Finding a good mentor is Orlaith Ní Choncubhair’s top tip for young people interested in a career in science, technology, engineering or maths (STEM). Orlaith took, what she calls, a non-traditional route into a qualification with Teagasc. What she means is that she didn’t come from a farming background and “agriculture wasn’t something I knew much about before I joined Teagasc”. Born and raised in Wexford town, Orlaith studied science in UCD but went on to do a Walsh Fellowship with Teagasc and is now a policy officer with the European Commission.

As she says herself, “that’s the way things are evolving now, career paths are more non-linear than ever. People are upskilling and changing direction”.

However, when Orlaith was in secondary school she was not sure what she wanted to do.

“I wasn’t sure what to do when I finished the Leaving Cert. Teaching was in my mind, my dad was a teacher. Then when I did physics and chemistry, I loved those subjects. That’s what led me to study science in UCD. ”

In the end, she went on to specialise in experimental physics.

“I picked physics and chemistry to major in. You get a broad experience in the beginning and then can specialise. I always tried to follow what I love, what motivated me. I did a master’s in environmental physics then in UCD, looking at radon and natural radioactivity. After that I had my first career ‘pivot’. I took my previous skills and knowledge and applied them in a different way.

I always tried to follow what I love, what motivated me

“I went teaching for a while, did a Higher Diploma (HDip) and then taught science and maths for a while. But I missed the hands-on experience of science and knowledge generation.”

So when an opportunity arose to become a technician in Teagasc, Orlaith took her chance. She started working in the soils lab in Johnstown Castle. When a Walsh Fellowship PhD opportunity came up she applied for it. Through her PhD, Orlaith studied greenhouse gas emissions and carbon sequestration in different agricultural systems.

“I really follow what I enjoy, what drives me. I just loved the research side of things, working with innovative people and contributing to new learning.”

While working as a researcher Orlaith was invited to support some of her Teagasc colleagues in preparing an application for EU funding under Horizon 2020.

“They were developing a proposal for a project called ‘FACCE ERA-GAS’. The aim of that was to bring research funders across Europe together to fund transnational research projects tackling greenhouse gas emissions in agriculture and forestry. It was a successful application and so as a result I was asked to be a consortium manager for FACCE ERA-GAS.”

The project has 20 different partners across the EU and New Zealand. Working with all of those partners was something that Orlaith found she enjoyed, so she then went on to take up a role at the Teagasc headquarters in Oak Park, Co Carlow, supporting her colleagues in securing funding for research and innovation and working on European research coordination projects.

DG research and innovation has 1,200 people within it, which is good because you get to meet a lot of people with a broad range of expertise

“Two years later, an opportunity for a secondment to the European Commission was advertised,” she said. “They have a programme where people who work in national ministries or agencies can be temporarily seconded to work in the EU, bringing expertise and experience on national issues to Brussels and also taking the skills and knowledge acquired on European issues back to the member state after the secondment.”

Orlaith has been working in the directorate general (DG) for research and innovation since April and so far she loves it.

“I’m working in the ‘Healthy Planet’ directorate, focused particularly on the bioeconomy and food systems. It is the unit that has developed and oversees the implementation of the EU’s Bioeconomy Strategy.”

Orlaith is taking her research skills and learning to apply them to policy development in what she describes as “an exciting sector with multiple challenges; feeding the more than nine billion people expected to be on the planet by 2050, while meeting the sustainability challenges.”

There are about 25 people on the team she is working on which includes people from a range of backgrounds; science, research, finance and social science.

“There are lots of meetings and discussions. The way the commission operates is that they try to co-design and develop actions across the DGs. We would work closely with colleagues in DG agri, environment and other services. I also work closely with the Joint Research Centre which is the Commission’s science and knowledge service.

“It’s a busy role with plenty to do. It’s also a huge organisation. DG research and innovation has 1,200 people within it, which is good because you get to meet a lot of people with a broad range of expertise.”

While Orlaith has been based in Brussels so far, one of the actions under the Bioeconomy Strategy is to work closely with member states to support them in developing a bioeconomy, so there will be some travel involved.

She said Ireland is on a good footing in this area.

“The government released a National Policy Statement on the bioeconomy in 2018 and set up an implementation group which is co-chaired by the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine and the Department of Communications, Climate Action & Environment. They have developed a set of key actions to advance the bioeconomy in Ireland. Already, there are many companies, researchers and farmers innovating in this space.”

It’s a fantastic opportunity to approach the agriculture and food sector and research and innovation in the area from a different perspective and to work in a very diverse and multicultural team.

In other words, it is an area that we will hear a lot more about in the next few years. For Orlaith, having the chance to work in the European institutions is an invaluable experience.

“It’s a fantastic opportunity to approach the agriculture and food sector and research and innovation in the area from a different perspective and to work in a very diverse and multicultural team. So it has been very positive so far, I’ve met some really interesting people.”

Orlaith believes that there is always room for improvement in terms of having more women pursue STEM related disciplines.

“It’s probably traditionally viewed more as a male occupation. Something that I’ve been very lucky to benefit from in Teagasc is mentorship.

“I feel there is great value in mentorship in any role, whether that is informal mentorship through discussions with more senior colleagues and managers or through a formal mentoring programme.

“There is huge value in having someone to advise and support you in developing your plans for the future and potentially opening doors for you. I have found that hugely beneficial. The formal mentorship is very valuable, ideally that would be someone from outside your organisation that brings a fresh perspective.”