Niamh Burke Renewable Energy Bursary 2025
In conjunction with Wind Energy Ireland we are pleased to announce the continuation of the Niamh Burke Renewable Energy Bursary, with the firm offering a €10,000 boost to students pursuing studies related to renewable energy. This initiative aims to support the next generation of innovators and leaders in the field of sustainable energy.
The bursary was established in memory of former Arthur Cox partner and consultant Niamh Burke, who played a significant role in the development of the Irish wind energy sector and advised on many of Ireland’s largest energy, infrastructure, and construction projects.
It provides financial assistance to help cover tuition fees, research costs, and other educational expenses. All relevant disciplines are open for consideration including economics, engineering, law, planning, policy, science and others. It is open to students planning to study in these or related fields in Ireland, at postgraduate level in 2025. If more than one person is selected, the bursary monies will be split between the successful applicants.
Previous recipients have used the bursary to study at Dublin City University, the Law Society of Ireland, Trinity College Dublin, University College Cork, University College Dublin and University of Galway. Last year’s recipients, Jarlaith Brady and Thomas Walsh, impressed the judging panel with their commitment to working to tackle the climate emergency and their passion for their chosen fields of Mechanical and Sustainable Engineering and Energy Systems Engineering.
Danielle Conaghan, Partner and Head of Environment and Planning at Arthur Cox LLP commented, “We are proud to provide the Niamh Burke Renewable Energy Bursary. It empowers the next generation of leaders in the renewable sector who are passionate about making a difference; enables them to innovate, create and shape the future of our renewables sector and drives the delivery of a more resilient and sustainable energy landscape in Ireland. To us, it represents an important investment in the future of sustainable energy.”
Noel Cunniffe, CEO of Wind Energy Ireland, stated, “We are committed to fostering talent and innovation in the renewable energy sector. By working with Arthur Cox on the Niamh Burke Renewable Energy Bursary, we can support students who are passionate about making a positive environmental impact. By investing in these bright minds we are contributing to a greener and more sustainable future for all. And this has never been more important. We have energy targets to hit and thousands of jobs to fill.”
Applicants are required to submit a proposal outlining their research or project focus, demonstrating how their work will contribute to Ireland’s renewable energy goals by the closing date of Friday, 21 March 2025. A panel of experts from Wind Energy Ireland will review the applications and select the most promising candidate(s).
For more information on eligibility criteria and how to apply, please click here to view the entry criteria and the online form for the Niamh Burke Renewable Bursary.
View Transcript
GRAPHIC – Niamh Burke Renewable Energy Bursary
Danielle Conaghan
I’m Danielle Conaghan. I’m the head of the Environment and Planning Group here in Arthur Cox and the bursary was set up in honour of Niamh, our late and great colleague, Niamh Burke, in 2020. Niamh was a construction partner in our Construction Group for over 20 years. She had a very long career in Arthur Cox and worked on some of the most important and the largest projects in the country.
Noel Cunniffe
So my name is Noel Cunniffe and I’m the Chief Executive at Wind Energy Ireland. Wind Energy Ireland helps to administer the bursary, which is promoted by Arthur Cox and Niamh Burke’s family and we are honoured to be involved in helping to promote and administer it over the past few years, and we’re looking forward to doing so again in 2025.
Laura Nagle
My name is Lauren Nagle, and I was successful in receiving the Niamh Burke Memorial Bursary in 2021, ahead of completing my final year in Energy Systems Engineering at University College, Dublin. I also had the opportunity to produce a thesis on the offshore wind opportunity off the West Coast of Clare and I also had the opportunity then to present the work that I had done at the Wind Energy Ireland Offshore Conference in 2022, which was a really great experience to present my research to a room full of industry experts.
Noel Cunniffe
The Niamh Burke Renewable Energy Bursary is so important for attracting new leaders into the renewable energy sector. It has already helped 10 people from colleges right across Ireland in completing third-level courses. Ireland is going to be energy independent over the next 10 to 20 years and for us to be able to do that, we need talent, we need people coming through from all aspects of life and from all different types of careers.
Laura Nagle
For anyone that’s considering applying to the Niamh Burke Bursary, I would really recommend it. From a financial side of things, it was incredibly supportive. It really allowed me to focus on my studies for my final year of my Masters. It also really opened up the renewable industry for me and gave me a greater insight to the work that the likes of Wind Energy Ireland and Arthur Cox were doing and really showed that I was definitely in in the right space and I really wanted to pursue a career within the renewable industry.
Noel Cunniffe
Definitely apply for the bursary. It’s a really, really exciting sector in renewables. We have so much happening in Ireland right now. We’re at the forefront of trying to battle climate change, of trying to help energy security for Ireland and in trying to grow our economy. We can’t do that without more renewable energy, and a bursary like this supports anyone from all aspects of life.
Danielle Conaghan
For anyone applying for the bursary, I’d say, go for it. We are looking for engineers, environmental scientists, lawyers of the future, anyone who has a passion for furthering Ireland’s cause in the renewable energy sector. So get stuck in, make a difference, and pass what you learn on, because Niamh was really good at that.
