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University of Galway and Ethiopian Public Health Institute have partnered to conduct research and innovation activities to enable transitions to more sustainable, healthy and affordable diets in Addis Ababa city region The Ethiopian Public Health Institute (EPHI) and University of Galway in have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to deepen their partnership research and educational activities on the theme of “Nutrition, Food Systems and Public Health”. The EPHI is the key research institute of the Ethiopian Ministry of Health, while University of Galway is Ireland’s leading university on sustainable development.  The partnership between the EPHI and University of Galway, formalised through a Memorandum of Understanding, coincides with the 2nd UN Food Systems Summit Stocktake (UNFSS+4) taking place in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia between July 27-29th 2025. The UNFSS+4 is a global multistakeholder platform to accelerate food systems transformation in support of the 2030 Agenda and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). In January, for the African continent, the UNFSS+4 builds further from the momentum of the Kampala Declaration adopted by African Union member states in January 2025, which aims to build resilient and sustainable agrifood systems in Africa. Aligned with UNFSS+4 and Kampala Declaration policy goals, the EPHI - University of Galway Memorandum of Understanding establishes a framework for joint research, educational and capacity development initiatives on sustainable, resilient and healthy food systems between the two organisations. The partnership builds on ongoing collaboration resulting from the EcoFoodSystems project funded by the European Union and the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), which is led by University of Galway. EcoFoodSystems is conducting research with national stakeholders in Ethiopia to enable transitions towards diets that are more sustainable, healthy and affordable in Addis Ababa city region. By 2050, more than 70% of the world population will be living in urban areas, mostly living in rapidly expanding city regions. The EcoFoodSystems project is focused on enabling sustainable food systems transitions in Addis Ababa, a city of almost 6 million people which will expand to 12 million people by 2050, largely driven by inward migration. On March 18th 2025, EPHI and University jointly ran a multistakeholder EcoFoodSystems workshop in Addis Ababa to identify key priorities for transitions towards sustainable food systems and diets in the city region.             Speaking on the inter-institutional partnership, Project Leader of the EcoFoodSystems project, Professor Charles Spillane of University of Galway said: “The future of food systems will be dictated by what foods are consumed in urban areas, particularly rapidly growing city regions such as Addis Ababa. The foods that are purchased and consumed in urban areas will increasingly dictate what is grown in rural areas. Given that over 3 billion people cannot afford a healthy diet, a key challenge facing our agriculture and food systems is how to deliver a sustainable, healthy and affordable diet for city regions, while strengthening the livelihoods of rural food producers. The University of Galway is honoured to work with the EPHI on research, education and innovation activities to address this grand challenge.”             Dr Masresha Tessema. Director of the Nutrition, Environmental Health and Non-communicable Disease Research Directorate, Ethiopian Public Health Institute, said: “The partnership with the University of Galway offers a valuable opportunity for EPHI to strengthen evidence-based decision-making across Ethiopia’s food and nutrition systems. Through the EcoFoodSystems project, this collaboration supports our national goals by building local research capacity, fostering innovative approaches to sustainable diets, and aligning multisectoral efforts to improve nutrition and public health outcomes.”             Ambassador of Ireland to Ethiopia, Olivia Leslie, further added: “I welcome the signature of this Memorandum of Understanding between the University of Galway and the Ethiopian Public Health Institute. The agreement will deepen collaboration and research between the institutions on food systems and nutrition, and it is fitting that is being announced during this week’s UN Food Systems Summit here in Addis Ababa. For over 30 years, Ireland’s development partnerships in Ethiopia have had a strong focus on supporting health, nutrition, and inclusive economic growth, particularly for women and girls. Effective food systems are a critical underpinning to this.” The new partnership between University of Galway and EPHI marks an important step in aligning public health and food systems research to tackle the challenges of urbanisation, climate change, and the double burden of malnutrition in Addis Ababa and Ethiopia. The new partnership will allow the institutions to join forces to generate evidence, build capacity, and inform policy pathways that can improve the health and sustainability of food systems in Addis Ababa and beyond. Ends

