President Of Ireland Research Articles

Global Congress on Dental Education and launch of a Global Network

Dublin Castle served as the global knowledge centre on dental education from 6 to 8 September 2007. At that meeting, 330 delegates from 66 countries from all continents came together for the Global Congress on Dental Education. The Global Congress was held under the joint auspices of the International Federation of Dental Educators and Associations (IFDEA), DentEd III (the European Union Thematic Network on Dental Education), the American Dental Education Association (ADEA), and the Association for Dental Education in Europe (ADEE). The President of Ireland, Mary McAleese, addressed delegates on Saturday 8 September when she officially launched the ‘Global Network on Dental Education’, a web-based resource designed by IFDEA to help share knowledge and facilitate a better understanding of issues of diversity and inequality in oral health care and education throughout the global dental education community; with special reference to schools in middle- and low-income countries. Senior academics from China, Africa, South America and India committed themselves to the inauguration of constituent organizations on their continents similar to those in Europe and North America. There were four keynote addresses. These were delivered by Dr Mary Robinson, Chancellor, University of Dublin Trinity College; Chairperson, ‘Realizing Rights: The Ethical Globalization Initiative’; a former President of Ireland and formerly the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights who spoke on ‘Health as a human right: implications for the dental profession’. Sir Iain Chalmers, Editor, James Lind Library Oxford and a founder member of the Cochrane Collaboration delivered an address on ‘Human rights and professional responsibilities in health care and education’. Professor Jeffrey Sachs, Director, Earth Institute and Quetelet Professor of Sustainable Development, Professor of Health Policy and Management, Columbia University, New York Special Advisor to United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon spoke on ‘The end of poverty: economic possibilities for our time’ via a video link. Dr David Wong, Associate Dean for Research University of California, Los Angeles, Director, Dental Research Institute, UCLA, Chair, Division of Oral Medicine & Biology, UCLA spoke on ‘Salivary diagnostics: enhancing disease detection and making medicine better’. This unique Congress was the culmination of 3 years preparatory work by 14 working groups. Each group had prepared their reports through an interactive website and these were finalized in Dublin. There was a dynamic series of working group exchanges, where findings and recommendations were debated between working groups. Each group comprised 30 individuals from countries around the globe. The 14 working groups covered the following: Inequalities in access to education and health care. Adapting to changes in molecular biosciences and technologies. Evidence-based care and the curriculum. Exploring opportunities for collaboration between the corporate sector and the dental education community. Curriculum structure: principles and strategy. Potential of information technology in dental education. Quality assurance, benchmarking, assessment and mutual international recognition of qualifications. Profile of the dentist in countries with developed economies. Profile of the oral healthcare team in countries with developing economies. The academic environment: the students’ perspective. Leadership, governance and management in dental education – new societal challenges. Staff recruitment, development and global mobility. Balancing the role of the dental school in teaching, research and patient care including care for underserved areas. The Global Network on Dental Education – a new vision for IFDEA. The Congress was an unqualified success and opened new avenues for collaboration and convergence towards higher standards in dental education with increasing emphasis on the broader aspects of global health and equity in access to care and education. This special issue of the ADEE’s European Journal for Dental Education and ADEA’s Journal of Dental Education carry a full report of the Working Group findings as well as the keynote addresses. Once published in February 2008, Blackwell Munksgaard will provide open access to the electronic version of the publication so that it is available to all educators and students of dentistry and stomatology throughout the world.

A Letter from the President of Ireland

A Letter from the President of Ireland

Remarks by Mary McAleese, President of Ireland

Reducing suicide rates requires a collective, concerted effort from all groups in society: health, social services, other professionals, communities and community leaders, voluntary and statutory agencies and organizations, parents, friends, neighbors, and individuals. It also requires the careful nurturing of a culture in which people in psychological distress don't hesitate to seek help from family, friends, health professionals and community leaders, a culture that recognizes the signs and signals of distress and is willing to help, and that focuses early in life on developing good coping skills and avoiding harmful practices; in short, a sensitive culture that cherishes human courtesy and takes responsibility for our own mental health and the mental health of others. Suicide occurs in many diverse contexts but there are recurring patterns and elements that research is revealing to us. The more we are learning, the better we are able to devise strategies and take action. We already know, for example, that alcohol abuse plays a very significant role in suicide and features prominently in youth suicide. Research has also established that cannabis increases the risk of depression and psychosis and that it reduces normal inhibitions against suicide. Since marijuana is the illegal drug most used by those under25 years of age, a critical factor in suicide prevention must be to inform young people as to its danger and counter the erroneous impression that it is a benign substance. We know that bullying sometimes features in the story of suicide. Our young people need to know just how damaging, just how unacceptable, bullying is. Education and access to support structures - whether at work, school, or home - are an essential part of protecting the victim of bullying not just from the bully but from their own downward spiral into suicidal thoughts. A less discussed but nonetheless important issue worth raising is the issue of dealing with sexual identity. Although Ireland is making considerable progress in developing a culture of genuine equality, recognition, and acceptance of gay men and women, there is still an undercurrent of both bias and hostility which young gay people must find deeply hurtful and inhibiting. For them, homosexuality is a discovery, not a decision, and for many it is a discovery which is made against a backdrop where, within their immediate circle of family and friends as well as the wider society, they have long encountered antigay attitudes which will do little to help them deal openly and healthily with their own sexuality.

