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Dr. Mairéad Hurley

Assistant Professor (Education)
      
Profile Photo

Dr. Mairéad Hurley

Assistant Professor (Education)

 MAIREAD.HURLEY@tcd.ie

 


Dr Mairéad Hurley is Assistant Professor in Science & Society Education at Trinity College Dublin, and Co-Director of the Trinity Science & Society Research Centre. Her work explores the role of science learning in shaping socially and environmentally just and sustainable futures, using critical participatory and transdisciplinary methodologies. She has a particular interest in arts-based approaches and non-formal learning environments that connect the STEM disciplines with the arts, and integrates her own creative practice as a traditional musician to explore the potential for Irish traditional arts and folklore to inform contemporary environmental education and science engagement. Mairéad is Principal Investigator of LEVERS, a €2.4M Horizon Europe, UKRI and SERI project developing cross-sectoral approaches to education for climate justice. Prior to joining the School of Education, she was Head of Research & Learning at Science Gallery Dublin, where she led the €3M European Commission-funded SySTEM 2020 project, which mapped informal science learning in 22 countries. Across her career she has contributed to research projects supported by the European Commission, Wellcome, Taighde Éireann - Research Ireland, and other national and international funders. Mairéad is the lead for science teacher education on Trinity's Professional Master of Education, where she teaches science methods and pedagogy to pre-service post-primary teachers. She is a member of the Editorial Board for the journal Science Education, serving as an editor for the section "Science Learning in Everyday Life". She holds a PhD in astronomy from Dublin City University, a Professional Diploma in Education from University College Dublin, and a BSc in Physics & Astronomy from the University of Galway.
  Non-formal Science Education   SCIENCE COMMUNICATION   Science Education   science teacher education   STEAM Education   STEM EDUCATION
Project Title
 LEVERS: Learning Ventures for Climate Justice
From
01/03/2023
To
28/02/2026
Summary
The LEVERS project has been awarded €2.4M from the European Commission, UKRI & SERI to investigate the potential of localised learning ecosystems to support community climate responses in nine countries: Ireland, the UK, Portugal, Belgium, Switzerland, Slovenia, Serbia, Greece, and Cyprus. The project researches the implementation of a transdisciplinary, lifelong-learning approach to science education in diverse settings across Europe, addressing the complex challenge of the climate and environmental crisis.
Funding Agency
European Commission [+UKRI + SERI]
Programme
Horizon Europe
Project Type
Coordination and Support Action
Person Months
247
Project Title
 Critical ChangeLab
From
01/04/2023
To
31/03/2026
Summary
DEMOCRACY MEETS ARTS: CRITICAL CHANGE LABS FOR BUILDING DEMOCRATIC CULTURES THROUGH CREATIVE AND NARRATIVE PRACTICES The overall goal of the Critical ChangeLab project is to strengthen democracy in Europe by creating and implementing a flexible model of democratic pedagogy using a bottom-up approach that empowers young people to `own" everyday democracy and engage in direct action towards justice-oriented transformations. The Model is created following a participatory process with youth, educators, and other stakeholders, using Participatory Action Research (PAR) and participatory evaluation. The Critical ChangeLab project aims to build a resilient European democracy by reinvigorating the relationship between youth and democracy through civic interventions in which young people envision alternative futures for (shared) European democracy, and act on that. The project aims to create a flexible Critical ChangeLab Model for Democratic Pedagogy in and through learning environments. In the model, learning environments implement Critical ChangeLabs, which draw on creative and critical practices for supporting youth-led civic interventions. These interventions tackle societal challenges that are close and relevant for youth. To address these challenges, youth are invited to explore the past-present-future of a given situation, rethinking democratic systems, and making justice-oriented transformations. The target groups for the project and the Critical ChangeLabs are 11-18-year-old youth in formal and non-formal learning environments, but the Labs will also include civil society organisations and industry, and citizens in co-creation activities. The aim is to grow young people's transformative agency by supporting them to make a difference in their close environments and co-build democracy. The Critical ChangeLab Model will be created and implemented in collaboration with stakeholders " youth, educators, civil society organisations and industry and citizens in nine partner countries including Ireland " in three cycles of research, drawing on participatory design and action research traditions in its working as well as in creative and narrative practices. Critical ChangeLab will also contribute to European democracy education via teacher education and professional development actions. The Model and the research outputs will generate robust evidence for democratic curriculum development.
Funding Agency
European Commission
Programme
Horizon Europe
Project Type
Research and Innovation Action
Person Months
373

