Irish deputy consul general urges stronger education and trade links with Connecticut

Deputy Consul General Gareth Hardin of the Consulate General of Ireland in New York told the Connecticut-Ireland Trade Commission that education, people-to-people links and targeted trade promotion are central to strengthening Connecticut’s economic relationship with Ireland.

Hardin spoke during the commission’s meeting at the Legislative Office Building in Hartford. He highlighted air connections, trade figures and company presence as evidence of growing ties, and said working-level contacts and university-to-university relationships help sustain momentum.

“The trade commission . . . represents an excellent platform and a vehicle for trying to achieve a lot of our shared objectives,” Hardin said, addressing commission members. He urged the commission to keep activity moving at the working level and to use education as a foundation for long-term links.

Hardin noted that Irish-owned and Irish-headquartered companies operate in Connecticut, naming Medtronic, Neuritas, Bank of Ireland, Accenture, Johnson Controls and Talon Biotech as examples cited to the commission. He said more than 200,000 people are employed directly by 781 Irish companies across the United States and that Ireland is a major source of foreign direct investment into the U.S. He also cited the Hartford–Dublin air link as a driver of visits in both directions.

Commission members and university representatives discussed education as a practical pathway for sustained engagement. Christine Keneally, a professor at Quinnipiac University who works on Irish studies and exchange programs, described long-term student connections: “We send approximately 60 students to Cork University, and they spend a whole semester there. Those students often bring their parents; they form relationships, bonds with people in Ireland, and they go back.”

Commissioners asked Hardin for examples of East Coast working-level partners. Hardin described Team Ireland in New York as a cluster that brings together agencies such as Bord Bia (the Irish food promotion agency), Enterprise Ireland (trade promotion), IDA Ireland (investment promotion) and Tourism Ireland to coordinate outreach and referrals for business, tourism and trade prospects.

Hardin recommended collecting contact details for working-level staff in the region and promised to share successor contact information once his posting ends. The commission said it would follow up to gather contacts and consider speakers from Irish agencies for future meetings.

Why it matters: The commission is developing subcommittees and outreach plans that rely on university exchanges, trade promotion and investor contacts to convert goodwill into concrete investment, student mobility and export opportunities. Hardin’s remarks reinforced the commission’s focus on education and practical, working-level collaboration.

The commission moved next to presentations by Northern Ireland fund managers.