Update from the Irish Section

Dr. Anne Nugent, Secretary, Irish Section

In 2021, Covid-19 continues to change the calendar of events held by the Irish Section. Cognisant of this, I would like to thank our Student Representatives, Lauren Devine and Laura Kirwan who organised a successful student quiz event in April. The event was a great way for nutrition students across Ireland to stay in touch during this challenging year

In another change, this year, the University of Limerick (UL) hosted a merged postgraduate and Irish Section Conference which was fully online and open to all from 22-24 June.

The postgraduate event was organised by Peter Cronin, with support from Dr. Eibhlis O’Connor, and featured a ‘thesis in three’ style approach. The remainder of the event covered relevant areas such as career’s talks, a valuable cv clinic and sessions focused on writing for publication, public engagement, social media and the important area of looking after our mental health. A particular highlight was the presentations from the guest speakers who provided students with valuable insight and professional advice.

The subsequent Irish Section Summer Conference (23-24 June) was organised by Dr. Eibhlis O’Connor and the local UL team of Dr. Audrey Tierney, Dr. Anne Griffin,

Dr. Alexandra Cremona, Dr. Catherine Norton and Ber Norris, who did a great job in putting together a very exciting programme. I was delighted to attend and hear so many global experts discussing the topical programme of ‘Nutrition, health and ageing – translating science into practice’. Congratulations also to Dr. Elaine McCarthy from University College Cork, who was announced winner of the Nutrition Society Julie Wallace Lecture 2021. My thanks to all the organisers, contributors and the supporting team at the Nutrition Society Offices for hosting the two successful events over the consecutive days.

Finally, we held our Annual Section Meeting virtually on 24 June. Thank you for the members who attended. I would also like to highlight committee membership changes: Dr. Mary McCann (Treasurer), Dr. Alice Lucey (Membership Secretary) and Laura Kirwan (student representative) stepped down from their roles. On behalf of the Irish Section I would like to thank them all sincerely for all of their work and dedication.

During the meeting, we welcomed Dr. Caomhan Logue and Dr. Patricia Heavey as new ordinary members and Lisa Kelliher as student representative – I look forward to working with them over the next year.