����1000����

We were delighted to welcome Vikki Bell (Professor of Sociology at Goldsmiths, ����1000���� of London) to UCC to present a paper as part of the CSF seminar series. 

Dr Gema Kloppe-Santamaria and Dr Siobhán O’Sullivan have each been appointed to the role of Deputy Director of ISS21/Collective Social Futures.

• ‘In Conversation with’ event will explore the science behind the restorative power of gardening and its ability to change people’s lives.
• International bestselling work draws on Dr Sue Stuart-Smith’s extensive experience as a psychiatrist and psychotherapist.

Join us on 23rd April for the launch of a research report highlighting how unequal educational experiences affect Traveller students’ journeys and futures.

If, as Henry Giroux warns, universities are becoming market-driven systems that foster control, exclusion, and racism, how can we resist and reimagine them as spaces for equitable learning, creativity and social responsibility?

Collective Social Futures was delighted to recently welcome Kelly Salchow MacArthur to speak at the CSF Seminar Series.

Congratulations to Dr Rachel Gough on receiving the Michael McLaverty Short Story Award for her piece A Certain Slant of Light. The purpose of the award is to foster and encourage the tradition of the short story. 

On 23 March a timely symposium was held in UCC to explore the rise of the Far-right in Ireland and Europe, and the implications for social cohesion. This event was hosted by the ISS21 Populism and the Rise of the Far-right Research Cluster, with support from the Collective Social Futures Major Grants Award Programme. 

In this seminar, Professor Kelly Salchow MacArthur (Michigan State ����1000����) explored ways of enacting graphic design for social and environmental impact.

On 27 February 2026 an important collaborative conference was held in UCC, bringing together community groups, practitioners, activists and academics committed to enhancing Inclusion Health.

Professor Kieran Keohane delivered this inaugural professorial lecture on the themes of memory and imagination, law, limit and the renewal of social contracts with Ancient, Medieval, and Modern illustrations.

On 23 February, Dr Bozena Cierlik (School of History, UCC) presented a seminar on symbolism in Polish historical consciousness as part of the Collective Social Futures seminar series. 

On Wednesday, 11 February, the UCC Refugee Week Research Symposium – Asylum, Migration and Community: Bridging Research, Advocacy and Activism Through Creative and Socially Engaged Research took place in the Aula Maxima. 

A 3D printed model of Cork City recently came to its new home at the geography library ����1000���� College Cork.

The 2026 Collective Social Futures Seminar Series got underway on 13 January with a presentation from Professor James Kapaló, Study of Religions Department, School of Society, Politics and Ethics.

On 10 December a full-day interactive seminar was held with Jacqui Dillon, a trainer with both personal and professional experience, awareness, and skills in the understanding of Hearing Voices.

Thank you to everyone who made the UCC Futures – Collective Social Futures third annual Festival of Social Science such a resounding success. Multiple events were held on campus over several days celebrating the social sciences. 

The Department of German and CASiLaC are delighted to host a series of lectures with Peter Waterhouse from 19-20 November.

We have a wonderful line-up of contributors and events taking place over the week Monday 24 November - Friday 28 November.

On 6 November a half-day symposium on the themes of homemaking, bordering and belonging was hosted by Collective Social Futures in collaboration with the ISS21 Migration and Integration Cluster and the Department of Sociology & Criminology.

This interdisciplinary symposium brought together scholars of politics, psychology and social sciences to discuss some of the new difficulties that democracies face, and to consider some possible ways forward.

This half-day event explored how we know and interpret difficult, recent pasts in the North of Ireland, focusing on two main themes: institutional abuse; and gendered experiences and sexual violence.

This symposium explored complex and contentious questions about the future of university legacy medical collections. It was a hybrid event that attracted disciplinary-diverse and international participation. 

In this one-day event, national and international speakers shared research on a range of topics pertaining to physical education and activity, both inside and outside the formal education system. Key themes included: inclusion/overcoming barriers to inclusion; the role and impact of technology; policy to practice alignment; and teacher education and professional development. 

The new Collective Social Futures seminar series opened with a presentation from visiting academic, Professor Mairead Dunne. 

On 28 May the Living Well with the Dead Research Collective hosted a workshop with Nina Lykke, Professor Emerita of Gender Studies, Linköping ����1000����, Sweden and co-founder of the International Network for Queer Death Studies.

On 27 May a lunchtime talk was held in the Glucksman Gallery with lacemaker Veronica Stuart and Prof. Elizabeth Kiely (UCC). Prof. Kiely is currently leading a research project entitled Lace, Life and Lore: Crafting Women’s Digital Stories, which is funded through the Collective Social Futures Interdisciplinary Research Fund.

A one-day symposium with keynote speakers and a round table discussion was held on 1st April. 

