With our thanks to the ICI YCN for hosting a wonderful event in celebration of International Women’s Day on the 9th March, 2022.  This involved a panel discussion with Dr Michelle Brown (Research Fellow, CRANN, TCD and L’Oreal UNESCO FWIS Fellow 2021), Dr Clare S. Mahon (Assistant Professor at Durham University), Dr Roisin O’Flaherty (Assistant Professor at Maynooth University) and recruiters from the Berkey Group. This was a free event open to all.

The International Carbohydrate Organization invites applications for the ICO Young Researcher Award 2022. This award was established in 2012 to encourage carbohydrate research by young investigators and shall be given to a researcher working on a project focused on any aspect of glycochemistry and/or glycobiology. The recipient of this award will be invited to present their work orally at the 30th International Carbohydrate Virtual Symposium in Brazil, from July 10th to 15th, 2022. The award covers registration expenses and a cash prize of 1000 USD. Further details in relation to eligibility and application details may be found here:  ICO Young Researcher Award_2022

Application deadline: Tuesday, 1st March, 2022

We are delighted to let you know that Professor Tadhg Begley, an Irish chemist, UCC alumnus, Distinguished Professor, Derek Barton Professor of Chemistry and Robert A. Welch Foundation Chair, at Texas A&M University in the US, is the recipient of the ICI Boyle Higgins’ Gold Medal and Lecture Award 2021. Professor Begley is not only an outstanding and internationally recognised leader in the field of chemical biology and natural product synthesis but he has also inspired generations of chemists both here in Ireland and indeed internationally. Our warmest congratulations to Professor Begley. We are very much hoping that Professor Begley will be able to deliver his award lecture in person in 2022.

Team Ireland has achieved its best success to date in the International Chemistry Olympiad, which was held from Saturday, July 24 to Monday, August 2, 2021, with all four competing students receiving awards for the first time. Two students, Oisín Ó Feinneadha, from St. Peter’s College Secondary School, Wexford and Tong Wu, from Clongowes Wood College, Clane, Co. Kildare got silver medals, placing them in the top 10-30% of Chemistry students in the world. Oscar Despard, from Sandford Park School, Ranelagh, Dublin also received a bronze medal and Aoife Morris, from St. Aloysius’ College, Carrigtwohill, Co. Cork completed the extraordinary success of Team Ireland by getting an Honourable Mention award.

Warmest congratulations to theses exceptional students on not only their outstanding achievements but for also being wonderful Irish Student Ambassadors. Congratulations also to their teachers and schools and all those who supported them.  A special word of congratulations and thanks to the academic staff across five Irish Higher Education Institutions who provided expert training and support to these students.

Please find here a link to a recent article on ‘Younger Chemists Thriving during the Global COVID-19 Pandemic’ published in Chemistry Views, the online science news magazine of Chemistry Europe. Congratulations to the chair of the ICI Young Chemists’ Network (ICI YCN), Dr Mark Kelada, who contributed to this article.