WHAT IS IT?:The Royal Irish Academy has been around since 1795, supporting and advancing research in the sciences and humanities.

Its royal charter declared its aims to be “the promotion and investigation of the sciences, polite literature, and antiquities.” It now has 385 ordinary members and 56 honorary members, all of whom have attained distinction in scholarship and research in Ireland. It s core funding comes from the Higher Education Authority and it resides in Academy House in Dublin’s Dawson Street.

WHAT DOES IT DO?

The RIA is involved in wide variety of activities including publishing, hosting academic seminars and bringing scholars, politicians, business people and other stakeholders together to discuss research in Ireland. The academy is increasingly involved in giving independent advice on research policy to the Irish government.

WHO IS IT FOR?

Until relatively recently, the RIA was for scholars. Now the organisation is involving itself in projects with wider appeal, such as the Digital Humanities Observatory www.dho.ie/) and the Art and Architecture of Ireland project (www.ria.ie/projects/aai/index.html), both designed to make Irish scholarship more accessible to the public

WHERE IS IT GOING?

Its new president, NUI Galway historian Prof Nicholas Canny, wants to make it "the university of universities". The academy, he says, can remain an independent voice in the increasingly competitive university environment. In recent times the RIA has stepped up its communications drive to sell itself to a wider audience. Expect more popular publications from the RIA, such as Diarmaid Ferriter's Judging Dev.