'Formula For Economic Recovery' Discussed

In a keynote speech at the Digital Enterprise Research Institute Open Day in NUI Galway, the Minister for Research & Innovation, the TD, Sean Sherlock, has said Research between commercial and academia sectors is a winning formula for our economic recovery.

He said: "The 'clustering' model of scientific research, comprising an unprecedented degree of co-operation and collaboration between commercial and academic personnel, has been a winning formula here."

DERI, a Centre for Science, Engineering and Technology (CSET), supported by Government through Science-Foundation Ireland-funded, was established in 2003, and has become an internationally-renowned web science research centre, providing the technology, which underpins intelligent services on the Internet. Current research results include semantic search engines, novel collaboration and social media as well as sensor network technologies.

The DERI Open Day was attended by over 250 academics and industrialists who attended presentations and demonstrations on DERI's research, applied research and commercialisation activities. Also presenting were DERI’s key industrial partners and funders.

Minister Sherlock told the assembled group: "There is a story here to be told. It is a story of resilience, skill, steely determination and achievement. You are the characters who make the story and should be the tellers of that story."

The Minister added: "You have both a national and an international audience that I believe are eager to listen once their attention has been captured. The showcase demonstrates clearly the high quality research underway here at DERI, and at NUI Galway."

He added that DERI's impressive track record provided the Government with "considerable hope and indeed some expectation that science will be pivotal to our economic recovery" and referred to the Government's pledge in the Programme for Government to promote and support investment in technology research, development and commercialisation in line with an overall Digital Ireland strategy.

Professor Stefan Decker, Director of DERI said: "Our research showcases the innovation potential in the Irish ICT sector. Realising this innovation potential by contributing to a national and holistic Digital Ireland strategy is firmly on our agenda."

(BMcN/BMcC)