Accounting at Finance at Research Week '26
On Monday 27th April, researchers from the KBS came together with practitioners and professional educators to present some of the innovative research and teaching taking place in the Accounting and Finance Department.
Our economy must transition to a sustainable model if we are to effectively tackle the grand challenges presented by climate change, environmental degradation and rising inequality. Accounting has a profound influence on the way that we understand and conceptualise the responsibilities of individual businesses, and our teaching practices must adapt to confront these complex challenges.
In this regard, Prof. Elaine Doyle, Dr. Mary Curtin and Erin King showcased their delivery of an interactive climate awareness workshop to a cohort of nearly 600 1st year accounting students, while Patricia O'Neill and Aisling Mooney demonstrated the design, development, and implementation of a Virtual Reality programme to teach professional scepticism skills to undergraduate and masters accounting students. Dr. Ruth Lynch and Dr. Orla McCullagh followed with a discussion of pedagogical research based on this VR intervention.
We heard from Ellen Jordan about the influence of language on our understanding of corporate impacts on biodiversity and ecosystems. Dr. Ruth Lynch and Dr. Orla McCullagh explored how auditors are responding to the disruption to the auditing profession in Ireland under the requirements of the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive.
Finally, we were joined in conversation by Emer Keaveny, EY Ireland Sustainability Reporting & Assurance Services Partner, and John Garvey, principal investigator of the BIOFIN-EU Project, who discussed the changing nature of the audit profession, and the challenges accounting students face as they progress from university.
Huge thanks to Prof. Michael Morley for chairing the event, with insights and encouragement for every element, and to the Research Week organisers for their support. It was a thought-provoking discussion, and an excellent display of the innovative work taking place in the KBS. Thank you to all who attended.
