DOUBLE Congratulations to Nadia Murad, UN Goodwill Ambassador and former captive of ISIS. On Oct 5th she was awarded the 2018 Nobel Peace Prize for her efforts to end the use of sexual violence as a weapon of war and armed conflict. She has also very recently announced her engagement to Yazidi human rights campaigner, Abid Shamdeen, both pictured below.
Read Nadia Murad's 'Voices' article from last August in journal.ie o:
In an unprecedented move, unions representing students and teaching staff have joined forces with the representative bodies of universities and institutes of technology to call on the government to respond to the growing crisis in higher education funding. In this first ever such move, students, staff and the higher education institutions have come together to warn the government that continued delay in addressing the deficit in third level funding is no longer acceptable.
In a joint statement today, the Group said: "Government has long since acceded to the fact that higher education in Ireland is chronically under-funded. The Department of Education and Skills has accepted the findings of the detailed analysis of the scale of the funding deficit that was carried out by various expert groups on their behalf. This is the first time that student and staff unions and advocacy bodies representing the higher education institutions have come together to collectively call for action. We request an immediate move by Government to address the funding crisis in Budget 2019 or we risk an irreversible slide in the quality of our third level system. They clearly know what the problem is; now, they need to start fixing it. If urgent action is not taken, there’s a real risk that today’s 7 and 8-year old primary school students will not have sufficient college places available to them in 2030 when the demographic bulge peaks with an additional 40,000 students seeking to access third level.”
Jim Miley, Director General of IUA said: “The government has repeatedly stated that it wants to have ‘the best education system in Europe’. That cannot be delivered without a significant increase in investment in higher education. If the investment is not made, the future talent pipeline for the workforce will be jeopardised and the country’s competitive edge will be at serious risk.”
Dr Joseph Ryan, Chief Executive of THEA, said: “The National Strategy for Higher Education to 2030 and the recent report of the expert group chaired by Peter Cassells provide both a policy framework and an unequivocal call to invest in national ambition. Advance has been realized on some fronts and that is acknowledged but the key outstanding issue on which we require immediate action as part of Budget 2019 remains the requirement for greater government investment which is essential to maintain the operation and reputation of our higher education system.”
Síona Cahill, newly elected President of the USI said: “There’s been a 2% increase in the number of students attending third level year on year, at the same time there has been a managed decline in state investment. What was a response to a recession is not at all acceptable as a way forward for a higher education system which we need to support student success, promote access, and produce top quality graduates. The system is underfunded and students face the burden - at €3,000 per annum, students are already paying the second highest fees in Europe. It’s clear the government must act, and invest meaningfully in the present and the future of this country before it’s too late.”
Joan Donegan, General Secretary of IFUT said: “Funding for third level students is now at less than half of what it was a decade ago. This is resulting in serious understaffing, overcrowded classrooms and an overall deterioration in studying conditions in higher education. It is impacting negatively on lecturing staff and students alike. The next Budget must address the crisis of the past decade of neglect.”
John MacGabhann, General Secretary of TUI said: The failure by government to prioritise investment in Higher Education has significantly diminished the quality of the student experience and is causing reputational injury to the nation’s higher education institutions. We are struggling to serve sharply increased student numbers against a backdrop of steep cuts in both budget and staffing. Innovative measures are required in Budget 2019 to generate a dedicated higher education fund that is sufficient to address the critical deficits that are all too evident and to build the systemic capacity to ensure excellence in public higher education provision into the future.”
IFUT: Joan Donegan - 087 1315960; John Gallagher - 087 9369888
Jim Miley, Director, Director General, Irish Universities Association, with Joan Donegan, Gen Sec, IFUT at a joint call on government for realistic higher education funding in the forthcoming Budget, involving IUA, IFUT, THEA, TUI and USI, Sept, 2018
Note to Editors:
The coalition of interests includes the Irish Universities Association (IUA), representing the seven universities, the Technological Higher Education Association (THEA) representing the 14 Institutes of Technology, the Union of Students in Ireland (USI), representing the majority of third level students, the Irish Federation of University Teachers (IFUT) and the Teachers Union of Ireland (TUI), both representing teaching staff across the sector.
