University College Dublin

Karen’s early research work looked at developing landscape and seascape assessment methodologies as effective planning tools. She later focussed on the vernacular Irish landscape, examining landscape preference, drivers of landscape change and exploring scenario-based tools to engage with a range of stakeholders. More recent research centres on urban open space, identifying tools and techniques to develop robust multifunctional landscape typologies in cities that satisfy social and environmental needs.

Karen was one of the lead instigators of “Turas”, an EU funded research project bringing together urban communities and businesses along with local authorities and researchers to collaborate on practical new solutions for more sustainable and resilient European cities. This was funded under the Seventh Framework Programme and received an “Ireland’s Champions of EU Research’ award in June 2012. Within this project she led a Work Package studying urban/industrial regeneration, land-use planning and creative design examining the socio-economic implications of clearing sites and identifying the various ecosystem services that re-used sites may have. Currently Karen is on the High Advisory Board of “Connecting Nature”, a €12 m Horizon 2020 Innovation Action which will position Europe as a global leader in the innovation and implementation of Nature-based Solutions. Connecting Nature brings together 29 partners from 16 European countries including local authorities, communities, industry partners, NGOs and academics.

Brenda is an environmental communications scholar specialising in media and communications research about climate change and energy transitions. She holds a PhD in Communications, an MSc in Science Communication and an undergraduate degree in Science. Her doctoral research critically examined the deployment of ideas about Low Carbon Transition in Irish news media to shed light on how the press circumscribe possibilities for public engagement with climate policy.  On completion of her PhD in 2016 she was awarded a two-year Assistant Professorship in the School of Communications at Dublin City University. 

Brenda has recently returned from the US on a Fulbright Scholarship at Arizona State University to learn about energy imaginaries and creative approaches to engaging stakeholders with energy transitions. Prior to that she was a Research Fellow at Trinity College Dublin where she led an EPA funded study of media use and public perceptions of climate action in Ireland. 

As an environmental media researcher, Brenda is interested in the ways in which media and culture shape understandings of, and responses to, climate change and energy transition. Her current research examines the production of climate and energy futures in digital visual culture in terms of the implications for environment-society relations such as citizen engagement with nature and place.

Chiara Cocco is a Research Scientist with CCAT at the School of Architecture, Planning and Environmental Policy, University College Dublin. She obtained her PhD degree in early 2020 from University of Cagliari, Italy. Since 2015, her research focuses on the application of geospatial techniques in urban-regional planning and on the development of geodesign methods and tools to support co-creation design processes. She earned extensive experience in geodesign workshops worldwide working as part of the coordination team in different case studies across Italy, Brazil and USA.

Philip Crowe is Assistant Professor in Climate Responsive Design, UCD School Architecture, Planning and Environmental Policy and UCD School Civil Engineering. He has master’s degrees in Architecture and Applied Carbon Management, and a PhD from UCD School of Landscape Architecture that explored what the application of social-ecological resilience thinking might mean in practice. Philip’s research interests include civic engagement with change, participatory mapping, environmental ethics, and the adaptation and re-use of existing buildings and spaces.

He has 20 years’ experience in architectural and urban design practice and research and has worked on a portfolio of award-winning and innovative projects relating to energy efficient design, universal accessibility and urban regeneration. Philip is co-founder of Space Engagers, a social enterprise focused on making towns and cities more resilient and sustainable that emerged from the EU FP7 TURAS project in UCD. He is also co-founder of the UCD Centre for Irish Towns, co-chair for Innovation and Social Entrepreneurship on the UCD Earth Institute Executive, and a member of the Collaborative Working Group for Housing and Sustainable Living with the Housing Agency and Heritage Council of Ireland.

Bruno has a PhD in Architecture and Urbanism from the University of Minas Gerais, Brazil. 

He has been researching future scenarios mapping with children at the University of Florence, Italy as well as the relationship between design thinking and serious games at the University of Technology, Vienna.  In his research he is looking at GIS (Geographic Information System) applied to landscape architecture in the form of geo-design, participatory planning with serious geo-games games and most recently climate adaptive planning.

Pauline is the Research Communications and IT Officer with CCAT (Coastal Communities Adapting Together) at the School of Architecture, Planning and Environmental Policy, University College Dublin. She has a diverse background working in the marine leisure, film and television, adult education, tourism and in the not-for-profit sector. She has extensive experience in project management, IT, content design, training needs analysis, customer service, logistics, event management, administration, financial and volunteer management. She produced several film and television programmes broadcast on RTE. She managed an award-winning adult education IT programme and the annual Silver Surfer Awards while working at Age Action and is a keen sailor having sailed in most parts for the world. She is passionate about marine conservation and studied oceanography, nautical science and maritime history in the USA.

Louise is the Research Manager in the School of Architecture, Planning and Environmental Policy in University College Dublin. Her past research has included: Environmental Indicators for the Urban Environment in Ireland; The Origin and Significance of Mushroom Rocks in Lowland Karst regions in Ireland; Economic and Environmental Implications of the use of Environmental Taxes and Charges in the EU and its Member States; Green Jobs in Dublin, Urban Resilience and Sustainability; and the introduction and effects of the Irish Carbon tax. 

Dylan is pursuing an MSc in the School of Geography, studying Applied Geospatial Analysis. His current research involves coastal erosion in Co. Wexford, Ireland using remote sensing techniques. Between 2018 and 2020, he was working in geophysical research while living in Vancouver, Canada. During this time, he worked on research projects in Northern British Colombia and Mexico. Dylan achieved a BA in Earth Sciences from Trinity College Dublin in 2017. His undergraduate dissertation concerned the geochemical mapping of soil radon in Bray, Co. Dublin/Co. Wicklow.