Spotlight on Irish Scientists in Germany
Given Ireland and Germany’s shared reputation for excellence in scientific research and innovation, it should come as no surprise that there are a number of Irish scientists conducting fascinating work throughout Germany.
Discover more below about seven Irish scientists working across everything from marine conservation to green hydrogen production in Germany.
Professor Eileen Furlong
Professor Eileen Furlong is Head of the Genome Biology Department at the European Molecular Biology Lab (EMBL) at their headquarters in south-western German city of Heidelberg. EMBL is Europe’s flagship intergovernmental research institute for life sciences and Professor Furlong has been associated with the organisation since 2002.
Professor Furlong’s area of expertise is in life sciences, with her research sitting at the interface between the fields of Chromatin Biology/Gene Regulation and Development Biology.
She studies how genes are regulated to give rise to all of the diverse cell types in our body, and how this can go awry and lead to disease. For over two decades now, she has studied how elements of our DNA function in normal situations, and how stress and sequence differences such as mutations can impact their function.
Dr Michelle Browne
Dr Michelle Browne came to live in Germany after receiving the Helmholtz Young Investigator grant to establish her own research group in Berlin in 2022. Her work focuses on researching new materials to produce green hydrogen by water electrolysis, and she describes the German capital as a “hot bed for green hydrogen research”.
Dr Browne’s research is particularly pertinent, and she sees the potential of green hydrogen as key to drastically reducing the world’s reliance on fossil-based fuels.
She explained that green hydrogen is a diverse fuel, which can be used in the transportation sector as a fuel for vehicles (even for long-haul transportation) and can also be utilised in the steel industry instead of coal to reduce iron ore.
Patrick Doherty
Siemens is perhaps one of the best-known German companies in Ireland, but Irishman Patrick Doherty is based in Bavaria as Siemens Healthineers’ Head of Sales for the EMEA West region.
Siemens Healthineers AG is one of the largest global medtech companies and Doherty’s work assists the company in delivering pioneer breakthroughs in healthcare. He initially relocated to Germany on a three-year delegation, but it still based here over eight years later.
Dr Aileen Grassman
Dr Aileen Grassman has worked in the medical device industry for over thirty years, moving to Germany when offered a Ph.D. student scholarship from the Max-Planck Institute, followed by a post-doctorate research stipend.
Though her formal science education was in physics, specifically interplanetary space physics research, job opportunities, coupled with her keen interest in exploring practical applications of scientific knowledge, saw Dr Grassman gather expertise in the “medical science” sector.
She has focused on science as applicable to the research, development, and benefit-risk evaluation of medical devices for the treatment of patients with end stage renal failure. She is now Director of Chronic Renal Replacement Therapies at Fresenius Medical Care in Bad Homburg, Hesse.
Dr Claire Murray
Dr Claire Murray is a freelance research scientist based in Berlin and working across chemistry, citizen science and science communication research. Dr Murray is passionate about creating equitable ways for people to learn about, engage with or participate in science.
She explained to us how making science accessible creates opportunities for people, regardless of their background, to enjoy the beauty of science, to learn about new ideas and to develop knowledge to critically engage with media and politics – something that is increasingly important in today’s society.
Dr Eilis Carroll
Dr Eilis Carroll has a BSc. in Biochemistry with Cell Biology and a PhD in Life Sciences and is currently based in Berlin as Head of the Agricultural Affairs Unit at the Embassy of Ireland. As part of this role, she applies her scientific training and mind-set to understanding agriculture developments, trade and policy.
Dr Carroll spoke about the close links between Ireland and Germany, and how her work involves identifying more opportunities for our countries to work together, at all levels of science and technology – whether at official, academic or industry level.
Isabelle Delamer
Isabelle Delamer is a graduate of Environmental Science from Trinity College Dublin and has a Masters in Global Change: Ecosystem Science and Policy from UCD. She came to Berlin in 2023 for an internship with Blue Action Fund, a foundation supporting NGOs in their efforts to conserve the oceans and coastlines in the developing world, and has since taken up the role of Programme Assistant in the organisation.
Her internship focused on marine conservation, and how to combat the threat posed to the world’s oceans and coastlines by mounting human pressures and climate change. During our conversation, Isabelle highlighted the importance of marine conservation, with life on earth depending on a healthy ocean.
She underlined on the need for further funding for Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 14– which aims to conserve and ensure the sustainable use of oceans. This SDG currently receives the least amount of long-term funding of any of the SDGs.
The Department of Foreign Affairs, through Irish Aid, supports the work of the Blue Action Fund in supporting marine protected areas and coastal waters of Africa, Latin America and Asia.