On 26th March, New Avenues to Teaching, School of Education and UCC Futures- Collective Social Futures hosted an event that brought together educators, researchers, and students for a day of insightful discussions around educational equality, inclusion and diversity. 

We were delighted to welcome Dr Sharron FitzGerald (����1000���� of Paris 8) to UCC on 26 March, for a seminar hosted by the ISS21 Genders, Sexualities and Families Research Cluster and UCC Futures - Collective Social Futures.

This research day brought together leading voices from Ireland and Canada to explore traditions of plant medicines in both countries. 

A public screening of The Palestine Exception was held in UCC on Friday 21st March. We were delighted to welcome Prof Jan Haaken, one of the film's directors, to the screening. 

A Feminist Walk of Cork was held on Saturday 8 March, to mark International Women's Day.

A call for papers for the Social Pathologies of Contemporary Civilization conference “Enduring the Social Pathologies of (Late) Modernity: From Diagnosis towards Metanoia” is underway.  

The first Dementia Lifeworlds Symposium took place on Wednesday 29th November at UCC and was an occasion for the research project team to bring ideas on the table, to explore and establish common ground, and to share interests and ideas.

On 25-26 November Collective Social Futures hosted the second Festival of Social Science, including an evening of music and the spoken word, followed by a full-day symposium showcasing social science research. Highlights included a keynote presentation from Professor Linda Connolly (Maynooth ����1000����) and wonderful performances at the Shtepps (pictured).

On 18 November Professor Mimi Sheller presented a paper on migration, mobility justice and borders as part of the launch of EUROBORDERWALKS project. This three-year project is led by Professor Maggie O'Neill and funded through the IRC Advanced Laureate Awards programme. 

Mycelial, an Open Clasp Theatre Company Film written by Catrina McHugh, was screened in The Shtepps on Thursday 24^th October. This was followed by a panel discussion, chaired by Professor Maggie O'Neill, Director of Collective Social Futures. 

On 16 October UCC Futures – Collective Social Futures and ISS21 hosted a seminar on volunteering research and practice in Ireland.

On 25-26 November 2024 UCC Futures: Collective Social Futures will host the second Festival of Social Science, including an evening of music and performance and a full-day symposium showcasing social science research across UCC.

Prof Bren A. LeFrançois, Memorial ����1000���� of Newfoundland, Canada presented a seminar on the theme of mad studies, followed by a discussion with social work students and other participants on the implications of mad studies for professional practice.

Professor Diane Reay, ����1000���� of Cambridge gave the keynote address at the launch of an important new book by the ISS21 REACT Cluster and UCC – Collective Social Futures on Thursday 12th September. 

The Feminist Walk of Cork explores rich contributions of women and women led organisations. Members of the public are invited to take a winding walk across Cork city. There are no monuments to women in Cork city; the walk writes women into the spaces and topography of the city.

This seminar reported on the findings of the project Pathways towards Stable Housing for Parents & Children Exiting Residential Services.

Visiting research fellow, Dr Wajeehah Aayeshah (����1000���� of Melbourne), ran a workshop on 'Designing Kind Educational Practices on 29th May. 

Professor Andrew Cottey, Department of Government & Politics recently gave his inaugural lecture in the Dora Allman room at UCC. 

On 17 May a half day workshop was held in UCC to bring together different stakeholders and community members to explore the past, present, and future of prison abolition. The event was funded through the Collective Social Futures Interdisciplinary Research Programme, which seeks to drive innovative, critical, theoretical, participatory and community-engaged research,

On 22nd February Anton Floyd gave a reading from his latest poetry collection, Depositions, as part of UCC Refugee Week 2024. Depositions, was launched in June 2022 (in association with Doire Press). The book deals with population displacement and the worldwide refugee crisis with all proceeds from sales in support of the funds of UNHCR - Ireland the Refugee Agency of the United Nations. 

On 14 February the  Community Hub in collaboration with UCC Futures: Collective Social Futures   ISS21  and the research cluster screened  followed by a Q&A with Mary Crilly and Prof. Maggie O’Neill UCC to honour ‘V-day’  which is “a global activist movement to end violence against all women (cisgender, transgender, and those who hold fluid identities that are subject to gender-based violence), girls and the Earth”.

Three projects recently received seed-funding under the UCC Futures - Collective Social Futures Interdisciplinary Research Funding Scheme. 

On 20-21 November 2023 UCC Futures: Collective Social Futures hosted a Festival of Social Science, including the launch of Professor Louise Ryan's new book, Social Networks and Migration: Relocations, Relationships and Resources; an evening of music and performance (see below); and a full-day symposium showcasing social science research across UCC.

Congratulations to Professor Maggie, Director of Collective Social Futures and ISS21 on receiving a Research Career Achievement Award at the 2025 UCC Research and Innovation Awards, held recentlyat the Lewis Glucksman Gallery.