Charlemont Awards Ceremony 2017

The Ceremony

Mary E. Daly, President of the Academy presented the 2017 Charlemont scholars with their certificates and congratulated them on their success. Professor Daly noted the importance of the award and the diversity of disciplines awarded.

“The Charlemont Grants have a very special place in the intellectual life of the Royal Irish Academy, because they are awarded to researchers in the early stages of their careers. Charlemont grantees are drawn from the humanities, social sciences and natural sciences, the Charlemont grants do not distinguish between discipline or geography, the most important criteria in the awarding of a Charlemont grant is excellence because outstanding research transcends both disciplinary and geographical boundaries.”

Guests at the ceremony included members of the Irish higher education system, Members of the Academy and Council, former Charlemont scholars and friends and family of the current award winners.

Merit of the Charlemont Grant

Peter McHugh, International Affairs Secretary of the Academy highlighted the importance of travel and the cross pollination of ideas for research. Professor McHugh announced the scholars, their institutions and the destinations they will be travelling to. The diversity of locations included Iceland, China, Kenya and Canada.

Speaking at the ceremony, Dr Marek Martyniszyn, Law Lecturer at Queens University Belfast and former Charlemont Scholar, detailed his experiences of the scheme when he travelled to Japan to further his research on competition law in international and transnational domains. He expressed that the award presented him with a ‘unique opportunity’ to advance his research and career.

“Thanks to the award I was able to visit Japan in June last year to present and seek feedback on some of my preliminary work on that topic. I was able to deepen my understanding of this field of law and to develop international networks.

About the Charlemont Grant

Named in honour of the Academy’s first President and notable Grand Tourist, James Caulfeild, the 1st Earl of Charlemont (1728–99), this scheme is the successor to the acclaimed Mobility Grants, which was established by the Academy in 2007. Building on the success of the scheme, the Charlemont Grants are unique in offering funding for short international research trips, to support primary research in any area.

Since its inception the scheme has had a significant impact. It has funded over 180 projects and sent researchers to over fifty countries.  Charlemont Grants fund between 20 and 30 individual grantees each year in the sciences, humanities and social sciences. In 2017 the Academy awarded 23 recipients.

Further information on the scheme and the full range of Academy grants on offer are available through our dedicated grants pages. The call for applications to the 2018 Charlemont Grants scheme will open in early autumn.

If you would like to receive a notification for the 2018 call for applications, please email: grants@ria.ie