The National Open Research Forum (NORF) is delighted to welcome Dr Ailís O’Carroll in her new role as National Open Research Support Officer, joining the Digital Repository of Ireland (DRI) team based at the Royal Irish Academy (RIA). In this role, Ailís will support Ireland’s National Open Research Coordinator, Dr Michelle Doran, in undertaking a review of Ireland’s National Action Plan for Open Research 2022–2030.

Ailís has previously worked as head of scientific community engagement at Explorium, Ireland’s National Science Centre, and as communities & programme Manager at eLife Sciences open access publications, where she led global open research programmes, science communication internships and public engagement events.

Ailís holds a PhD in Immunology from UNSW, Australia, and a BA (Mod) in Biochemistry & Immunology from Trinity College Dublin. A committed advocate for open research, STEM engagement, and science communication, Ailís has contributed to numerous international initiatives, policy discussions, and advisory roles, including her current position with the African Reproducibility Network.

NORF was established in 2017 to drive the Irish agenda for open research. DRI has been the coordinating body for NORF since 2022. NORF’s work includes developing and supporting actions to strengthen, promote, and better support national objectives. Since 2022, DRI has supported NORF in the administration of the NORF Open Research Fund provided by the Higher Education Authority (HEA).

We look forward to working with Ailís in her new role supporting Ireland’s transition to an open research environment.

Find out more about DRI staff members on the DRI team page.

NORF is funded by the Department of Further and Higher Education, Research and Innovation and Science through the Higher Education Authority (HEA). It is coordinated by the Digital Repository of Ireland (DRI), which is headquartered under the legal entity of the Royal Irish Academy.