Uploaded January 2021 | Updated September 2026, 6 hours ago
As the COVID-19 pandemic unfolded, we were warned that it can take up to ten years for a vaccine to be developed - but the first Covid-19 vaccines were approved for use in the EU on 21 December. What did this process involve, and how did it happen so fast? And what will be involved in distributing and administering the vaccines globally?
Our panel includes experts from science, research and immunology, racing to find a cure; a volunteer who has experienced the vaccine for themselves; and a member of the Department of Health’s COVID-19 communications and behavioural advisory group. The conversation will be moderated by Gillian Roddie, Programme Manager at Tangent - Trinity’s Ideas Workspace.
Panellists
Karina Jakubowicz
Karina Jakubowicz lectures on literary modernism, twentieth-century literature, and film. She is an adjunct lecturer at Florida State University, Fordham University, and James Madison University, and works at their London campuses. In June 2019, Karina began to participate in the COVID-19 vaccine study at the Imperial College London.
Luke O’Neill
Professor Luke O’Neill is an immunologist and Professor of Biochemistry in the School of Biochemistry and Immunology at Trinity College Dublin. In 2016, he was made a fellow of the Royal Society for his innovative work on the human immune system. He has a popular weekly slot on Newstalk’s Pat Kenny Show and is the author of bestselling books Never Mind the B#ll*cks, Here’s the Science, Humanology and The Great Irish Science Book for children.
Molly Byrne
Molly is Professor of Health Psychology and Health Research Board Research Leader in the School of Psychology at NUI Galway, where she is Director of the Health Behaviour Change Research Group. She and her team apply behavioural science to the development and evaluation of complex interventions to promote healthy behaviour change within health services and to promote public health. Molly is currently a member of the Department of Health’s Covid-19 Communications and Behavioural Advisory Group.
Nuala Murphy
Nuala Murphy has been President of ICON Clinical Research Services since January 2014. In her role, she presides over global project management, biometrics, site and patient recruitment, medical and regulatory affairs, pharmacovigilance, medical imaging and risk management. She has over 20 years’ experience within the pharmaceutical and CRO industry.
This event is part of the Living With… series held in partnership with ICON, a global provider of drug development solutions and services to pharmaceutical, biotechnology, medical device and government and public health organisations. The company specialises in the strategic development, management and analysis of programs that support clinical development - from compound selection to Phase I-IV clinical studies.
As the COVID-19 pandemic unfolded, we were warned that it can take up to ten years for a vaccine to be developed - but the first Covid-19 vaccines were approved for use in the EU on 21 December. What did this process involve, and how did it happen so fast? And what will be involved in distributing and administering the vaccines globally?
Our panel includes experts from science, research and immunology, racing to find a cure; a volunteer who has experienced the vaccine for themselves; and a member of the Department of Health’s COVID-19 communications and behavioural advisory group. The conversation will be moderated by Gillian Roddie, Programme Manager at Tangent - Trinity’s Ideas Workspace.
Panellists
Karina Jakubowicz
Karina Jakubowicz lectures on literary modernism, twentieth-century literature, and film. She is an adjunct lecturer at Florida State University, Fordham University, and James Madison University, and works at their London campuses. In June 2019, Karina began to participate in the COVID-19 vaccine study at the Imperial College London.
Luke O’Neill
Professor Luke O’Neill is an immunologist and Professor of Biochemistry in the School of Biochemistry and Immunology at Trinity College Dublin. In 2016, he was made a fellow of the Royal Society for his innovative work on the human immune system. He has a popular weekly slot on Newstalk’s Pat Kenny Show and is the author of bestselling books Never Mind the B#ll*cks, Here’s the Science, Humanology and The Great Irish Science Book for children.
Molly Byrne
Molly is Professor of Health Psychology and Health Research Board Research Leader in the School of Psychology at NUI Galway, where she is Director of the Health Behaviour Change Research Group. She and her team apply behavioural science to the development and evaluation of complex interventions to promote healthy behaviour change within health services and to promote public health. Molly is currently a member of the Department of Health’s Covid-19 Communications and Behavioural Advisory Group.
Nuala Murphy
Nuala Murphy has been President of ICON Clinical Research Services since January 2014. In her role, she presides over global project management, biometrics, site and patient recruitment, medical and regulatory affairs, pharmacovigilance, medical imaging and risk management. She has over 20 years’ experience within the pharmaceutical and CRO industry.
This event is part of the Living With… series held in partnership with ICON, a global provider of drug development solutions and services to pharmaceutical, biotechnology, medical device and government and public health organisations. The company specialises in the strategic development, management and analysis of programs that support clinical development - from compound selection to Phase I-IV clinical studies.
![PLASTIC - Cant live with it, cant live without it [3 min video]](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/kkGUi5vbvBc/mqdefault.jpg "PLASTIC - Cant live with it, cant live without it [3 min video]
It is essential but polluting. It saves lives, yet it chokes our oceans. It is cheap to create but expensive to dispose of. It can last forever but is often used only once. PLASTIC has changed our daily lives and our environment more than any other material. The unsustainability of our relationship with it is well documented, but to stop using it completely is not an option. Its use has revolutionised industrial design and more essentially, modern medicine relies on plastic so heavily that even the most basic medical procedures would be unimaginable without it. But what are the effects of such an incredibly long-lasting substance? How can we reduce plastic consumption without compromising medicine, science and the many industries that rely on its use?
Curious? Visit Science Gallery’s latest exhibition PLASTIC – CAN’T LIVE WITH IT, CAN’T LIVE WITHOUT IT from October 25th until 9th February 2020 and explore how we can responsibly use this incredible material, while fundamentally changing our approach to living with it.")
