An interview with Brigid Laffan MRIA, 2024 RIA Gold Medallist in the Social Sciences

On 29 February 2024, Brigid Laffan MRIA was presented with the RIA Gold Medal in the Social Sciences. In this interview, she discusses what this achievement means to her, both professionally and personally, and how this award impacts her discipline.

Brigid Laffan is Emeritus Professor at the European University Institute, chancellor of the University of Limerick and president of the European Policy Centre (EPC) Brussels. She was director and professor at the Robert Schuman Centre for Advanced Studies at the European University Institute (EUI), Florence, until her retirement in August 2021. She was previously professor of European Politics at the School of Politics and International Relations (SPIRe) University College Dublin (UCD), and vice-president of UCD and principal of the College of Human Sciences from 2004 to 2011. Professor Laffan was the founding director of the Dublin European Institute UCD from 1999. She has received numerous awards, including L’ordre national du Mérite from the president of the French Republic, 2010; the THESEUS Award for outstanding research on European Integration, 2012; the UK University Association for Contemporary European Studies (UACES) Lifetime Achievement Award, 2014; and the Lifetime Achievement Award from the US European Studies Association (EUSA), 2022. In 2018 she was ranked among the women who shape Europe by POLITICO and was also awarded by the University of Limerick Alumni Association with its highest honour. Professor Laffan has authored, co-authored and edited 10 books, published over 40 peer-reviewed journal articles and more than 60 book chapters. Her latest book, co-authored with Stefan Telle, The EU’s response to Brexit: united and effective, was published in April 2023.

The RIA awards two Gold Medals annually to recognise and foster excellence in research which advances the public good, both nationally and internationally. The awards showcase the exceptional research taking place in higher education in Ireland that impacts our lives, benefits society and inspires future generations of researchers.