John Baldessari is one of the best known conceptual artists in the world and has been credited as having invented a new form of photography. The influence of his work on younger artists is far reaching and longstanding and his work may be seen in major art museums across the world. He has been a member of the Advisory Council of Burren College of Art since it opened in 1994 and has visited the college on four occasions since then. On Tuesday April 18th he will receive an Honorary Doctorate of Fine Art from the National University of Ireland, as part of the Burren College of Art/NUI Galway MFA Graduation ceremony. Professor Timothy Emlyn Jones, Dean of Burren College of Art said, "It is both an honour and a pleasure to have John Baldessari involved with the Burren College of Art. It is an honour because he is one of the most distinguished artists currently working anywhere in the world, and it is a pleasure since his work connects so well with the ideas-led, enquiry based education at Burren College of Art. He is not only an important artist but also an inspirational teacher who is warmly remembered by those of our students and teachers who have been fortunate enough to have met him. We are delighted that the National University of Ireland, Galway accepted our nomination for the award of an honorary doctorate to honour and celebrate this important artist." John Baldessari was born in National City in 1931. He attended San Diego State University and did post-graduate work at Otis Art Institute and Chouinard Art Institute and U.C. Berkeley. He taught at the California Institute of the Arts in Valencia until 1990 and is currently teaching at UCLA. He has been a major influence on several generations of artists. His art has been featured in more than 120 solo exhibitions in the U.S. and Europe and in over 300 group exhibitions. His projects include artist books, videos, films, billboards and public works. His awards include the Governors Award for Lifetime Achievement in the Visual Arts in California, the Oscar Kokoschka Prize from Austria and the Spectrum-International Award for Photography of the Foundation of Lower Saxony, Germany. Current projects include; solo shows in New York and Europe, books, films, an upcoming project at the Deutsche Guggenheim Berlin, and retrospectives at Museum Moderner Kunst Stiftung Ludwig Vienna, Austria and the Kunsthaus, Graz, Austria, and at the Musee d Art Contemporain de Nimes, France. He has been made an honorary Doctor of Fine Arts by Otis Art Institute of Parsons School of Design of the New School of Social Research, and by San Diego State University and the California State University. END

1st Annual Conference on Community Responses The CESI Conference brought together contributors from the fields of science, sociology and politics with campaign advocates to discuss issues of environmentalism and secularisation, in the context of the patterns of social change which impact upon people's lives in an age of accelerated risk or shifting values. The conference included contributions from Professor Emer Colleran of the Environmental Change Institute who called for greater dialogue between the disciplines engaged with environmental research. Drawing from her experiences during the Mullaghmore dispute, Prof. Colleran emphasised the need for increased cooperation between the sometimes competing layers of the environmental lobby. Dr. Liam Leonard, NUI Galway, Chairman of the CESI, discussed the significance of environmental advocates in relation to the maintenance of a pluralistic civil society. Brendan Flynn NUI Galway presented an analysis of environmental complaints and responses amongst EU member states, while Brendan Smith looked at the issue of community engagement with local moves towards community empowerment through increased involvement in green issues such as tree planting and river bank cleanups. The second stream of the conference examined secularisation in both the Irish and international contexts. Vesna Malesevic NUI Galway presented an analysis of the linkages between religious belief and spatial location or demographic age groupings. A study of local mobilisation around secular issues in Galway in the 1970s was presented by Dr. John Cunningham NUI Galway, who included local accounts of student debates from the then UCG as part of his study. The third stream of the conference welcomed our visiting speakers, who returned to environmental themes. The writer Robert Allen gave us an insight into his latest work Ireland Unbound, where he examines themes of an environmental nature. Dr. Mark Garavan of the GMIT, Castlebar discussed the underlying themes of community and risk in relation to the Shell to Sea campaign, which he is spokesman of. Both visiting speakers allowed the conference to consider certain themes surrounding the issue of community responses to perceived intrusion due to infrastructural projects as Ireland continues on a path of accelerated growth. Ultimately, the debates around issues of community responses to change and risk are at the heart of much of what is occurring in an Ireland moving from traditional to post-modernity. The CESI conference brought together competing voices for a day, allowing for an extension of these debates which can move from contest to dialogue when minds are focused. The CESI would like to thank all who took part and contributed as speakers or within the subsequent debates. We look forward to next year's event with renewed confidence that this form of academic dialogue which is interdisciplinary while also reaching out to the wider community of activists and writers is a significant step towards a better understanding of community and environmental issues in a changing context, both nationally and globally. Ends

The President of NUI Galway, Dr Iognáid ÓMuircheartaigh today expressed his sadness at the death of John McGahern. Mr McGahern had a very close association with the University during his lifetime. Dr ÓMuircheartaigh extended his sympathy to Mr McGahern's family making the following statement: "The entire University community at National University of Ireland, Galway is deeply saddened to learn of the death of John McGahern. On behalf of the campus community, I express our sincere sympathy to his wife, Madeline; his sisters and his extended family. For over 30 years NUI Galway is proud to have had a close association and friendship with John and Madeline McGahern. From his involvement with the University s Writing Programme in the 1970s to his appointment at Adjunct Professor in the Centre for Irish Studies in 2001, faculty and students of this University have been privileged to gain insight into the literary mind and creative process of John McGahern - a writer who is foremost among the great Irish novelists. It is a source of deep pride that John chose the University to be the repository of his literary archive and papers. In holding this valuable archive in the West of Ireland, the University holds in trust a treasure for the world of literary scholarship and for the Irish nation. On the sad occasion of his death we reflect on John McGahern s literary legacy which may be summarised as a deep understanding of the human condition tempered with a genuine care for the world of the imagination and the world of the word." ENDS

