IIEA Talks

On 27 June, the European Parliament’s ENVI Committee will vote on a hugely significant piece of legislation, which will have far-reaching implications for Irish farming, agriculture and land use. The Nature Restoration Regulation, which aims to restore Europe’s degraded ecosystems, could also have major political implications for Ireland. In this keynote address, Senator Pippa Hackett, Minister of State in the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine with responsibility for Land Use and Biodiversity, discusses the overarching aims of the Nature Restoration Regulation, the challenges facing Europe with regard to the restoration of land and sea areas, and the significance of the legislation in an Irish context. About the Speaker: Senator Pippa Hackett has served as Minister of State at the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine since June 2020, where she is responsible for the Land Use and Biodiversity portfolio. Minister Hackett is an organic farmer and holds an undergraduate degree in agricultural science, and a PhD in equine science. Minister Hackett was first elected as a Senator for the Agricultural Panel in a by-election in 2019, and was re-elected to Seanad Éireann in 2020. Upon the formation of the current coalition Government, she was appointed Minister of State with Responsibility for Land Use and Biodiversity. Minister Hackett is the first Senator to have been appointed as Minister of State and is one of three Ministers of State attending Cabinet.

As a close aide to Michel Barnier, Stefaan de Rynck had a ringside seat to the Brexit negotiations. His new book, Inside the Deal: How the EU Got Brexit Done (Agenda Publishing), tells the story of Brexit from a Brussels perspective and charts the changing negotiating positions and obstacles that shaped the final deal. Mr de Rynck argues that the EU controlled the Brexit process from the outset. In his keynote address to the IIEA, which is taking place almost 7 years to the day since the original Brexit vote, Stefaan de Rynck explains his view that it was the EU, not Boris Johnson's Britain, that got Brexit done. About the Speaker: Stefaan De Rynck is a former Senior Adviser to Michel Barnier, who was the European Union's Chief Negotiator for Brexit. Previously, he was also a Head of Unit in various departments of the European Commission, where he has worked on financial service regulation, economic integration in the single market, regulatory standard-setting, and regional and urban development. He is now head of the European Commission's Representation in Belgium, and a visiting professor in European Politics at KU Leuven. He will speak as author of the book in a personal capacity.

'Ireland’s Public Finances: Issues and Challenges' Sebastian Barnes, Chair of the Irish Fiscal Advisory Council, in conversation with Dan O’Brien, IIEA Chief Economist

A decade ago, the eyes of the world watched as the ‘Euromaidan’ protests – which centred around the subject of Ukrainian integration into the European Union (EU) – were followed by Russia’s illegal annexation of Crimea in 2014. Putin’s subsequent invasion of Ukraine in 2022 has led to the largest war on European soil since World War II. In this virtual keynote address, Olga Stefanishyna, Deputy Prime Minister for European and Euro-Atlantic Integration of Ukraine, will assess the state of play on the ground in Ukraine, and share her valuable insights into the prospects for victory, integration with the EU, and ultimately, for a more peaceful Europe. The address was held live in the IIEA headquarters, with the Ambassador of Ukraine to Ireland, Larysa Gerasko, joining in person to make opening remarks. About the Speaker Olga Stefanishyna has been a Deputy Prime Minister for European and Euro-Atlantic Integration of Ukraine since June 2020. In this role, she is tasked with overseeing Ukrainian integration into the EU and NATO, as well as coordination of gender equality policies and the Green Deal. A professional lawyer, Deputy Prime Minister Stefanishyna started her career in the Ministry of Justice of Ukraine, where she worked on the reforms that led to granting Ukraine the visa-free regime within the EU, and took part in negotiations on the EU-Ukraine Association Agreement. From 2017 to 2019, she served as a Director-General in the Government Office for Coordination of European and Euro-Atlantic Integration of Ukraine, and in 2022, she led Ukraine’s EU membership bid that resulted in granting EU candidate status to Ukraine. She is a member of the National Security and Defence Council of Ukraine and chairs Ukraine’s Commission for Equal Rights for Women and Men. Her Excellency Ms Larysa Gerasko served in a wide range of positions for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine, before being appointed Ambassador to Ireland in 2021. Her work as Ambassador has focused on fostering political, economic and cultural cooperation between the two countries, and her persuasive advocacy on human rights issues has raised awareness of, and garnered support for, the Ukrainian cause since the Russian invasion in 2022.

In 2023, the UN Human Rights Office is running a year-long initiative to mark the 75th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. While the Declaration is a milestone document in the history of human rights, today the world is facing a multitude of intersecting crises which threaten the universal enjoyment of human rights, even as human rights offer powerful tools to address and overcome these challenges. High Commissioner Türk discusses the need to rejuvenate a worldwide consensus on human rights in the context of major challenges such as increasing restrictions on civil society and civic space, the climate crisis, new and emerging technologies and artificial intelligence, and threats to peace and security. About the Speaker: Volker Türk was appointed as the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights in 2022. Prior to this, Mr. Türk was the Under-Secretary-General for Policy in the Executive Office of the United Nations Secretary-General. Over the course of his career, he held a number of key positions including as Assistant High Commissioner for Protection in the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) in Geneva (2015-2019), during which time he played a key role in the development of the landmark Global Compact on Refugees. Mr. Türk holds a doctorate in international law from the University of Vienna and a Master of Laws degree from the University of Linz, Austria.

