Defining and Supporting Public Engagement at University College Dublin: Summary Report

Public engagement is recognised as a pathway to impact and currently there is an increased focus from policy and funding agencies on how universities engage with diverse audiences beyond the institution. There are already a wide range of creative and innovative public engagement activities underway across UCD. These include a spectrum of forms of engagement from informing and inspiring audiences through lectures or articles, to co-producing and co-designing research with members of the public (including patients and other stakeholders). A Public Engagement (PE) Working Group was recently established to further develop a culture of public engagement in UCD. The PE Working Group established that a definition of public engagement in UCD should be developed. This was done through a number of collaborative workshops with UCD staff (academic and administrative) and a workshop with members of the public held during the UCD Festival on the June 6th 2018. Without any information available on the public engagement activities that are underway across the university, the PE Working Group undertook a census of public engagement activity in UCD. A total of 322 submissions were received in the census. Based on the census and workshops, the PE Working Group outline key proposals to develop a more supported, cohesive and encultured approach to Public Engagement in our university.