Lisa O’Keeffe

Biography

Lisa’s principal research interest lies in the intersection of the creative arts and health, with a focus on fostering well-being, expanding life opportunities, and contributing to practical policy solutions. She is dedicated to exploring how the arts and health, as essential and interconnected domains, can address inequities and provide transformative experiences, particularly for individuals and communities impacted by socioeconomic challenges. 

With over 25 years of experience in Arts and Language Education, she has worked extensively in local schools and community settings. In November 2021, she joined the School of Education at Trinity College Dublin as a Research Assistant, where she investigated trends, gaps, and challenges within an all-of-government creativity programme. This work included developing recommendations for its next five-year plan and creating Evaluation Guidelines and forms to measure its impact. 

Her current research interests include the role of the arts in health, educational and health inequities, public policy, mixed methods research, and evidence mapping through systematic reviews. In September 2023, she was honoured to receive Trinity College Dublin's Provost Research Doctorate Award to explore the impact of multimodal arts on workplace health and well-being. She is also delving into the potential of zines and collage as innovative mediums for exploring and disseminating research methods, concepts, and ideas, highlighting the synergy between creativity and academic inquiry.