UCC Research & Innovation Awards celebrate excellence in research, innovation, and entrepreneurship

27 May 2024

On Wednesday, May 29th, the UCC's research community celebrated excellence in research, innovation, and entrepreneurship with the UCC Research and Innovation Awards ceremony.

Our IGNITE start-up founders received two of the 22 awards that evening:

David Cashman, founder and CEO of The WellSchools Network, won the 'New Spin-out of the Year' award. The WellSchools Network is a national organisation established in Ireland in 2023 to develop, implement, and research programmes and training that support student well-being and learning behaviour. Their goal is to promote both student well-being and academic achievement through the implementation of a Systems and Trauma Informed Model of Positive Education.  

Shannen O’Reilly, CEO and co-founder of TrustDish Ltd., won the 'Start-up of the Year' award. TrustDish is an innovative app that aims to improve the lives of both hospitality food businesses and individuals with food allergies and intolerances. Their mission is to provide a safer dining experience while prioritising sustainability and minimising environmental impact.  

The guest of honour at the awards ceremony was Dr. Mairéad O’Driscoll, CEO of the Health Research Board (HRB).   

Professor John F. Cryan, UCC Vice President for Research and Innovation at UCC, said, "Congratulations to all award recipients at this year’s UCC Research and Innovation Awards. The standard of nominations across all award categories was indicative of the exceptional level of research and innovation that takes place throughout the university. Our annual Research and Innovation Awards celebrate those who have demonstrated exceptional creativity, pushed boundaries, and raised the national and international research profile of our institution."  

UCC Innovation serves as the primary gateway for staff and students looking to develop economic impact from their expertise, research and creativity. They provide services to translate these two products and services that benefit society and provide a return to the university to further advance its research mission. UCC Innovation is part of the Vice-President for Research and Innovation's Office. They were established in 2019, building on the Office of Technology Transfer, launched in 2007 and previously the Industrial Liaison Office which served UCC for almost 25 years.

The awards were sponsored by PurdyLucey, one of Ireland’s top European Intellectual Property (IP) firms working across Irish, UK, European, US and international markets and specialising in Life Science, Food Tech, Med Tech, High-Tech and Engineering projects. 

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