TU Dublin Fulbright Irish Awardees Strengthen Irish and US Unity
The Department of Foreign Affairs, Department of Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media, and U.S. Chargé d'Affaires to Ireland Mike Clausen have announced Susan Boyle and Eoin Oude Essink as Irish Awardees for 2023-2024.
Recipients were presented with Awards at a ceremony in the U.S. Ambassador’s Residence last night. Academics, professionals, students and Irish speakers will attend 17 leading U.S. institutions to research, study, teach and collaborate with experts in their fields from August 2023 to August 2024.
The Fulbright bilateral exchange program is known for selecting outstanding candidates from across the island of Ireland to study and work with U.S. Institutions across all disciplines ranging from health, science, technology and business to the arts and culture. As the Fulbright Awardees forge ahead on these exciting opportunities, the breadth of their U.S. engagement is diverse and impressive.
TU Dublin Fulbright Awardees
Susan Boyle is a drinks researcher and playwright. Her PhD research at the TU Dublin is in Beverage Studies and concerns performance, storytelling and the sensory in immersive drinks experiences. She is supported by a TU Dublin Excellence Scholarship and funding from the Centre for Franco-Irish Studies. As a Fulbright-Creative Ireland Museum Fellowship at Smithsonian Awardee, Susan will commence a fellowship at the Smithsonian Museum of American History, Washington DC investigating the impact of European immigrants on pre-prohibition brewing and distilling in the U.S.
Eoin Oude Essink is a PhD student at TU Dublin, where he is investigating the best-suited cooling technologies for Irish Data Centres. His interest in the field of thermodynamics, technology and electronics led him to conduct his master’s at Trinity College Dublin, where he investigated the potential of microscale heat transfer modulation utilising deformable structures. As a Fulbright-Enterprise Ireland Awardee at Purdue University, Eoin will join the Cooling Technologies Research Center researching the impact of asymmetric liquid cooling for modern CPUs and GPUs. Eoin has won awards for his engineering designs, such as the ‘Topology Responsible Part Challenge.’
Awardees will travel to 17 states across the USA, embedding themselves in institutions ranging from the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in Boston, Poets House in New York and The University of Hawaii to The Smithsonian Institution in Washington and East Los Angeles College, the largest community college in California. Fulbright Irish Scholars, Students, and Foreign Language Teaching Assistants (FLTAs) will also engage with U.S. society and share their knowledge and expertise when they return home.
In a year that saw Irish American President Biden visit Ireland, when ties between Ireland and the U.S. have increased, the 37 Irish awardees will head to the U.S. to exchange ideas and knowledge and serve as cultural ambassadors. By doing so, they strengthen connections between the U.S. and Ireland to foster much-needed understanding and empathy in today’s increasingly polarised world.
Minister of State at the Department of Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media and at the Department of Education, Thomas Byrne TD, said:
“The warmth of the relationship between Ireland and the United States is underpinned by our shared history and common values. The Fulbright Commission and the Fulbrighters, past and present, are a testament to the best traditions of academic and cultural exchange and have an outstanding record in representing Ireland. The Government of Ireland is proud to support this programme, which plays an essential role in building transatlantic understanding and fostering extraordinary academic links through the Department of Foreign Affairs and the Department of Tourism, Arts, Culture, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media. My sincere congratulations and best wishes to the Irish Fulbright Awardees of 2023-2024.”
U.S. Chargé d'Affaires to Ireland, Mike Clausen said:
“The Fulbright Program represents the U.S. government’s preeminent international educational and cultural exchange initiative. It plays a crucial role in sustaining and advancing the unique and close relationship between the United States and Ireland. Fulbright awardees exchange research, knowledge, ideas, and culture and contribute to solving important global problems. I congratulate this year’s awardees and wish them success in the United States and beyond.”
Chair of the Fulbright Commission Ireland Board, Professor Diane Negra, said:
“I speak for the entire Fulbright Commission Ireland Board in congratulating the 37 Fulbright awardees on receiving their awards. Fulbright is synonymous with high-level research, academic excellence and cross-cultural collaboration, and I wish the awardees every success as they travel to the U.S., join a thriving network of professional Alumni and experience a rich and unique cultural and educational exchange that encompasses a Fulbright award.”
Executive Director of the Fulbright Commission in Ireland, Dr Dara FitzGerald, said:
“I congratulate the new awardees on the significant honour and achievement of earning a Fulbright Award. The Commission takes pride in the Irish awardees who engage in the States and return home to share their learnings. I wish to extend my thanks to the partners, stakeholders and sponsors who have supported us in recent years. The impact of their support, both immediately and over time, cannot be underestimated.
We thank our partners, the U.S. Department of State and the U.S. Embassy in Dublin, the Irish Department of Foreign Affairs, and the Department of Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media. We are grateful to have the ongoing support of our Irish award sponsors: the Health Research Board, Enterprise Ireland, the Environmental Protection Agency, Geological Survey Ireland, National University of Ireland, Teagasc, the Creative Ireland Programme, and notable U.S. Institutions as the Exploratorium, the Smithsonian, the Harry Ransom Center and Boston College.
I would like to note the continuous support from Irish institutions such as University College Cork, University College Dublin, Dublin City University, RCSI University of Medicine and Health Sciences, University of Galway, Maynooth University, University of Limerick, Science Foundation Ireland, Atlantic Technological University, Dublin Institute of Advanced Studies, Irish Museum of Modern Art and the Hugh Lane Gallery.
I am keen to recognise our growing relationships with the Technological Universities, including Atlantic Technological University, Technological University Dublin, Technological University of the Shannon: Midlands Midwest, Munster Technological University and South East Technological University. We wish them every success as they develop and will provide support for their initiatives.”
The next round of applications for the Fulbright Irish Awards will open on 28th August 2023. Interested candidates should visit www.fulbright.ie for more information.