2023 Event Speakers

Elaine Mahon is Assistant Director of the National Centre for Franco-Irish Studies and Editor of the Journal of Franco-Irish Studies. She lectures in gastronomy and

David Carson is a Chartered Accountant and Executive Coach. He was a corporate finance partner in Deloitte Ireland specialising in M&A, Restructuring and Forensic and

Lenny Abrahamson is the director of the critically-acclaimed ROOM, starring Brie Larson and Jacob Tremblay. The film was nominated for four Academy Awards, including Best

Prof. Bríona Nic Dhiarmada is the Thomas J. and Kathleen O’Donnell Professor Emerita of Irish Studies at the University of Notre Dame . A writer,

Dubliner Eileen Dunne has been involved with the Kennedy Summer School for a number of years now. A recent retiree, she spent 42 years working

A native of Midleton, Co. Cork, Sinéad studied law at University College Cork and qualified as a barrister in 1993. She began her working life

Sarah Carey is a columnist, broadcaster and Communications Consultant. She writes for The Irish Independent each Saturday and has previously written for The Sunday Times

Renee Chenault Fattah is the Executive Director of the not for profit Philadelphia Lawyers for Social Equity (PLSE) which provides Pro Bono criminal record clearing

Vasileios Madouros was appointed Central Bank of Ireland Deputy Governor, Monetary and Financial Stability in November 2022. In this role, he oversees the Economics &

Ali Watkins, of Brooklyn, NY, is a journalist at the New York Times. She was recognized as a finalist for the 2015 Pulitzer Prize in national reporting

Dr. Miriam Nyhan Grey has been affiliated with New York University’s Glucksman Ireland House in various roles since 2008, having completed her doctorate at the

Lucinda Creighton is a barrister, former Irish Minister for European Affairs and Member of the Irish Parliament. She is the founder and CEO of leading

Rose Conway-Walsh TD, Sinn Féin Spokesperson Public Expenditure and Reform was elected to Dáil Eireann in 2020 after leading the Sinn Féin team in the

Brian O’Flynn has been the Head of Ireland’s Ancient East at Fáilte Ireland since March 2020. He has spent much of his career working overseas,

Larry Donnelly is a Boston born and educated attorney who holds both American and Irish passports.  Larry relocated to his ancestral Ireland to take up

James “The Ragin’ Cajun” Carville is America’s best-known political consultant. His long list of electoral successes evidences a knack for steering overlooked campaigns to unexpected

Patricia L. Gatling has a broad practice that focuses on transportation law, employment law and employee benefits, government relations, litigation, alternative dispute resolution and general

Eamonn Hore studied Civil Engineering at University College Dublin graduating with a B.E. in 1979. He then studied Computers for Engineers at Trinity College Dublin

Professionally trained singer and actress Sharon Clancy will thrill guests at the afternoon tea party with popular jazz songs and hits from musicals. Hailing from

Fiacre O’Cairbre is an Associate Professor of Mathematics at Maynooth University. He received his Ph.D in mathematics from Berkeley in California. Fiacre has many publications in

Deputy Director General Dr Ciarán Seoighe joined SFI as Deputy Director General in January 2018.  In his role, Ciarán is responsible for Organisational Strategy, Corporate

Martin O’Neill is a household name in professional football. Born in Derry, he spent most of his playing career with Nottingham Forest, playing under the

Gary Gannon is the Social Democrats spokesperson for Education, Higher Education, Arts, Foreign Affairs, Defence, and Social Protection. A graduate of Trinity College, where he

Patrick Prendergast is Chairperson of the Governing Body of South East Technological University and a Research Professor in Trinity College Dublin where he served as

Greg Swenson is a founding partner of Brigg Macadam Ltd, an emerging market investment banking firm in London. He has over twenty years of banking,

Nancy Smyth (BA Hons [French, German], McMaster University, 1987; MA [International Affairs], Carleton University, 1991) joined Foreign Affairs and International Trade Canada in 2005 as

