Accenture and Kingspan have each committed €3m in funding to support to Innovate for Ireland, becoming the latest businesses to partner with the initiative to attract PhD students and make Ireland a "global innovation leader".
The professional services giant and the Cavan-based building materials group join founding partners Avolon and AIB as private sector partners to the government-backed, first-of-its-kind initiative.
Innovate for Ireland said it remains in active discussion with a number of other leading national and international companies and will make further partnership announcements in due course.
"I am confident that through the combined backing of the private and public sectors, Innovate for Ireland can reach its full potential and firmly establish our island as a globally renowned hub of innovation and talent development," said Dáithí Ó Cellaigh, chair of the Innovate for Ireland board.
The government will provide up to €50m in matched support for the initiative, which has an initial funding target of €100m to support more than 400 PhD scholarships for students carrying out research in Ireland on global challenges such as climate change, energy resilience, water poverty, green manufacturing and food sustainability.
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It is hoped that doctoral students on Innovate for Ireland, known as i-Scholars, will develop innovative solutions to these challenges, and the initiative places a strong focus on the development of the transversal skills.
Modules on design, design thinking, entrepreneurship and leadership will be offered, with enterprise partners playing "a critical role" in supporting this skill development.
"Accenture is delighted to support Innovate for Ireland, a programme that will create a vibrant innovation ecosystem to drive Ireland’s future prosperity. At Accenture, we place a significant focus on both future skills and the sustainability agenda," said Hilary O'Meara, country managing director for Accenture in Ireland.
"We are excited to support Innovate for Ireland as it will provide an effective mechanism for enhancing the quality and quantity of innovative doctoral talent in Ireland for years to come.”
Gene Murtagh, CEO of Kingspan, said: “Kingspan’s core mission is to accelerate a net zero-emissions future built environment with people and planet at its heart.
"Our global innovation centre is located in Ireland, and we are acutely aware that for us to keep developing solutions to fight climate change, and for industry at large, the best talent is absolutely paramount.
"It is our goal that, by supporting Innovate for Ireland, we not only help to develop Ireland’s innovation ecosystem, but also leave a lasting legacy by enabling some of the world’s best research talent to tackle the challenges, such as climate change, that we all face.”
The Innovate for Ireland programme will be managed through Science Foundation Ireland, in partnership with the Irish Research Council and the Health Research Board.