Details Date
Member: Expert Advisory Board for Education and Public Engagement at CÚRAM, SFI Research Centre for Medical Devices. 2021
Hurley, Mairéad, Achiam, Marianne, Unlearning modernity: remaking science education in the Anthropocene, Humanities and Social Sciences Communications, 13, (1), 2026, Journal Article, PUBLISHED  DOI
Science Educators for Palestine, Science educators cannot remain silent: a call for Palestinian solidarity, Cultural Studies of Science Education, 2026, Journal Article, PUBLISHED  DOI
Youth, Imagination, and the Postdigital: Reflections from Participatory Speculative Design Activities. in, editor(s)Jandri", P., Suoranta, J., Teräs, M., Davis, H. , Postdigital (Re)Imaginations. Postdigital Science and Education, Cham, Springer, 2025, [Durall Gazulla, E., Hurley, M., Iivari, N., Kinnula, M., Babai, N., Niaz, Y.], Book Chapter, PUBLISHED  DOI
Marianne Achiam, Sabrina Vitting-Seerup, Mairéad Hurley, Clayton Micallef Grimaud, Raphaël Chanay, Dobrivoje Lale Eric, Sheena Laursen, Vasyl Dunets, Pedro Russo, Practical rationales for art-science in science communication, International Journal of Science Education Part B, 2025, p1 - 14, p1-14 , Journal Article, PUBLISHED  DOI
Mede, Niels G., Cologna, Viktoria, Berger, Sebastian, C. Besley, John, Brick, Cameron, Joubert, Marina, W. Maibach, Edward, Mihelj, Sabina, Oreskes, Naomi, S. Schäfer, Mike, van der Linden, Sander, Abdul Aziz, Nor Izzatina, Abdulsalam, Suleiman, Abu Shamsi, Nurulaini, Aczel, Balazs, Adinugroho, Indro, Alabrese, Eleonora, Aldoh, Alaa, Alfano, Mark, Mbulli Ali, Innocent, Alsobay, Mohammed, Altenmüller, Marlene, Alvarez, R. Michael, Ansah, Patrick, Apriliawati, Denisa, Azevedo, Flavio, Bajrami, Ani, Bardhan, Ronita, Bati, Keagile, Bertsou, Eri, Bhui, Rahul, Bia"obrzeska, Olga, Bilewicz, Michal, Bouguettaya, Ayoub, Breeden, Katherine, Bret, Amélie, Buchel, Ondrej, Cabrera Alvarez, Pablo, Cagnoli, Federica, Calero Valdez, André, Callaghan, Timothy, Kaye Cases, Rizza, Czarnek, Gabriela, Debnath, Ramit, Delouvée, Sylvain, Di Stefano, Lucia, Diaz-Catalàn, Celia, C. Doell, Kimberly, Dohle, Simone, M. Douglas, Karen, Dubrov, Dmitrii, Dzimi"ska, Malgorzata, K. H. Ecker, Ullrich, T. Elbaek, Christian, Elsherif, Mahmoud, Enke, Benjamin, Facciani, Matthew, Fage-Butler, Antoinette, Faisal, Md. Zaki, Fan, Xiaoli, Farhart, Christina, Feldhaus, Christoph, Ferreira, Marinus, Feuerriegel, Stefan, Fischer, Helen, Freundt, Jana, Friese, Malte, Gallyamova, Albina, E. Garrido Vásquez, Mauricio, Garrido-Vásquez, Patricia, Genschow, Olivier, Ghasemi, Omid, Gkinopoulos, Theofilos, L. Gloor, Jamie, Goddard, Ellen, González Brambila, Claudia, Gordon, Hazel, Grigoryev, Dmitry, Guenther, Lars, Harari, Dana, Hensel, Przemys"aw, Hernández-Mondragón, Alma Cristal, Herziger, Atar, Huang, Guanxiong, Huff, Markus, Hurley, Mairéad, Ibadildin, Nygmet, Tarikul Islam, Mohammad, Jeddi, Younes, Jin, Tao, A. Jones, Charlotte, Jungkunz, Sebastian, Jurgiel, Dominika, Kavassalis, Sarah, R. Kerr, John, Kitsa, Mariana, Klabíková