Spillane Lab Research Group Members
Head of Lab
Charlie Spillane
Prof. Charles Spillane
Head of AgriBiosciences, Food Security & Climate Resilience Lab
Agriculture, Food Systems and Bioeconomy Research Centre
Ryan Institute
University of Galway
University Road, Galway H91 REW4
Ireland
Director of MScCCAFS & MScAST Programs
Chair of IFIAD
Member of Board of Trustees of ICARDA
Research Interests:
Research and Innovation that supports Sustainable Development
Staff | Postdoc | Research Assistants | PhD | Masters | Visiting Researchers | Alumni
Project Management, Impact & Comms Staff
Research Interests:
Climate science; sustainable agriculture; legume-based agroecology; molecular ecology
Research Interests:
Sustainable agricultural practices; Innovations to reduce food waste across supply chain; Sustainable and healthy diets; Women in agriculture
Research Interests:
Sustainability accounting; finance management; communication
Research Interests:
Science communication; Climate communication; Science engagement
Research Interests:
Climate mitigation and adaptation; sustainable food systems; effects of climate change on agriculture and food security; legumes and food security; agroforestry for food security and sustainable livelihoods
Tinashe Mashizha
Monitor, Evaluation and Learning Officer
Research Interests:
Agroecology and Sustainable Farming Systems; Climate Change Policies; Climate Change and Variability in sub-Saharan Africa; Innovations for Sustainable Food Systems; Agri-Environmental Monitoring
Affiliate Investigators
Research Interests:
Plant biochemistry; molecular biology
Research Interests:
Plant biology; epigenetics; plant evolution; plant reproduction; imprinting in plants
Research Assistants
Research Interests:
Urban food security; Geospatial food outlet mapping; Food value chain mapping; Agrifood waste-to-value innovation; Climate finance; Nutrition development in countries in transition
Research Interests:
Social entrepreneurship; Entrepreneurial decision-making; Entrepreneurial mindset; Student entrepreneurship; Technology for good
Research Interests:
Haploid Inducer and Doubled haploid lines in Lolium perenne L.; speed breeding for triple annual generations in Lolium perenne L
Postdoctoral Researchers
Research Interests:
Generative AI; Knowledge Graphs and Linked Data; Internet of Things (IoT); Digital twins; Fault Diagnosis.
PhD Researchers
Research Interests:
Molecular biotechnology; Cytonuclear interaction; Plant reproduction
Research Interests:
Biological Systems Evolution, Complex Traits Evolution, Computational Modeling, Adaptive Traits
Avinash Singh
MolGen PhD student; Government of Ireland Postgraduate Scholar
Research Interests:
Hybrid vigor in Arabidopsis thaliana; CENH3 based haploid induction in Arabidopsis thaliana; haploid production
Research Interests:
Genome editing of haploid inducer genes in ryegrass to develop haploid inducer lines
Research Interests:
Energy access and transitions; Agricultural mechanisation; Gender and women empowerment in rural contexts
Research Interests:
Agricultural mechanisation for smallholder farmers; Energy access from and for legume value chains; Circular bio-economy in legume value chains
Research Interests:
Social networks analysis for increased legume production; Policy and institutional barriers and innovation; Incorporation of climate-smart resilient practices for improved food and nutrition security
Research Interests:
Maternal and child nutrition; aflatoxin and fumonisin exposure; food product development; nutrition and gender
Research Interests:
Entrepreneurship and its role in commercialisation of technologies; business incubation for youth and women entrepreneurs; Policies and regulations for stimulating legume entrepreneurship
Carlos Andrés Rodríguez Plaza
EcoFoodSystems PhD student
Research Interests:
Capacity building on business models for food value chains; Affordability of nutritious diets for marginalized populations; Economic analysis to evaluate the development of policies on food systems
Research Interests:
Capacity building on business models for food value chains; Affordability of nutritious diets for marginalized populations; Economic analysis to evaluate the development of policies on food systems
Research Interests:
Effects of maternal nutrition on fetal/child development; Dietary Behavior and Public Health Interventions; Nutritional challenges in low- and middle-income countries; Nutrition Education in LMIC
Research Interests:
Food system sustainability and associated indicators; Geospatial data to map croplands and energy access; Climate modelling for sustainable food production
Research Interests:
Effects of maternal nutrition on fetal/child development; Dietary Behavior and Public Health Interventions; Nutritional challenges in low- and middle-income countries; Nutrition Education in LMIC
Masters Students
Masters Students have recently joined us for the 2024/2025 programmes! Check back soon.
Visiting Researchers
Research Interests:
Agro-Edapho-Climatology; Artificial intelligence; Remote sensing for agriculture; Life cycle assessment
