A 60-year legacy of advocacy and activism – an overview of the Mary Robinson Archive, at the University of Galway.
At almost 700 archive boxes, the extensive Mary Robinson archive consists of material relating to her six-decade long career including her time as a barrister, President of Ireland, United Nations (UN) High Commissioner of Human Rights, UN Special Envoy for Climate Change and for El Niño, Chair of the Elders, founder of Realizing Rights – The Ethical Globalization Initiative and founder of the Mary Robinson Foundation – Climate Justice.
Mary Robinson celebrated her 80th year on this fragile planet last year and remains a prominent voice speaking truth to power. She has made real change through legal work, policy and advocacy nationally and internationally for decades. Human Rights has been a consistent theme of her work throughout her career, from her time as a law student to the present day, providing the archivist with a unique opportunity and challenge to inspire new audiences, through her archive, to advocate for Human Rights policies and tackle abuses head on.
Archivist Niamh Ní Charra will present an overview of this immensely rich archive, the six-decade career it represents, and the process to preserve, catalogue, and provide access to it for current and future generations.
Niamh Ní Charra is project archivist for University of Galway’s two largest collections: Mary Robinson and Conradh na Gaeilge archives. She is Chair for the Archives and Records Association, Ireland, and co-host of the podcast series Archive Nation. She instigated and co-led a project to have over 200 archival terms designated in the Irish language and is the Irish language administrator for ICA’s Multilingual Archival Terminology Database.
Niamh came to archives from the world of music, is a multi-award-winning musician and composer, and member of the Irish Traditional Music Archive board.
Date: Monday 7 April 2025
Time: 20:00/8pm
Venue: Harbour Hotel, Galway