Nessa Winston

Dr. Nessa Winston is an Associate Professor in Social Policy in the School of Social Policy, Social Work and Social Justice at University College Dublin. She has previously held positions at the Centre for European Economic and Public Affairs and the Social Science Research Centre in UCD, as well as in the Department of Sociology at the University of Toronto and NUI Maynooth. Her academic journey began with a BSocSc from University College Dublin followed by a PhD in Sociology from the University of Toronto.

Dr. Winston's research focuses on housing and community issues, with particular emphasis on sustainable communities and UN Sustainable Development Goals related to affordable energy and transport. She coordinates a work package on energy justice in the Next Generation Energy Systems (NexSys) project, an all-island multidisciplinary research program funded by Science Foundation Ireland. Her earlier work has examined sustainable community regeneration in urban and rural contexts, including research on second and vacant homes and eco-villages. She has specific expertise in the needs of older people, young people, and minority ethnic groups.

Her extensive publication record demonstrates consistent engagement with housing sustainability, energy poverty, and social inclusion across multiple European contexts. Recent work shows increasing focus on energy justice and multi-dimensional poverty (transport, food, energy), reflecting evolving policy priorities in sustainable development. Her research bridges academic theory with practical policy applications, particularly through her involvement with the European Network for Housing Researchers and the UCD Earth Institute.

Dr. Winston has received numerous honors including a Government of Ireland Fellowship in the Humanities and Social Sciences (2007) and was awarded a Visiting Fellowship at Trinity College Dublin's Policy Institute. Her earlier career achievements include multiple scholarships from the University of Toronto and an Excellence in Teaching Award from UCD's Graduate School of Business.

As an experienced PhD supervisor, Dr. Winston has directed the Irish strand of an international project on migrants and cultural pluralism and contributed to the EU FP7 GINI project on inequality. She is an active member of the European Network for Housing Researchers and co-founded the Irish Social Policy Association. At UCD, she coordinates the Sustainable Communities Research theme within the Earth Institute, demonstrating leadership in interdisciplinary sustainability research.

Her teaching philosophy emphasizes student engagement through varied inputs, practical examples, and problem-based learning. She has pioneered new modules in Irish social policy and developed innovative approaches to teaching quantitative data analysis to social policy students.