Prof Paul Moynagh, Department of Biology

Weighing the evidence

In a post-pandemic world, public trust in research and science-based evidence is counteracting misinformation and speculation. Kathy Donaghy speaks to just a few of the Maynooth academics bringing their expertise to the public arena

The word ‘trust’ received much airing throughout Covid-19 as public health officials and governments grappled with the pandemic. It was clear that the odds of overcoming the challenges presented by the pandemic were low without the benefit of and a great deal of trust in professional expertise.

Pre-pandemic rhetoric saw expert opinion being shot down in flames – Trump’s abandonment of climate change pledges, and leading Brexit proponent Michael Gove proclaiming: “Oh, we’ve had enough of experts” seemed to herald a new era. But Covid-19 changed all that.

A major piece of work by the Pew Research Centre, a non-partisan thinktank that informs the public about the issues, attitudes and trends shaping the world, found that there is relatively high trust in scientists to do what is right for the public. Its survey of people from 20 locations around the world published last September found that scientists and their research are widely viewed in a positive light across global publics. It also found that large majorities believe government investment in scientific research yields benefits for society.

In this environment, Maynooth University academics across a wide range of areas are bringing their research-based evidence to the public arena. Some have become trusted voices called on to offer their insights in the media, while the work of others informs public policy.

Earlier this year, Environment Minister Eamon Ryan appointed MU Professor Peter Thorne – widely regarded as one of the country’s leading climate scientists – to the Climate Change Advisory Council.

He was already a leading contributor to the highly influential UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). By raising the profile of women’s role in the founding of the State, Professor Linda Connolly has shone a light into an often forgotten part of Irish history, while the views of Professor Mary Murphy, a member of the President’s Council of State, have become much sought after on social justice issues, particularly those affecting women. Meanwhile, in his work as Director of the Maynooth Centre for European and Eurasian Studies, Prof. John O’Brennan has been sought out as a trusted voice on Brexit.

Dr Levke Caesar, ICARUS Climate Research Institute and Department of Geography

It was important for science to articulate to the public the processes around vaccines, about how safe they were and to listen to the general concerns

According to Prof Paul Moynagh, Head of the Department of Biology and Professor of Immunology, there has been a change in public trust in science, and Covid-19 has been the propeller.

“We’ve seen the consequences of science over the last 18 months, none more so than in the development of vaccines,” he says. Without the development of vaccines we would be at a very different stage right now. “They’re doing what they were designed to do, which is to stop people getting really sick. People are seeing the benefits of science and research,” he says.

He acknowledges initial concern with the speed at which the vaccines were being developed, but the collaboration between pharmaceutical companies, governments and funding agencies cut through a lot of the usual bureaucracy.

Dr Pauline Cullen, Department of Sociology

It’s not just in the area of Covid-19 that the work of scientists is being called into the public arena. Dr Levke Caesar joined MU’s ICARUS climate centre in 2019 and believes that as more severe weather events affect more people, public scepticism about climate change is falling away. However, she also believes there’s still a long way to go.

A study published earlier this year from research led by Dr Caesar found that the Gulf Stream in the North Atlantic, which has a considerable effect on Ireland’s climate, is at its weakest in over a millennium.

In simple terms, Dr Caesar says we know that if we limit global warming we have a better chance of having fewer winter storms. “I do feel that change is coming but in tiny steps, and that frustrates me at times. I ask, ‘Have I done enough to motivate people?’

” However, she believes that more people are trying to understand the science. “There’s more interest in understanding the basics, and there are enough basics that are understandable. The only way to really convince people is if they understand the mechanics and understand that it leads to this outcome,” she adds.

According to Dr Pauline Cullen, lecturer in sociology, women’s voices still need to find the space to be heard. She describes the Women’s Task Force in the Department of Health as ‘a radical listening exercise’ to help inform policy.

Dr Cullen’s report on women’s representation in local government for the National Women’s Council, co-authored with Claire McGing, a graduate of the Department of Geography at Maynooth University, informed commitments made in the Programme for Government. She also worked as the analyst of public submissions made to the Citizens’ Assembly on gender equality.

It’s an indication of an appreciation for the widening and deepening of our understanding of what is evidence-based research

Dr Rory Hearne, lecturer in Social Policy, whose voice is often heard on the national airwaves on the hot topic of the housing crisis, believes that academics are supposed to be big thinkers – imagining what could be and what should be.

He points to the mission statement of the Department of Applied Social Studies to ‘promote human rights, social justice and equality, nationally and internationally, through excellence and innovation in education, research and public engagement that contribute to the development of the social professions and applied social sciences’.

“There is an ethical and moral responsibility on us to use our academic positions to intellectually develop solutions to societies’ critical challenges and to put those solutions into the public sphere; to engage with the effected groups in society in a dialogue as to the potential for these solutions, and to engage in public and media debate to make the case for them,” he says.

Dr Rory Hearne, Department of Applied Social Studies