UCD Arts and Humanities Research Strategy 2020-24CONTENTSIntroduction 1Mission 2Vision 3Core Objectives 4Themes 5Digital Cultures 6Engaged Creativity 7Environmental Humanities 8Health, Medicine & Wellbeing 9Ireland in the World 10Thresholds of Knowledge 11Transnationalising the Humanities 12Violence & Society 13Partnerships 14Public Engagement 15Impact 161INTRODUCTIONWelcome to the UCD College of Arts and Humanities Research Strategy for 2020-2024, an approach that brings together and supports the combined research excellence from across the College’s Schools, Institutes, Centres and subject disciplines. The strategy provides a coherent and enabling framework for the development of interdisciplinary expertise and represents a refreshed approach to partnership collaboration and public engagement in a national and global context. At the heart of the strategy are eight interdisciplinary research themes that each work independently but also engage with and support the four strategic thematic areas of ‘Rising to the Future’, the UCD Strategy 2020-2024: ‘Creating a Sustainable Global Society’; ‘Transforming through Digital Technology’; ‘Building a Healthy World’; ‘Empowering Humanity’. The strategy seeks to enable arts and humanities researchers to work together and in partnerships, both internal and external, to explore and challenge pressing global issues from a past, present, future and multi-linguistic perspective. As our eight research themes compellingly demonstrate, the strategy will also promote and articulate the relevance of our subjects in today’s rapidly changing and complex world. Professor Sarah Prescott, College Principal and DeanAssociate Professor Ivar McGrath, Vice Principal for Research, Innovation and Impact The UCD College of Arts and Humanities is a leading centre of excellence in Ireland for arts and humanities research, innovation and impact. Our mission is:> To be at the forefront of exploring and challenging what it means to be human within the specific context of human society and culture: past, present and future> To place arts and humanities disciplines at the core of interdisciplinary and practice- based research> To promote the centrality of our research and to address the global challenges of our time2MISSIONVISION3The College aims to be a recognized leading centre in Europe and the English-speaking world for international excellence in research and impact in the arts and humanities. The College seeks to consolidate and promote its core research strengths and develop the next generation of leading arts and humanities researchers as advocates for the critical importance of our disciplines in public debate.UCD students using virtual reality headsetsThe UCD College of Arts and Humanities Research Strategy, 2020-24, aligns the College with the key global, national and local drivers for the best research, innovation and impact outcomes in the coming years.The UCD College of Arts and Humanities Research Strategy also aligns with the core commitments and objectives of the Irish Humanities Alliance Strategy, 2020-30, of which we are a member institution.1 The core objectives of the UCD College of Arts and Humanities Research Strategy are as follows:1 By Imagination we Live: A strategy for the humanities, 2020-30 (Dublin, 2019).4CORE OBJECTIVES1 To support and promote the College’s eight new research themes as field leaders in research excellence, impact and public engagement2 To develop the College’s external relationships in order to enhance our international research profile and to broaden the basis for funded collaborative research projects3 To further advance the College’s growing research impact agenda in the context of governmental and non- governmental policy agendas and developments and pressing societal concerns more generally 4 To enhance and promote the College’s public engagement with external partners and develop an agile public engagement strategy with particular focus on cultural heritage, cultural engagement and creative practice5THEMESThe UCD College of Arts and Humanities recognises, promotes and advances the centrality of the individual researcher in arts and humanities research. To support this, the College developed eight new research themes in 2019 to represent the areas of collective excellence across the breadth of disciplines in the College and to reflect the partnership with the UCD Humanities Institute. This excellence is evident in published output, grant capture, and the professional profile and esteem of scholars associated with the themes.The themes, which benefit from partnerships with other universities and institutions, are described as follows:01 DIGITAL CULTURES02 ENGAGED CREATIVITY03 ENVIRONMENTAL HUMANITIES04 HEALTH, MEDICINE & WELLBEING05 IRELAND IN THE WORLD06 THRESHOLDS OF KNOWLEDGE07 TRANSNATIONALISING THE HUMANITIES08 VIOLENCE AND SOCIETYTo find out more about the eight themes at the heart of the UCD College of Arts and Humanities Research Strategy, go to ucd.ie/artshumanitiesUCD is widely recognized for its innovative and impactful work at the forefront of the field of digital culture. UCD College of Arts and Humanities is pioneering new interdisciplinary approaches to record, shape and develop our digital past, present and future. Major themes already addressed include the history of the book, understanding of disease, contagion and biopolitics, cultural memory, big data methodologies, globalization, child protection, national identities, story-telling, heritage and culture, social network analysis, and migration. The UCD Centre for Cultural Analytics aims to establish UCD as an international leader in the next iteration of digital humanities which extends these developments to fully exploit AI assisted machine learning tools, such as social network analysis, word embedding and neural networks, to consider patterns beyond the textual.DIGITAL CULTURES601NOHO and CEMEC (EU/UCD project)Building on the deep creative heritage of UCD College of Arts and Humanities, the creative energy of Dublin, and the international cultural reputation of Ireland, Engaged Creativity seeks to nurture talent development, to foster experimentation and collaboration, and to create cross-sectoral and international partnerships with the aim of establishing a new approach to innovation and enterprise in the arts and humanities. This theme incorporates innovative approaches to creative practice as research and foregrounds the impact and relevance of the arts and humanities. Engaged Creativity seeks to develop a creative/critical ecosystem based at UCD which intersects with government, business, and industry through research, teaching, public impact and engagement. The UCD Arts and Humanities Creative Fellows will form the backbone of a high-profile advisory board of external members for this theme.ENGAGED CREATIVITY702Ryan O’Donnell and Rachel O’Sullivan, UCD Ad Astra Arts Scholars performing in Addikt (2019) / Gemma BovenizerNext >