Rábová, Tereza, Klein, Olivier, Koh, Hoyoun, Koivula, Aki, Kojan, Lilian, Komyaginskaya, Elizaveta, König, Laura, Koppel, Lina, Koren, Kochav, Kosachenko, Alexandra, Kotcher, John, S. Kranz, Laura, Krishnan, Pradeep, Kristiansen, Silje, Krouwel, André, Kuppens, Toon, Lamm, Claus, Lantian, Anthony, Lazi", Aleksandra, Légal, Jean-Baptiste, Leviston, Zoe, Levy, Neil, M. Lindkvist, Amanda, López Ortega, Alberto, Lopez-Villavicencio, Carlos, Löschel, Andreas, Mantou Lou, Nigel, H. Lucas, Chloe, Lunz-Trujillo, Kristin, D. Marques, Mathew, J. Mayer, Sabrina, McKay, Ryan, Metag, Julia, L. Milfont, Taciano, M. Miller, Joanne, Mitkidis, Panagiotis, Monge-Rodríguez, Fredy, Motta, Matt, Murši", Zarja, Namutebi, Jennifer, J. Newman, Eryn, P. Nitschke, Jonas, Ntui-Njock, Vincent Ntui, Nwogwugwu, Daniel, Ostermann, Thomas, Otterbring, Tobias, Palmer-Hague, Jaime, Pantazi, Myrto, Pärnamets, Philip, Parra Saiani, Paolo, Paruzel-Czachura, Mariola, Parzuchowski, Michal, G. Pavlov, Yuri, R. Pearson, Adam, Penner, Myron A., R. Pennington, Charlotte, Petkanopoulou, Katerina, B. Petrovi", Marija, Pisareva, Dinara, Ploszaj, Adam, Pronizius, Ekaterina, Pštross, Karolína, Pypno-Blajda, Katarzyna, A. Quiñones, Diwa Malaya, Räsänen, Pekka, Rauchfleisch, Adrian, G. Rebitschek, Felix, Refojo Seronero, Cintia, Rêgo, Gabriel, Reynolds, James P., Roche, Joseph, Philipp Röer, Jan, M. Ross, Robert, Ruin, Isabelle, Santos, Osvaldo, R. Santos, Ricardo, Schulreich, Stefan, Scoggins, Bermond, Shuckburg, Public Communication about Science in 68 Countries: Global Evidence on How People Encounter and Engage with Information about Science, Science Communication, 2025, Journal Article, PUBLISHED  DOI
Viktoria Cologna, Simona Meiler, Chahan M. Kropf, Samuel Lüthi, Niels G. Mede, David N. Bresch, Oscar Lecuona, Sebastian Berger, John Besley, Cameron Brick, Marina Joubert, Edward W. Maibach, Sabina Mihelj, Naomi Oreskes, Mike S. Schäfer, Sander van der Linden & TISP Consortium, Extreme weather event attribution predicts climate policy support across the world, Nature Climate Change, 15, 2025, p725 - 735, Journal Article, PUBLISHED  DOI
Cologna, V., Mede, N.G., Berger, S. et al., Trust in scientists and their role in society across 68 countries, Nature Human Behaviour, 2025, p1 - 22, Journal Article, PUBLISHED  TARA - Full Text  DOI  URL
Mede, N.G., Cologna, V., Berger, S. et al., Perceptions of science, science communication, and climate change attitudes in 68 countries " the TISP dataset, Scientific Data, 2025, p1 - 27, Journal Article, PUBLISHED  TARA - Full Text  DOI  URL
Vlad Gl"veanu, Penny Hay, Hannah McDowall, Tom Doust, Shannon Welles, Goldie Chaudhuri, Anne Pender, Mairéad Hurley, Ecologies of Collective Imagination, International Journal of Art & Design Education, 2025, Journal Article, PUBLISHED  DOI  URL
Roche, J., Hurley, M., Fowler, K., McConville, A., Taylor, A., Mede, N. G. & Cologna, V., Science and Society in Ireland: Examining Public Trust in Scientists against a Global Background, Irish Educational Studies, 2025, p1 - 22, Journal Article, PUBLISHED  TARA - Full Text  DOI  URL
  

