Mrs Emily Smyth (Ulster) The European Landscape Convention commits the Northern Ireland government since 2007 to recognising landscape as a common resource to which everyone has rights and responsibilities for culture, quality of life and individual and social wellbeing, and economic activity; that changes in the economy accelerate landscape transformation; and that cooperation in protection, … Read more
Dr Heather Ritchie and Prof Greg Lloyd (Ulster) The island of Ireland, though physically small, faces big institutional challenges for the delivery of a sustainable blue energy future. Challenges stem from separate governance regimes across the island; with several government departments controlling functions across planning and regulation. Marine Spatial Planning (MSP) is established as an … Read more
Prof J. Andrew G Cooper (Ulster) Recent storms on the Northern Ireland coast have caused widespread flooding and coastal erosion. Erosion threatens buildings, roads, railways and other infrastructure, but is also a vital natural process that sustains beaches, and is essential to maintenance of a healthy coastal ecosystem. Societal responses to erosion include: (a) hard … Read more
Prof Rory O’Connell (Ulster), Mr Eoin Rooney, Prof Colin Harvey (QUB) and Prof Aoife Nolan (Nottingham, ex QUB) This presentation discusses the findings of multidisciplinary research, to develop an approach to budget analysis, as applied to housing in Northern Ireland. The research is based upon a robust methodology incorporating economic analysis and legal principles, following … Read more
Ms Lindsay Shaw (Ulster) There are social inequality issues relating to low/limited income households being less able to afford a better standard of housing. While there is a ‘Fitness Standard’ (the minimum standard for housing in Northern Ireland), this is recognised as outdated and offers inadequate protection. In England, the fitness standard’ was replaced by … Read more
Prof Brigid Featherstone (OU) and Dr John Devaney (QUB) In both England and Northern Ireland there appears to be a policy consensus that early authoritative intervention is required with families in order to ensure vulnerable children do not remain too long in neglectful situations. Recent legislation in England – such as the Children and Families … Read more
Dr Alice Diver (Ulster) This presentation looks at the right to genetic identity/relatedness, with reference to some recent controversial cases involving adoption, surrogacy, donor children in the United Kingdom, the Republic of Ireland and elsewhere in Europe. Such comparative research indicates that in many cases the rights of the child are either over looked or … Read more
Dr Peter Bolan, Dr Karise Hutchinson and Mr Matthew Kearney (Ulster) This presentation explains that golf and film tourism are both highly lucrative and Northern Ireland must develop and plan for them in a more strategic manner. First it outlines findings from an extensive study (utilising surveys, interviews, and observation methods internationally and domestically) by … Read more
Dr Brendan Galbraith and Ms Kirsty McManus (Ulster) A key question is how do business models ensure that new high-tech innovations are responsible, benefit society and are well aligned to regional policy? This is an increasingly important question for policy-makers and high tech small firms in Northern Ireland. The question is important because although innovation adoption … Read more
Ms Michelle Douglas, Prof Karen Fleming and Prof Ian Montgomery (Ulster) In almost all the official Northern Ireland documentation highlighting statistics and reviews for the creative industries, there is very little differentiation of the sector and little recognition of design as a distinct and essential factor in success. With debate focused on end-product, digital and … Read more