Visit of Professor Philip McDonagh, DCU

Working in Ireland’s Department of Foreign Affairs, as Political Counsellor in London, Philip played a significant part in the Northern Ireland peace process in the build-up to the Good Friday Agreement. He later served as Head of Mission in India (accredited also to Sri Lanka, Nepal, and Bangladesh), the Holy See, Finland, Russia (and the five Central Asian states), and the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE).

In a broad ranging talk Professor McDonagh spoke most particularly of his experience in peace building initiatives across the world focusing on the value of human relationships and dialogue, and how the interests of future generations must be represented at the table. While much to Ms Donohoe’s delight he spoke of Thucydides! Students were very engaged throughout asking a broad range of insightful questions during the talk – and even queuing up to speak with him afterwards! We thank Professor McDonagh for his time and and our students for their mature interest and engagement in such a complex topic. As one of our teacher’s commented afterwards - the future is in good hands.