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Ashley Laflin, Ng, Julie, Vesseur, Eva, Durall, Eva, Malinverni, Laura, Niaz, Yusra, Del Razo Martínez, Guadalupe Patricia, White, Caitlin, Hurley, Mairéad, Newman, Andrew, Ag Cruthú an Daonlathais: Modhanna Cruthaitheacha don Óige agus d'Oideachasóirí, European Organization for Nuclear Research, 2026, Book, PUBLISHED
Durall, E., Hurley, M., Niaz, Y., Laflin, A., Ng, J., Vesseur, E., Malinverni, L., Del Razo Martínez, G. P., Porquer, J. M., Hernández-Hernández, F., Couto, R., White, C., Learning for Democracy and Civic Action: An Educators' Guide, 2026, Book, PUBLISHED
Mairéad Hurley, Chelsea Beardsley, Rita Patarra, Ljubica Slavkovi", Mateja Skrt, Nancy Tryfonopoulou, Kris De Meyer, Putting Action First: Towards Whole-School Approaches to Learning for Climate & Sustainability. LEVERS Policy Brief, LEVERS Consortium, Position Statement, February, 2026, Notes: [Relevance for public policy related to Education for Sustainable Development.], Policy Report, PUBLISHED
Mairéad Hurley, Chelsea Beardsley, Jonathan Mille, Rita F. Patarra, Benjamin Valcke, Cristina Olivotto, Dee Halligan, Julia Bena, Ljubica Slavkovi", Mateja Skrt, Nancy Tryfonopoulou, Patrick Condevaux, Styliani Karra, LEVERS: Learning Ventures for Climate Justice. Science Learning Through Community Climate Justice Projects, February, 2026, Notes: [This report has relevance for public policy related to Education for Sustainable Development.], Report, PUBLISHED
Hurley, M., Pender, A., Ussher, S., White, C., Luka"in, L., Joki", B., Critical ChangeLab Impact Evaluation, 2026, Report, PUBLISHED
Mairéad Hurley, Debunked: Data Literacy For Adults Evaluation Report, ADAPT, the SFI Research Centre for AI-Driven Digital Content Technology , January 2023, 2023, Report, PUBLISHED
Darling, O., Hurley, M., Grehan, L., Kearns, A, A Data Literate Ireland: The Case for a Whole-of-Government Approach to Data Literacy Skills Development in Ireland, December, 2022, Report, PUBLISHED
Hurley, Mairéad & Colclough, Mary, RISING: Findings from a Creative Climate Action Programme, 2022, Trinity College Dublin, 2022, Report, PUBLISHED
Zolotonosa, M., and Hurley, M., Reshaping science learning: Findings and recommendations from SySTEM 2020, Dublin, Trinity College Dublin, 2021, Notes: [Relevant to Irish and European STEM education policy.], Report, PUBLISHED
Hurley, M., Butler., D., McLoughlin E., Immersive STEM Learning Experiences to Shape Shared Futures, Dublin, Dublin City University, November, 2021, Notes: [Relevant to national STEM Education Policy (2017-2026)], Report, PUBLISHED