EDUCATION

Dublin City University

wins Team Impact Award 2025

Dublin City University's story of innovation and collaboration captured the spotlight and has been named the winner of the prestigious Team Impact Award 2025 at the ECIU University Forum in Trento, Italy, last Spring.

Text: Anastasia Bukhtiarova

Photos: Pierre Teyssot

The winning team of DCU. From left to right: Martina Crehan, Clare Gormley, Aoife Butler, Cliona Mcparland and Mairead Nic Giolla Mhichil.

The winning project grew out of the EcoTech Challenge: Pioneering Innovative Technologies for a Sustainable Future, where DCU partnered with Uisce Éireann, Ireland’s national water utility. Their mission was clear: improve access to safe, clean water for vulnerable communities. Twenty-eight students from across the ECIU partner universities joined the challenge, working on practical solutions that blended research, technology, and social impact.

‘We were inspired by last year’s winners and what they had achieved to support students’ health,’ says Mairéad Nic Giolla Mhichíl, Director of Micro-Credential Strategy and Innovation and Head of DCU Studio. ‘But we also knew that we had done something special and in a completely different domain. We felt that we made an impact on a very personal level and wanted to celebrate the collaboration that inspired us to do more.’

‘We felt that we made an impact on a very personal level’

The collaboration proved transformative. Among the student-led recommendations were a new social media strategy to strengthen communication with the public and a text alert system for vulnerable groups—both of which Uisce Éireann has since implemented. The text alert initiative even featured in a national television campaign earlier this year.

Students described the challenge as a confidence-building experience. ‘The skills that we learned during the challenge are very future-proof,’ says Cathal McFarland, one of the participants and a student at the Digital Business and Innovation (DBI) programme at DCU Dublin Business School. ‘After applying them in a real-world situation, I've gained a lot of confidence.’

The victory not only celebrates DCU’s success but also highlights how academia and public bodies can collaborate to drive meaningful change. ‘What began as a simple conversation has evolved into an impactful shift—one that our students can connect with on multiple levels’, says Cliona McParland, Assistant Professor at DCU Business School.