A range of postgrad courses will be offered this autumn by Acadamh na hOllscolaíochta Gaeilge, NUI Galway's Irish language college, as part of its continuing development of third-level education through Irish both on the main university campus and in its centres in the Connemara Gaeltacht. The courses include a new M.Sc. research scholarship programme in information technology; an M.A. in language teaching methodologies which is aimed primarily at Irish teachers and primary teachers; an M.A. in translation studies; and Higher Diplomas in information technology, drama, and applied communications. The M.Sc. trí Thaighde sa Teicneolaíocht Faisnéise is offered by the Acadamh in conjunction with NUI Galway's IT department, and is based in Carna. This new research initiative is supported by Údarás na Gaeltachta and aims to develop a new R+D culture in IT in the Gaeltacht, in areas such as information retrieval and filtering, artificial intelligence and machine learning, multimedia, information technology and society, networks and wireless technologies, E-learning, E-commerce, and computational linguistics. The M.A. i Modheolaíochtaí do Theagasc Teangacha (An Ghaeilge) draws on the significant advances in language teaching methodologies in recent years in an effort to promote best-practice teaching of Irish. The course is offered on a fulltime basis over one year or part-time over two years and is based in An Cheathrú Rua. The M.A. i Léann an Aistriúcháin is a fulltime course over two years and is also based in An Cheathrú Rua. It is designed to capitalise on the rapid growth in the demand for translation services in the public sector following the enactment of the Official Languages Act and aims to prepare students for a career as translators or interpreters with Irish as a target language. The Ard-Dioplóma i gCumarsáid Fheidhmeach is a wide-ranging course in broadcasting and radio and television journalism with a strong emphasis on practical skills and work experience. It is a one-year fulltime course based in An Cheathrú Rua. Subjects covered during the Ard-Dioplóma sa Drámaíocht include writing for theatre, acting, criticism, puppet work and theatre-in-education. This one-year fulltime course in offered in conjuction with NUI Galway's Scoil na Gaeilge and is based in Seanscoil Sailearna in Indreabhán. The Ard-Dioplóma sna Dána (Teicneolaíocht Faisnéise) is a fulltime course over one year and covers a range of issues in information technology including software programming and design. It is a fulltime course over one year and is based in Carna. For more information contact Acadamh na hOllscolaíochta Gaeilge, NUI Galway at 091 492428. Ends

Henry Glassie, Professor of Folklore and Co-Director of Turkish Studies at Indiana University, will be among the speakers at the First Galway Conference of Irish Studies, which runs from Wednesday until Saturday, 7-10 June, at NUI, Galway. The theme of the conference is 'Orality and Modern Irish Culture', and Professor Glassie will be joined by more than sixty lecturers from Ireland, Britain, Norway, America, and South Africa, including Angela Bourke, author of The Burning of Bridget Cleary, and Gearóid Ó Crualaoich, author of The Book of the Cailleach: Stories of the Wisewoman Healer. Among the topics to be discussed are 'Memory and Memoir', 'Women and Oral History', 'Orality and the Sense of Place', 'Collecting Tradition', as well as aspects of orality in modern Irish literature. Papers will be presented in Irish and in English, with a simultaneous translation facility provided for material in Irish. One of the more innovative features of the Galway conference will be the series of workshops in which Henry Glassie, Angela Bourke, and Gearóid Ó Crualaoich will provide a demonstration of their own working methods through a close reading of selected stories from the Irish oral tradition. The conference will also feature a presentation by Méabh Ní Fhuartháin and the renowned musician Joe Burke on the musical traditions of East Galway. Admission to individual sessions of the conference is free and everyone is welcome to attend. The full conference programme is available on the Centre for Irish Studies website at http://www.nuigalway.ie/centre_irish_studies/. Henry Glassie's Passing the Time in Ballymenone has been described as 'one of the most remarkable pieces of literature of the twentieth century'. His groundbreaking study of the life and work of a rural community in County Fermanagh was hailed by the New York Times Book Review as 'an extraordinarily rich and rewarding book … about the effort of one man to find for himself and us the life's breath of the people of Ballymenone'. It was later included as a notable book of the year by the New York Times. Not surprisingly, Glassie's influence on Irish scholars and writers has been considerable; his first book on Ireland, All Silver and No Brass: An Irish Christmas Mumming provided the inspiration for Vincent Woods' play At the Black Pig's Dyke. His latest book The Stars of Ballmenone revisits the community of Ballymenone at the height of the Troubles, when the people told 'their own tale at night, forgotten, while the men of power filled the newspapers and history books by sending poor boys out to be killed'. - ends – For further details, contact Samantha Williams at Samantha.williams@nuigalway.ie or telephone 091 492951.