In this event, an expert panel explores how media pluralism and independence can be maintained amidst the digital transformation and against the background of deteriorating media freedom across Europe. This panel examines how the European Commission’s European Media Freedom Act (EMFA) might help to protect media independence and pluralism amidst the digital transformation and assesses the EMFA’s implications for the digitalisation of media in both Ireland and Europe. The panel also considers how the EMFA may interact with other digital policies such as the EU’s Audiovisual Media Services Directive (AVMSD), the Digital Services Act (DSA), and the Code of Practice on Disinformation. The panel also considers the implications of these issues for Ireland. This event is organised in collaboration with the Economic Regulators Network (ERN), a cross-sectoral group of economic regulators in Ireland. The ERN is composed of the Commission for Communications Regulation (ComReg), Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (CCPC), Commission for Regulation of Utilities (CRU), Coimisiún na Meán, the Central Bank of Ireland, the National Transport Authority (NTA), and the Commission for Aviation Regulation. For more information about the ERN, please visit the ERN website at https://www.econreg.ie/ This panel includes: Anna Herold, Head of the Audiovisual and Media Policy Unit in DG CONNECT, European Commission; Renate Schroeder, Director of the European Federation of Journalists; Dr Eileen Culloty, Assistant Professor in the School of Communications, Dublin City University (DCU), Deputy Director of the Institute for Media, Democracy and Society (FUJO); Celene Craig, Commissioner at Coimisiún na Meán (the Media Commission)

It is well documented that women’s participation in democratic transitions improves the likelihood of peace negotiations arriving at settlements and parties reaching sustainable agreements. While there have been landmark achievements since the Women, Peace and Security (WPS) agenda was established through the UN Security Council Resolution 1325 in 2000, there is a need for honest reflection on remaining challenges and the way ahead. Major General O’Brien discusses the essential next steps that the international community must take to advance the Women, Peace and Security (WPS) agenda, both on the ground and in international policy. About the Speaker: A native of Galway city, Major General Maureen O’Brien graduated from University College Galway (UCG) with B.Sc. and H.Dip.Ed before being awarded a cadetship in Óglaigh na hÉireann in 1981. In 2021, Major General O’Brien was appointed to her current role as Deputy Military Advisor to the UN Under Secretary General for Peace Operations. She is Ireland’s first female officer to reach the rank of Brigadier General. During her career, Maj-Gen O’Brien has amassed extensive overseas service, most recently as Deputy Force Commander in UNDOR in Syria, and prior to that, peacekeeping experience in Chad and Lebanon.

Ireland stands at a critical juncture on the path toward a cleaner, greener economy, as policymakers strive to simultaneously meet climate commitments, protect energy security, and deliver a just transition for consumers. In the first lecture of the 2023 REthink Energy lecture series, which is co-organised by the IIEA and ESB, Professor David Newbery delivers an address on the subject of Electricity in Ireland: transition and the energy crisis, when he assesses the state of play of Ireland’s electricity sector, identifies the core challenges facing the electricity market and shares his insights on how best to overcome them. Professor Newbery is an Emeritus Professor in Economics at the University of Cambridge, where he also serves as Director of The Energy Policy Research Group (EPRG). Along with his stellar academic work on commodity price stabilisation – which saw him co-author a book with Nobel laureate Joseph Stiglitz – Professor Newbery specialises in energy economics and has written extensively on the regulation of electricity markets. His CV also includes time spent as a member of the Environmental Economics academic panel for the UK Government’s Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (DEFRA); an occasional role as a consultant to the World Bank; and a 10-year stint on Ireland’s Single Electricity Market Committee.

According to José Manuel Campa, Chairperson of the EBA, the increase in interest rates and uncertain macroeconomic environment have resulted in the materialisation of some risks impacting the banking sector. After years of increased resilience, the ability of the EU banking sector to weather these challenges is paramount to ensure economic resilience. A strong banking system will also provide support to the transition to a sustainable European economy. In his address to the IIEA, Mr Campa argues that regulation and supervision have contributed to strengthening the sector and the EU needs to continue to pursue a banking sector that supports the economy for the challenges ahead. About the Speaker: José Manuel Campa is the current Chairperson of the European Banking Authority. After studying law and economics at the University of Oviedo and earning his PhD in economics from Harvard University, Mr Campa taught finance at New York University and the IESE Business School and consulted for a number of international organisations including the World Bank, the IMF, the Bank for International Settlements, and the European Commission. He then served as the 10th Secretary of State for Economy of the Spanish Government and was most recently Director of Regulatory Affairs of Santander Bank.

In this third event in a series of webinars, co-organised by the IIEA and the European Parliament Liaison Office (EPLO) in Ireland, an expert panel of speakers discusses the future of work and the effects that digitalisation will have on the working lives of citizens throughout the Union and its Member States. The panel also discusses the crucial role that the European Parliament can, and is, playing in shaping this future. Speakers at this event include: Deirdre Clune, Member of the European Parliament, EPP Group, Ireland Jorge Cabrita, Research Manager in Working Life Unit, Eurofound Barry Colfer, Director of Research, IIEA