Minister announces opening of the 2024 Ireland – New Zealand Joint Research Call

Minister of State with special responsibility for research at the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Martin Heydon TD, announced earlier this week, the opening of the 2024 Ireland – New Zealand Joint Research Call on Agriculture and Climate Change.

The Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine and the New Zealand Ministry for Primary Industries launched the first call in 2022 as part of a 3-year pilot Joint Research Initiative.

The 2024 Research Call aims to investigate and accelerate research in the areas of National inventory refinement and improvement, technologies for the mitigation of greenhouses gas emissions, and data and digitalisation in support of climate actions in Ireland and New Zealand.

Making the announcement, Minister Heydon stated: “I am delighted to announce the launch of the 2024 Ireland – New Zealand Joint Research Call on Agriculture and Climate Change. Since it began in 2022, over €14 million has been awarded to eight projects by my Department and the New Zealand Ministry for Primary Industries.

“Now in its third year, the continued development of this pilot initiative is testament to the constructive approach between our two countries to invest and collaborate in research that advances solutions for mitigating agriculture’s impact on the climate.”

Minister of State Heydon continued with: “The commitment of €3 million towards this Call, is evidence of Ireland’s unwavering support for critical research and capacity building in areas that underpin the sustainability and competitiveness of agriculture now and in the future. Therefore, I strongly encourage Irish researchers to apply in support of our shared climate objectives.”

In conclusion, New Zealand’s Minister of Agriculture, Todd McClay stated: “Agriculture is at the heart of both the Ireland and New Zealand economies, which makes us natural partners; and together we can make a step-change in research efforts to help drive down agricultural emissions, grow the value of our primary products, and tackle common challenges facing our agrifood sectors. I encourage researchers in Ireland and New Zealand to get behind this third call for the Joint Research Initiative by submitting their applications.”