On 12 January 2016 the Jagiellonian University was visited by the Ambassador of Ireland to Poland Dr Gerard Keown.
The visit began with a tour of the Jagiellonian University Museum Collegium Maius. Then the diplomat was received at Collegium Novum by the Rector of the Jagiellonian University Prof. Wojciech Nowak and representatives of the JU Faculty of International and political Studies: the dean Prof. Bogdan Szlachta, Prof. Wawrzyniec Konarski and Dr hab. Renata Czekalska, as well as the JU Institute of English Studies: Dr hab. Bożena Kucała, Dr Robert Kusek and Dr Beata Piątek.
Polish-Irish relations were the main topic discussed during the meeting. The participants pointed to numerous cultural links between Poland and Ireland, as well as similar historical experiences of the two nations. It has also been remarked that Polish immigrants in Ireland are currently the largest ethnic minority in this country. The participants also discussed the prospects of extended student exchange between the Jagiellonian University and Irish higher education institutions.
The meeting was followed by the ambassador's lecture for JU students in Collegium Novum Assembly Hall, entitled "The Global Island – Ireland's Place in a Changing World", devoted to various aspects of contemporary Irish foreign policy. The talk was followed by a lively discussion with the audience.
Dr Gerard Keown entered the Irish Department of Foreign Affairs in 1996. As a diplomat, he has held a number of positions, including the Second Secretary at the Embassy of Ireland in Vienna and the Deputy Head of Mission at the Embassy of Ireland in Tokio. He also took part in the OSCE Mission to Bosnia-Herzegovina in 2000. He became Irish Ambassador to the Republic of Poland in March 2015. This is his second visit to the Jagiellonian University. The first one took place on 8 October 2015.