Irish Nights

A few months ago the College held an Irish Night. It drew a good crowd of Fellows and Members – many of them relieved, I suspect, that for once in late January they did not have to attend a Burns supper. So there would be no need to eat haggis or drink Scotch whisky. Other than that, none of us knew what to expect. Would there be readings from Finnegans Wake instead of Tam O'Shanter? What should we wear? The invitation said ‘black tie’ but surely something green was required? Do Irishmen wear kilts and, if so, could you hire one? Most of us had pleasant, if hazy, memories of Irish nights in Ireland. One of my first, in the 1980s, was a meeting of the Irish Family Planning Association in the Limerick Inn. In those days contraception was still illegal south of the border and I was surprised that a Family Planning Association existed. Indeed, I thought my invitation was a hoax as it was signed ‘Doctor Darling’ and sent from ‘Stillorgan’. Both turned out to be genuine (Stillorgan being a suburb of Dublin) and I spent a delightful night supping Guinness with resilient lady doctors as they swapped stories of court appearances. Twenty years on, Ireland oozes sophistication. My wife and I have a weakness for posh hotels, smoke-free pubs, culture and Georgian architecture, so it's lucky that Dublin is only an hour away by air. Across Merrion Square from the National Maternity Hospital is Restaurant Patrick Guilbaud. Despite its name, it has nothing to do with family planning but does have two Michelin stars. North of the River Liffey, adjacent to the Rotunda Hospital, is the Gate Theatre, where we saw Shining City by Conor McPherson, a playwright now famous far beyond Dublin. Its ending was such a shock that we had to calm our nerves with stout in the nearest smoke-free environment. Irish people have a knowledgeable, unpretentious attitude to the arts. In Dublin they speak respectfully of James Joyce while giving the impression that he was a friend of the family. Further down the coast, a little town serves up obscure European operas every October. Have you heard of La Vestale by Mercadante? Neither had we until a couple of years ago but now we know that it wrings your withers as hero and heroine expire tragically in Act III. The Wexford Opera Festival was started in 1951 by a local doctor and is now world famous. There's something magical about eating fish and chips near the harbour with a Russian chamber choir squeezed around the next table. Further up the coast is Belfast – world famous, too, as the birthplace of the Titanic and the home of the Editor-in-Chief of TOG. It has two airports, the larger being about 20 miles out of town. Once (I know the date: it was 26 May 1999), there wasn't a taxi in sight when I arrived. I found the drivers huddled round a wireless and persuaded one to take me to my hotel. As we headed off with the car radio on, I realised this was the night of the European Cup Final. In the city centre I got to a television as the game reached full time, with Bayern Munich one goal up. And then…the memory of Manchester United scoring twice in extra time will live forever, even for a man from Leeds. Belfast went wild. I don't understand why they are United fans, but I suppose it's something to do with George Best. So many good times. Such great hospitality: north and south. But how would the ‘craic’ transfer to Regent's Park? Very well, actually. We started in the lecture theatre with a marvellous young tenor who sang about the futility of the Troubles and ended with ‘Danny Boy’. I must have heard it hundreds of times but it moved me to tears. At dinner our guest, the President of Ireland, said the last time she saw so many obstetricians she came away with twins. A hilarious raconteur followed her and then a virtuoso fiddler gave the first Elvis impersonation seen in Nuffield Hall. Or so I assume. We don't know what the Officers get up to when we aren't there.

In search of a sustainable philanthropy.