Dublin Fringe Festival
Lady Grew (aka Kate McGrew, Director, Sex Workers’ Alliance Ireland) presents a new show of comedy and song, laced with hard hitting facts about sex work and its criminalisation in Ireland.
Fresh from its premier at San Diego International Fringe earlier this year, it marks a new departure on how we should view and judge sex work.
Kate McGrew is American born, living in Ireland, with family roots in Fermanagh. In 2014 she starred on Ireland’s national TV channel, RTE 2, in an award-winning docu-drama "Connected". Ireland’s largest selling newspaper, Sunday Independent, described her as ‘Ireland’s favourite courtesan.’
Her previous shows were "Sweet Pang!" (winner of 4 Stars Broadway, Baby Edinburgh Fringe Fest 2013 and Fringe on Fire, San Diego International Fringe Fest 2014); "Hooker P.I." (winner of Fringe of the Fringe, San Diego International Fringe Fest 2015 and Shortlisted for judges Choice Award, Dublin Fringe, 2014 and ''Hookers Do it Standing Up', Judges Choice Award shortlisted, 2019.
For further information or to arrange an interview contact:
Kate McGrew - 0867778700 - ladygrew@gmail.com - @LadyGrew· Twitter
Mirjana Rendulic, Kate McGrew and Panti Bliss, on the opening night of 'Hookers Do It Standng Up' an award nominated show at Dublin Fringe Festival, September 2018
State of the art technology is necessary to strengthen grid stability and ensure renewable energy targets are met, Commissioner Phil Hogan said at the launch of the Trial Phase of a new hybrid flywheel energy project in Rhode, Co. Offaly (Wed. August 29th, 2018).
The “AdD HyStor” project, coordinated by Irish company Schwungrad Energie, has already received close to €3m EU investment and will now be trailed for development commercially. It is being developed in association with German companies Adaptive Balancing Power and Freqcon and the University of Sheffield in the UK.
Officially launching the Trial Phase Commissioner Hogan said: "The 2020 renewable energy targets will have to be met by all EU Member States, including Ireland.
“In order to meet its targets and avoid potential fines, Ireland needs to heighten its ambition and speed up implementation. The European Commission will continue to invest in projects which contribute to enhanced energy sustainability for our citizens, and the state of the art Hybrid Flywheel-Battery pilot in Rhode, Co. Offaly, is a good example.
“Ireland is making good progress in renewable energy generation, notably through wind power, but storage capacity needs to improve in order to strengthen grid stability, which is why the Commission supported this project to the tune of €2,944,001. This facility can make an important contribution to Ireland's energy future," Mr Hogan said.
The project has important potential, both commercially and in assisting a rapid move to a decarbonised electricity supply, which has knock on benefits for low carbon transport and heating, Jake Bracken of Schwungrad Energie explained.
“It will enable transition to wind and solar electricity delivery, providing essential stability and reliability to the electricity grids both in Ireland and throughout the EU.
At a commercial level, it has very significant potential to deliver manufacturing jobs. The project will provide access to Irish and UK markets and will be a contributor to requirements arising from the DS3 programme being rolled out currently by the EirGrid,” he said.
Dr. Hendrik Schaede, Co-founder and managing director of Adaptive Balancing Power said “the AdD HyStor project has enabled us to increase our team and manufacture our first commercial scale flywheels for grid balancing demonstration. Following this, we will expand the team and manufacturing capability further to supply equipment for grid scale commercial projects across Europe.”
The current trailing phase involves approximately six months testing at the Rhode facility followed by a further six months at the University of Sheffield, after which it will be expanded to facilitate full commercial development.
EU Commissioner, Phil Hogan, speaking at the announcement in Aug 2018
of an energy battery storage project in Co. Offaly by Schwungrad
Energie, accompanied by Cllr John Clendennen, Fine Gael and Barry Cowen,
TD, Fianna Fáil.
ENDS
For further information on this media release please contact:
John Gallagher
Tel. 087 9369888
Vivian Geiran, Director, Probation Service, at the launch of 'Kickstart' a joint initiative with the Irish Prison Service and Dept of Justice to assist those leaving prison in social enterprise initiatives, July 2018
See Voices article on 'Kickstart' in journal.ie on
