasting. Together, these projects will help deliver real benefits to communities in Ireland as we face more extreme weather events and a changing climate.” The Met Éireann Weather and Climate Research Programme was launched in 2018, initially through co-funding partnerships with other research funding organisations. With the Research Call 2024, Met Éireann's Research Call Scheme enters its fourth round, having already directly funded €10.3 million in research across Irish academic institutions. With nearly 80% of applications submitted by researchers new to the Weather and Climate Research Programme in 2024 Met Éireann welcomes the growing reach of the Programme and the increased number of active researchers in weather and climate science in Ireland. Ends

Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage, James Browne T.D. has today announced construction is to start on the UrbanLab project at the University of Galway. The works are a milestone in the plans for the Galway Innovation & Creativity District, led by the University in partnership with Galway City Council and funded under the Government’s Urban Regeneration and Development Fund (URDF). The UrbanLab is the first project to commence on site as part of the €4.3million URDF funding investment for the Galway Innovation & Creativity District. It involves the redevelopment of an old mill building at the University of Galway on Nuns' Island in Galway city. The historic property dates back to the 1850s and originally formed part of the Persse’s Distillery complex. The redevelopment will see it brought back into use as a dedicated and flagship space in which to bring together communities to work on new ideas and solutions for city life. The UrbanLab will focus on innovation in sustainable urban development, public and community engagement and interdisciplinary research and collaboration between the University, the City and the diverse communities who live in, work in and visit it. Minister Browne said: “The UrbanLab is an exciting and timely initiative. The commencement of works marks a key step forward in shaping a resilient, inclusive urban future. The UrbanLab, housed in this beautiful historic structure, supported by the Urban Regeneration Development Fund, is a flagship initiative by the University of Galway focused on sustainable urban development, community engagement and interdisciplinary research. It brings together communities to work on new ideas and solutions for city life. The UrbanLab will be a shared space where people can learn, talk, and do research together.” Interim President of University of Galway, Professor Peter McHugh, said: “The concept behind the University of Galway UrbanLab is a powerful expression of the opportunity that we can afford to our city and community to develop solutions which can transform Galway and the wider region, both to live and work in. The Government’s Urban Regeneration Development Fund makes that happen and we look forward to people coming together to imagine and shape a better Galway.” Leonard Cleary, Chief Executive of Galway City Council, said: “This project is a strong example of what can be achieved through collaboration between the University, the Council, based on real community feedback contained within the Nuns' Island Masterplan. With URDF support, we are restoring a historic building and transforming it into a dynamic space for innovation, engagement focussed on sustainable urban development. The UrbanLab will help us shape a more inclusive, resilient, and forward-thinking Galway.” Dr Pat Collins, Lecturer in Economic Geography at University of Galway, said: “At its heart, the UrbanLab is about the people of Galway having a voice in shaping the future of Galway. This will be a space to meet, to learn, to decide and to dream about what a better Galway might look like.” Local building contractor, McNamara Construction, have been appointed to the construction project. Works are expected to be completed in early 2026. Ends

A new study led by University of Galway finds proposed Irish climate targets protect methane emission privileges at the expense of poorer nations' development.  The transition to a sustainable and equitable food system is being undermined by a new approach to climate target setting by livestock exporting countries such as Ireland and New Zealand, an international study by climate scientists has warned.  The study led by University of Galway in partnership with the University of Melbourne, University College Cork and Climate Resource has been published in the journal Environmental Research Letters.   The scientists have called out the new “temperature neutrality”, also known as "no additional warming", which allows Ireland to maintain a high share of global agricultural methane emissions while claiming to meet its climate targets.  This approach dramatically reduces the level of ambition needed for overall greenhouse gas emission reduction. The resulting targets have been proposed to the Irish Government by the Climate Change Advisory Council, in part to reduce potential disruption from Ireland’s legal commitment to achieve national climate neutrality by 2050.  Temperature neutrality is a concept based on stabilising a country’s contribution to global warming, rather than aiming for the more ambitious, established target of net zero greenhouse gas emissions. In effect, temperature neutrality requires modest reductions in methane emissions from high-emitting countries, denying methane emission “rights” to countries with low methane emissions. As methane emissions are strongly linked with agricultural production, widespread adoption of temperature neutrality would lock-in current inequalities in the global food system, by reducing the need to curtail or offset methane emissions in current livestock exporting countries such as Ireland.   The study shows that such exports overwhelmingly go to other wealthy, food-secure countries. Meanwhile, temperature neutrality severely restricts the development space for agriculture in low-income, food-insecure countries where livestock products are most needed to improve nutrition.   Furthermore, the temperature neutrality approach underestimates the level of emissions offsetting required in livestock exporting countries, delaying the development of new markets for farmers in those countries to deliver solutions to the climate and biodiversity crises.       Lead scientist, Dr Colm Duffy, Honorary Lecturer in Agri-Sustainability, School of Biological and Chemical Sciences and Ryan Institute, University of Galway, said: “If every country adopted a temperature neutrality target, we’d seriously jeopardise the Paris Agreement’s goal of limiting warming to 1.5°C, or even 2°C.  “Worse still, this approach doesn’t just weaken climate ambition, it entrenches inequality. It protects the status quo for wealthy countries while placing an unfair burden on poorer, food-insecure countries, limiting their ability to grow their own food systems.”   The international research team ran a number of scenarios to assess the impact of the policy - which has also been proposed in New Zealand - on global mean temperatures.   Apart from “business as usual”, the temperature neutrality approach performed the worst in terms of global warming emissions.   By 2050, Ireland’s per capita methane emissions would remain almost six times the global average.   Dr Duffy added: “The science shows that the new policy essentially grandfathers methane emissions - meaning a country’s future share of warming is based not on equity or ambition, but on historical share of emissions. In essence; 'I had more, so I get more'.”  Dr Róisín Moriarty, Research Fellow at the Sustainability Institute at UCC, said: "A ‘no additional warming’ approach to target setting amounts to backsliding on a country’s commitment to the Paris Agreement and is not a reflection of ‘highest possible ambition'. With less than 3 years of global carbon budget remaining to limit warming to 1.5°C, with a 50% chance of achieving it, countries around the world need to do as much as they possibly can to achieve the rapid, deep and sustained reductions in greenhouse gas emissions needed to keep within the 1.5°C temperature goal."  Professor Hannah Daly, Professor in Sustainable Energy at UCC, said: "Methane emissions are responsible for around 40 per cent of global warming to date – methane’s short lifetime in the atmosphere means that cutting its emissions is an essential lever to limit global warming to safe levels. For a country like Ireland, with outsized methane emissions, to base our long-term climate target on simply stabilising warming is inadequate to meet our global obligations and sets a dangerous precedent.”  David Styles, Associate Professor in Agri-Sustainability, School of Biological and Chemical Sciences and Ryan Institute, University of Galway, said: “Ireland’s agricultural sector has huge potential to contribute towards a future climate neutral and biodiverse economy, but this requires big changes over time. Establishing a robust and internationally defendable climate target is vital to plan for a just transition, not just internationally, but for Ireland’s farmers. Temperature neutrality falls short.”   Dr Duffy is a Research Fellow on the FORESIGHT project and Honorary Lecturer in the School of Biological and Chemical Sciences at University of Galway. He was one of a number of signatories to an open letter that criticises a similar policy proposal in New Zealand.   The research was supported by funding from the Department of Climate Energy and the Environment for the FORESIGHT and CAPACITY climate modelling teams.  The full study can be read here: 10.1088/1748-9326/adf12d   Ends