University achieves 14th Athena SWAN Award with Bronze for School of Languages Literatures and Cultures University of Galway has earned further significant recognition in the advancement of equality with the School of Languages Literatures and Cultures securing an Athena SWAN award.  The School of Languages Literatures and Cultures in the University’s College of Arts, Social Sciences and Celtic Studies has secured the Athena SWAN Ireland – Bronze, reflecting the collective commitment of the School to equality, diversity and inclusion. The School’s application highlighted a range of initiatives that will be taken, including supporting staff from outside of Ireland to achieve their full potential and ensuring students feel welcome and supported in their studies regardless of their sex, race or financial background. This latest Athena SWAN accreditation sees a total of 12 Bronze Awards and two Silver Awards in the University, along with an institutional Bronze Award which was renewed in 2021. Fourteen out of the University’s eighteen Schools now hold Athena SWAN Awards. Dr Helen Maher, Vice-President for Equality Diversity and Inclusion, University of Galway, said: “We are delighted to share in the congratulations for the School of Languages Literatures and Cultures. We are greatly encouraged by the significant progress our university continues to make on gender and additional equality grounds. “Achieving the School’s first Bronze Award is a testament to our colleagues’ vision, philosophy and commitment to gender equality and progressing equality, diversity and inclusion in our culture and our collective responsibilities.”   Professor Patrick Crowley, Head of the School of Languages Literatures and Cultures, University of Galway, said: “This award is the fruit of great collaboration and a radical commitment to making institutional structures more just and more inclusive for all our colleagues in the School and for all our students. The process also brought to the fore so much good that has always been at the heart of our School. The EDI committee, under the brilliant, fierce leadership of Dr Catherine Emerson, will continue this interrogation and ongoing work.” Ends

University of Galway spin-out Lua Health has officially launched its next-generation, AI-powered, workforce wellbeing intelligence platform. Founded in 2023, Lua has pioneered proprietary AI algorithms capable of accurately detecting early indicators of declining wellbeing based on how a person writes. Lua is fully GDPR-compliant and 100% anonymised, integrating seamlessly with enterprise communication tools like Microsoft Teams and deploying in under a week. Designed for enterprise scale, Lua delivers a real-time, evidence-based solution for organisations ready to move from reactive care to proactive, precision-led wellbeing.By discreetly analysing written language across workplace communication platforms, Lua identifies early signs of stress, burnout, and disengagement - without accessing private messages or individual identities. Employees may receive personalised, opt-in prompts to support self-awareness, while leaders gain aggregated insights at the team, department, or location level. The result is timely, data-driven intervention that improves outcomes and prevents issues before they escalate. A spin-out of University of Galway’s Business Innovation Centre and Insight, the Research Ireland Centre for Data Analytics, Lua was founded by University alumnus Dr Mihael Arcan. Dr Mihael Arcan, founder and chief executive of Lua, said: “While it is about identifying issues as early as possible, it is also about creating a workplace that is appealing and placing a priority on attracting and retaining talent.” Lua has been backed by Enterprise Ireland’s commercialisation fund and private investment company Growing Capital. Gianni Matera, Founder of Growing Capital, said: “With Lua, organisations can move from reactive care to precision wellbeing - building healthier, higher-performing teams. We are proud to support Lua’s mission to help individuals better understand and manage their wellbeing before issues become crises.” Lua’s technology is research-driven, interdisciplinary innovation at the intersection of AI and psychology - designed to deliver measurable wellbeing outcomes, reduce attrition, and demonstrate clear return on investment. Lua combines behavioural science, data analytics and enterprise technology to deliver a disruptive approach to organisational wellbeing. By passively analysing written language and interaction patterns within enterprise communication platforms like Microsoft Teams, Lua detects early indicators of stress, burnout and disengagement. These insights enable precisely targeted, personalised interventions, improving outcomes while reducing the burden on internal teams. Lua is helping forward-thinking companies deliver personalised, data-informed support at scale. One such partnership is with the CPL Group, a consultancy business that explores, questions and designs future work solutions. Maria Souza, Future of Work Institute, CPL Group, said: “Lua presents a highly impressive and insightful approach. What stood out most is the significant value it can deliver through its methodology alone.” Ends