Philanthropists are important funders of health care in developing countries, but their funding can be unreliable and misdirected. One philanthropist found that the best way to establish a health-care project of lasting benefit was to address unmet needs in the local health system, listen to the experts and work closely with local partners. Nairobi, Kenya will soon see a brand new women's hospital offering free treatment to women. It comes courtesy not of the government, nor of the usual international aid agencies, but of an unlikely collaboration between a local obstetrician and the mother of the world's most famous basketball star. Deloris Jordan, mother of Michael, has long been active in local philanthropy in the United States and her home city, Chicago, working through the James R. Jordan Foundation, named after her late husband. She first went to Kenya 13 years ago, bringing American children on a cultural visit. She ended up bringing back a young Masai man and putting him through an MBA course. He has since returned to Kenya to build a tourism business in his community. Deloris Jordan has returned many times since, but her visit three years ago, she says, changed her life. went back to Kenya in 2003, at the invitation of the vice-president, for the 40th anniversary of independence. I was invited to visit the Nairobi Women's Hospital with about 40 beds. The line outside was long, but they were all treated whether they had money or not. I met the staff there, and later when the hospital's founder Dr Samuel Thenya came to the United States on a visit, I flew to Washington to meet him, because I wanted to know why a young man would set up a women's hospital. I started working with him to try to get the hospital some equipment, including some of the things our hospitals throw away. Mrs Jordan says she is determined that her project will be more than a rich person's plaything, or a pathway to recognition. found that working in Africa and especially Nairobi, it's vital to learn about their culture, not trying to take over but learning from them what their needs are. learnt a lot from my visit to London on World Health Day in April, she says, referring to the launch of The world health report 2006: Working together for health, which highlights the plight of 57 developing countries with serious shortages of health workers. wanted to learn how to really reach out into the villages, to truly make a lasting difference. She describes Mary Robinson, former president of Ireland and former UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, as a fountain of useful advice. A key message that Mrs Jordan took from the WHO event was the need to retain staff in a continent where health workers are continually seeping away in search of a better living abroad. found that some of Dr Thenya's health-care staff and nurses were looking for work abroad. This is, of course, a big problem in Africa. They need to feel needed there, and that they have a future there. They need decent benefits. It's the only way a project will last. One of the hospital's immediate goals is to set up an exchange programme to train nurses and other staff in the United States. For me, it's all about networking and partnership, not just here but also in Kenya. We talked to the mayor of Nairobi and the parliament about a better facility. The city council has donated land for a larger 150-bed hospital. The plan is to move the old hospital's staff to the new facility and replace much of the old equipment. Completion is planned for 2010, at an estimated cost of $20 million. My main role was networking in the United States, to try to get some of this equipment that Pfizer and so on don't need. I later partnered with the Clinton Global Initiative. …

An interview with Mary Robinson, Former President of Ireland

An interview with Mary Robinson, Former President of Ireland

Colloquium of Roman Catholic and Anglican Canonists in Rome 30 April–1 May 1999

On 30 April and 1 May 1999, the Pontifical University of St Thomas Aquinas in Rome (the Angelicum) hosted a Colloquium on the subject of the Comparative Law of Church Property, organised in collaboration with the Centre for Law and Religion at Cardiff Law School. It was attended by Anglican and Roman Catholic canonists and a representative of the Eastern Catholic Church. It is believed that this was the first meeting of its type since the Reformation and was a unique opportunity for canon lawyers to engage in ecumenical dialogue. It represented a response by canonists to the welcome given by the Anglican Communion at the Lambeth Conference in 1998 to the encyclical letter of Pope John Paul II Ut Unum Sint. Such a meeting would have been unimaginable ten years ago but the substantial common interest which the subject raises coupled with strong friendships forged during the Colloquium has revealed a great potential for events such as these. The Archbishop of Canterbury, who is to chair (jointly with Cardinal Cassidy) a major consultation in Canada in May 2000 reviewing Anglican/Roman Catholic relationships, had expressed his support for the Colloquium and the further initiatives which it might herald. The President of Ireland also sent a personal message of support for the event.

