Using Evidence to Influence Policy

Using Evidence to Influence Policy: Pathways for Early and Mid-Career Researchers

How can early and mid-career researchers meaningfully influence public policy, inform decision-makers, and contribute to evidence-informed change?

As the demand for robust scientific input into national and international policy grows, researchers at earlier career stages are increasingly seeking opportunities to engage—but often lack clear pathways, access points, and examples of how to begin.

This event, led by members of the Young Academy of Ireland (YAI), aims to open up that conversation and provide practical, research-driven insights into how emerging scholars can contribute to policy processes in impactful and sustainable ways.

The session brings together three contributors who work at the intersection of research, policy, and science advice: Associate Professor Jennifer McMahon (University of Limerick), Dr Karina Doorley (Economic and Social Research Institute), and Dr Kieran Walsh (Health Information and Quality Authority).

All three are active members of the YAI’s Evidence for Policy network which recently held its first Evidence for Policy summit led by Dr Doorley and Dr Walsh. Associate Professor McMahon is also an Executive member of the Young Academies Science Advice Structure (YASAS), a coordinated European initiative that provides science advice to the European Commission.

This event may be recorded for future promotional use by University of Limerick.

All venues are wheelchair accessible but should you have any specific accessibility queries, please contact us at: research@ul.ie

Speakers

Dr Karina Doorley

Karina is a labour economist at the Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI) having spent the early part of her career at the Institute for Labor Economics (IZA) in Germany and at the Luxembourg Institute of Socio-Economic Research (LISER), investigating how policy, institutions and demographic change influence labour supply and income distribution.

In 2017, she moved to the ESRI and currently co-leads the ESRI’s Tax, Welfare and Pensions team, which develops and maintains the SWITCH microsimulation model used by a number of government departments in their budgetary processes. Karina is also an Adjunct Professor at Trinity College Dublin, a Research Fellow at the Institute of Labor Economics, a member of Young Academy Ireland, a member of the Irish Fiscal Advisory Council and sits on the board of the International Microsimulation Association

Dr Kieran Walsh

Kieran is a member of Young Academy Ireland, Deputy Director of Health Technology Assessment (HTA) in the Health Information and Quality Authority (HIQA) and an Adjunct Clinical Senior Lecturer in the School of Pharmacy, University College Cork.

He oversees the Strategy, Support and Research Function within the HTA Directorate with the overarching aim of supporting the provision of evidence-based advice to national policy- and decision-makers. Kieran also oversees the team with responsibility for the generic justification of new practices involving medical exposure to ionising radiation. Kieran is a registered pharmacist with experience in community, hospital and clinical trial settings. He has a strong research profile and has won several national awards for his work.

Associate Professor Jennifer McMahon

Jennifer is Head of the Department of Psychology at University of Limerick, where she leads teaching and research in psychological science. She is a member of the Young Academy of Ireland and serves as an Executive Member of the Young Academies Science Advice Structure (YASAS), contributing to international science advice for policy.

Jennifer also chairs the Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) Working Group for SAPEA (Science Advice for Policy by European Academies), supporting the integration of inclusive practices within European science advisory processes.

Her own research is concerned with understanding, promoting, and intervening to support young people’s mental health and wellbeing, with a particular emphasis on school-based contexts. Her work focuses on evidence-based interventions, prevention, and the translation of psychological research into policy and practice and she has been selected by the International Science Council and World Health Organization as an advisor for policy focused research in youth mental health.