The RDS was, from its foundation in 1731, a colonial institution, with projects extending from its members' rooms in Dublin to the Irish countryside, and across the ocean to the Caribbean plantation colonies. For over 100 years, the RDS played a crucial role in shaping and disseminating colonial science and focused on issues that directly benefited colonial interests, such as agriculture, industry, and the harnessing of Ireland’s natural resources.

In 2024, in collaboration with Research Ireland and Trinity College Dublin, the RDS made an important commitment to address its colonial legacies, joining a growing number of institutions and organisations in Ireland and across the world who have chosen to investigate their ties to enslavement and empire.

In this episode RDS Foundation Director Niamh De Loughry, Head of Library & Archives Natasha Serne and Research Ireland Enterprise Fellow Dr Rachael Scally explore the colonial history of the RDS, and touch on the preliminary findings of Rachael’s research into its legacies of empire.