Jim Bergin is chief executive of Tirlán, a world-class food and nutrition business, with 11 high-tech processing facilities, more than 2,300 employees, over 11,000 members

Jason Sherlock is a well-known Irish sports personality having represented Ireland underage in soccer and basketball and also played for the Dublin Senior Football Team

Sean Connick is the current Chief Executive Officer of the John F Kennedy Trust, where he leads the daily operation of one of Irelands premier

Mairead McGuinness is the European Commissioner for financial services, financial stability and Capital Markets Union. The Commissioner’s vision for the portfolio is focused on ensuring

Stacey L. Connaughton (Ph.D., The University of Texas at Austin) is a Professor in the Brian Lamb School of Communication at Purdue University and the

2023 Event Speakers 2023 Speaker Overview

Award winning journalist, Dermot Murnaghan has spent 40 years in broadcast news in the UK, presenting all the major network news programmes for Channel 4,

Being part of a family business Joan has been involved in logistics for almost 30 years. Starting in finance as a qualified ACCA accountant, and

Eileen Whelan is a senior journalist and news anchor at RTÉ.

Multi award-winning journalist Ken Murray covers the island of Ireland for Euronews TV. A political and parliamentary correspondent in Dáil Eireann for 17 years, he

James was elected to the Dáil to represent Kildare North in 2016 and 2020 and prior to that was a member of Kildare County Council.

William Keilthy, a native of New Ross, is a retired business executive who held senior management roles in Glanbia Foods  before setting up his own

Kathryn Cramer Brownell is associate professor of history at Purdue University. Her research and teaching focus on the intersections of media, politics, and popular culture,

Gerard has practised as a public affairs consultant since 2008, working for a wide range of clients in the public and private sector. He is

Terry Prone was one of the founders of The Communications Clinic, having previously been one of the founders of Carr Communications, which she drove to

Ruth McAvinia worked as a news and sport reporter in broadcast media before re-training in science communication. She has worked on contract at the European

CEO Maritime Area Regulatory Authority Laura Brien has recently been appointed as CEO of the Maritime Area Regulatory Authority (MARA). MARA is a new state

Tom Enright is Chief Executive Officer of Wexford County Council.

Aisling is a media professional with over ten years experience in broadcast media and public relations having worked for Oireachtas TV and RTÉ. At Oireachtas

Dr Ray Bassett Dr Ray Bassett is a former senior Irish diplomat who held the position of Irish Ambassador to Canada, Jamaica and the Bahamas

Gary Murphy is Professor of Politics at the School of Law and Government at Dublin City University. He has held visiting professorships at the University

BIO Here 2023 Event Speakers 2023 Speaker Overview

Audrey Carville is an award winning broadcaster and is currently presenting Morning Ireland on RTÉ Radio One.

Dr Brian Murphy is a director of the Kennedy Summer School. He earned his doctorate in Modern Irish History from the School of History and

Suzanne Lynch is Chief Brussels Correspondent of POLITICO Europe. Based in Brussels, she leads coverage of EU affairs and is also host of the weekly

Frank McNally is a newspaper reporter and columnist. Born in County Monaghan, near the Irish Border, he moved to Dublin in his late teens, working

2023 Event Speakers 2023 Speaker Overview

President, South East Technological University (SETU) Prof Veronica Campbell is a Pharmacology graduate of the University of Edinburgh and was awarded her PhD from the

Matthew Jebb undertook his primary degree and D.Phil at Oxford University. His Ph.D. looked at the taxonomy and tuber morphology of the rubiaceous ant-plants. Following

Sean McCormack is a unique blend of entrepreneurial and large company (McKesson, Pfizer) experience. In either setting, his ability to recognize and seize new business

Patrick Honohan was Governor of the Central Bank of Ireland from September 2009 to November 2015. He is an honorary professor of economics at Trinity

Ambassador Geraldine Byrne Nason assumed her role as Ireland’s 19th Ambassador to the United States in August 2022. Geraldine was Ambassador and Permanent Representative of