Elected: 2015
Discipline: Philosophy, Theology and Law
Professor Mary Robinson
Former President of Ireland, No organisation
Professor Mary Robinson has been a tireless campaigner for the marginalised and an inspiration to generations of young women across the globe. She served as the first female President of Ireland from 1990 – 1997 and as UN High Commissioner for Human Rights from 1997 – 2002. In 2016 she was appointed the UN Special Envoy for Climate Change and is also the Chancellor of Trinity College, Dublin. Mary has won innumerable awards from around the world including the 2009 Presidential Medal of Freedom, the highest civilian honour awarded in the United States.