NUI Galway’s Professor Daniel Carey has been admitted as new members of the Royal Irish Academy (RIA) at a special ceremony in Dublin recently. This year Professor Carey was one of only 15 academics to receive Ireland’s highest academic distinction.

Professor Careyis a Personal Professor with the Discipline of English at NUI Galway. Professor Carey's work explores the relationship between travel, colonialism and cultural difference in the period from 1550-1800. In addition to a publishing a book on the problem of cultural diversity in the work of John Locke and his contemporaries, he has edited six collections of essays on themes ranging from Asian travel in the Renaissance, to Gulliver's Travels. He has also investigated the history and philosophy of money and credit in the Enlightenment. He is co-general editor of Richard Hakluyt's Principal Navigations...of the English Nation (1598-1600), to appear in 14 volumes with Oxford University Press, the first ever critical edition of the landmark compilation of English travel.

Congratulating Professor Carey, NUI Galway President, Dr Jim Browne, said: “Research and academic excellence are the cornerstones of all that we do here at NUI Galway. I am very proud to see the work of my colleague, Professor Daniel Carey recognised by the Royal Irish Academy. Admission to the Academy is the highest academic honour in Ireland.  It is a testament to the calibre of our staff and research to see the work of one of our finest humanities scholars honoured in this way.”

At the ceremony admitting the new members, Professor Mary E. Daly, President of the Royal Irish Academy said: “There is a major onus on Irish researchers to ensure that Europe remains a world leader in the twenty-first century. But the emphasis on research that yields a return in the form of patents, company formation or new drugs tends to deny researchers the necessary breathing-space, the time to reflect, to allow for the wrong turns, the brilliant idea that collapses, or the unexpected lines of inquiry that might ultimately deliver something different from the original proposal, but something that is much more exciting. When the Royal Irish Academy elects members, it does soon the basis of a candidate’s publications and research record, the sole criterion is quality. This research may help in the treatment of disease, or it may enhance our understanding of a past civilisation. Members of the Academy should not shirk from their responsibility to let people know that basic research is important and that government support for fundamental research is a hallmark of a civilised society.”

For 229 years, membership of the RIA has been keenly competed for, as it is the highest academic honour in Ireland and a public recognition of academic achievement. There are now 482 members of the Academy, in disciplines from the sciences, humanities and social sciences. Those elected are entitled to use the designation ‘MRIA’ after their name.

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