The Symbolic Power of Ireland's President Robinson

The election of seventh president of Ireland, held on October 7, 1990, witnessed triumph of Mary Robinson as first woman president and first successful non-Fianna Fail(1) candidate since 1945. The Irish Constitution states that office of president should be filled by a direct vote of for a period of seven years. In practice, however, four presidents have been appointed by consent, thereby avoiding need for an election. Therefore, it was only fifth president actually elected, first presidential election in seventeen years, and first since 1945 to be contested by three candidates. The office of Irish presidency as outlined in Articles 12 through 14 of Irish Constitution is primarily ceremonial in character. Most of president's responsibilities are purely formal, and other functions can be performed by her only on (meaning permission) of government. Six areas in which president enjoys some power may be identified.(2) In three of these, president has up to now been inactive, primarily because initiative lies with some other institution that has chosen not to exercise it. First, Senate (equivalent to English House of Lords) may request president to refer question of whether a bill is or is not a money bill to a Committee of Privileges; president may then, after consultation with her Council of State (her committee of advisers), appoint such a committee (Article 22.2). Second, in certain exceptional circumstances, government may seek to restrict amount of time Senate may spend in considering a bill, but this requires concurrence of president, who is obliged first to consult with her Council of State (Article 24.1). Third, a majority of members of Senate, along with at least one-third of Dail (parliament), may ask president not to sign into law a bill passed by both houses; after consultation with Council of State, president may either sign bill or cause the will of people to be ascertained, entailing either a referendum or a general election. In two of these cases, any request to president implies unlikely event of a serious clash between Dail and Senate; third implies an emergency. In this context, it is not surprising that president's powers have not been used. On other hand, three other powers have been used. First, president may after consultation with Council of State, convene either or both houses of Oirectheas (Senate and Dail) (Article 13.2.3). Up to 1990, only instance in which this power has been invoked was when de Valera convened a meeting of both houses in 1969 to address them on fiftieth anniversary of inaugural meeting of First Dail. Second, president may refer a bill to Supreme Court to obtain court's ruling on its compatibility with Constitution, again following consultation with her Council of State. This has been most frequently used power, used on eight occasions; in three cases (1942, 1981, and 1983) bills have been deemed unconstitutional. Perhaps most potentially important power contained in Article 13.2.2, which states that the president may in his [her] absolute discretion refuse to dissolve Dail Eireann on advice of Taoiseach (prime minister) who has ceased to retain support of a majority in Dail Eireann. There have been three occasions on which president could have used this power, but in all cases dissolution has been granted. The Irish Constitution provides that president be elected for a seven-year term, which is renewable once by single transferable vote of those eligible to vote in Dail elections. Whereas presidents coming to end of their first term may nominate themselves for reelection, nomination for first-time candidates is extremely restrictive. Candidates must be nominated either by a minimum of twenty Dail deputies and/or senators or by councils of at least four counties and/or county boroughs. …

Scotland, Ireland and Northern Ireland: Time for Lateral Thinking

One area which deserves treatment now that Scotland has achieved home rule is its relationship with the two Irelands. This is something of a taboo subject in that Scotland has been kept hiding behind the skirts of England for years and has had no chance of contributing to the debate on constitutiona l change for Northern Ireland. What interest there is tends to come from the diehard supporters of the two main tendencies in Northern Ireland. For the foreseeable future Scotland and Northern Ireland are likely to remain constituent parts of the United Kingdom, each with its own representative body, and it is time that they were talking to each other in a constructive way. While the focus in the early months of the Scottish parliament will be on the developing relationship with Westminster, it is also important that the new administration engages with the leaders of the Northern Ireland assembly. Complementary to this is a need to build a relationship with the Republic of Ireland, and here we come up against the issue of whether initiatives of this kind come within the terms of reference of the Scottish parliament. Probably not, but this has been overtaken by a more recent event, the Easter Agreement, which should facilitate new sets of relationships among the various countries of these Isles once the provisions under Strand Three arc implemented. For the first time it will be legitimate for Scotland to deal directly with both Northern Ireland and Ireland without recourse to London. Although Ireland has had a special relationship with the UK since independence it has had no cause to deal separately with Scotland, until now. We should perhaps be working on what Mary Robinson declared when she was President of Ireland:

