Since its foundation in 1854, University College Dublin has flourished. UCD is one of Europe's leading research-intensive universities. The international standing of UCD has grown in recent years; it is currently ranked within the top 1% of institutions world-wide. Research is conducted within each of the University's extensive range of disciplines, and in multidisciplinary research programmes addressing challenges of global scale. With 37 schools, environmental research at UCD spans a range of Schools and Colleges. The interests of the Earth Institute covers population genetics, molecular evolution, animal behaviour, plant and animal ecology, invasion ecology, marine and freshwater ecology. Scientists are working on environmentally sensitive management of marine fisheries and studying the impacts of economic activities and climate change on marine ecosystems.