A Roundtable Report on Irish Studies: Issues and Perspectives

NOTES AND QUERIES A ROUNDTABLE REPORT ON IRISH STUDIES: ISSUES AND PERSPECTIVES DIANE HOTTEN-SOMERS AND AIMEE WAHA* what is the future of Irish Studies at universities throughout North America ? What measures must be taken to ensure the survival and growth of the field? At the 1998 national convention of the American Conference for Irish Studies (ACIS), held in April in Fort Lauderdale, FL, scholars from major centers of Irish Studies in the United States shared their thoughts on such questions during a roundtable forum. John Harrington (from the Cooper Union) chaired the panel, which included Nancy Curtin (Fordham University), Adele Dalsimer (Boston College), James Donnelly Jr. (University of Wisconsin–Madison), Patricia King (New York University), Robert Mahony (Catholic University of America), Thomas Dillon Redshaw (University of St. Thomas), and Kevin Whelan (University of Notre Dame). Panelists emphasized the need to institutionalize Irish Studies programs, to establish chairs in history and literature, and to ensure that existing chairs are succeeded by Irish Studies scholars. In addition, academics must work to “legitimize” Irish Studies by publishing intellectually challenging material that will attract the attention and respect of scholars in other fields. As a discipline, Irish Studies needs to create greater connections with interrelated fields. For example, a national and international network connecting Irish Studies scholars with colleagues in American Studies, Women's Studies, Judaic Studies, and African-American Studies will promote valuable sharing of theory, research, and methodology. NOTES AND QUERIES 204 *Diane Hotten-Somers received a master’s degree in English literature from Boston College and will begin a Ph.D. at Brown University this fall, focusing on Irish-American history. Aimee Waha recently completed a master’s degree in Irish Studies at Boston College, where she attended as a Fulbright scholar from Germany. Participants also voiced concerns over the funding of Irish Studies on North American campuses. Program leaders must convince university administrators of the importance of allocating resources to this field, particularly because recent attention paid to Ireland in American popular culture has filled existing Irish Studies courses to capacity. Moreover, an established and affluent Irish-American community is expressing a serious interest in the study of Irish culture. Thus, to raise the profile of Irish Studies in the community at large, programs should reach out to the public through cultural events involving film series, concerts, and lectures. Some panelists focused on the fact that Irish Studies should expand its disciplinary boundaries and avoid the dangers of identity-based, nationalist scholarship. The discipline must thus encourage work focused on addressing issues such as gender and diaspora studies, which engage with the wider academic community and a broader American public. And, finally, major research universities must be encouraged to retain and to hire scholars dedicated to training graduate students, who hold the promise and bear the burden of sustaining the future of Irish Studies in North America for the next century. PRESIDENT MARY McALEESE BECOMES IRISH AMERICAN CULTURAL INSTITUTE PATRON At a meeting at Áras an Uachtarán, the Irish presidential residence in Phoenix Park, John Walsh, Chairman of the Irish American Cultural Institute (IACI), announced that President Mary McAleese has honored the organization by becoming its official patron. Chairman Walsh noted that President McAleese continues a tradition begun by President Eamon de Valera who occupied the office when the IACI was founded. Walsh also observed that the IACI remains the only Irish-American organization distinguished by having the president of Ireland as its patron. IRISH AMBASSADOR HOSTS RESEARCH FUND'S TENTH ANNIVERSARY AWARD CEREMONY Irish Ambassador to the United States Seán Ó Huiginn and Bernadette Ó Huiginn hosted the 1997 IACI Research Fund's Award Ceremony at the couple’s residence in Washington, D.C., in late January. The 1997 awards totaled more than $26,000, bringing the total of funds awarded to date for Irish research from IACI endowments to more than $200,000. NOTES AND QUERIES 205 Four awards were made possible by the Irish Institute of New York Fund: Niamh O'Sullivan, lecturer at the National College of Art and Design, Dublin, was awarded $4,000 to support her research for "The Life and Work of the Irish-American Artist Aloysius O'Kelly,” which will culminate...

Neither Fish nor Fowl: The Quest to Define the Role of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights

In March 1997 the first United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (HCHR) resigned, after almost three years in office. Assessments of the importance of the post vary greatly. Some have seen it as merely 'a small step forward for human rights', while others have portrayed it as 'symbolizfing] humanity's aspiration to achieve greater dignity for all human beings'. In announcing the appointment of a new HCHR, in June 1997, UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan said that it was 'one of the most important appointments that I will probably have the opportunity of making .. .' Amnesty International had earlier suggested, somewhat hyperbolically, that the appointee 'will shape the next century's human rights agenda.. .' The analysis that follows seeks to take stock of the achievements and shortcomings of the HCHR at a time when the baton is passing from Jos£ Ayala Lasso, a cautious, low-profile, but very senior Ecuadorean diplomat, to Mary Robinson, an experienced human rights lawyer and former President of Ireland. The principal focus of the article is on the extent to which the nature of the office and the appropriate role to be played by its incumbent have been clarified by the experience to date.

Irish Women's Studies Reader

This bestselling interdisciplinary reader in Irish/Women's studies, includes essays by Monica McWilliams, Mary Robinson (President of Ireland), Margaret MacCurtain and Ann Rossiter. Also of interest to students of sociology, modern history, cultural studies and politics.

The Irish Viceroyalty in the Restoration Period

In 1660 someone transcribed into the ‘Town Book’ of Belfast a copy of ‘Verses presented to General Monck’:Advance, George Monck, and Monck St George shall be,England's restorer to its liberty,Scotland's protector, Ireland's president,Reducing all to a free parliament;And if thou dost intend the other thing,Go on, and all shall cry God save the king.

The President of Ireland

The President of Ireland