Highlights from the Law Professions Day 2019.
Fourth-year Law student Mr Ethan Thornes who attended the 2018 event, changed tack this year and prioritised seriously seeking vacation work over freebies.
‘After regretting attending Law Professions Day for the free stuff that firms gave out last year, I decided to change tack this year. I invested a lot of time in preparing my CV which I made copies of and carried along with my academic record. I also attended a legal workshop hosted by Aspen Pharmacare for practical experience and used all the knowledge to showcase that I am a top candidate,’ said Thornes.
While third-year student Ms Zandile Zulu whose passion to pursue Law at UKZN was motivated by the College of Law and Management’s PR Unit schools liaison visit to her high school, Vukile High School in Stanger in 2016 says planning ahead is the only way she does things.
Garlicke and Bousfield’s Human Resources Manager, Ms Jeanette Swart said she always enjoys personally interacting with UKZN Law students as the talent they see and recruit gets better every year.
Professor Fernando Albericio, proud recipient of the 2019 Murray Goodman Scientific Excellence & Mentorship Award.
Professor Fernando Albericio is the recipient of the 2019 Murray Goodman Scientific Excellence & Mentorship Award from the American Peptide Society. The award recognises career-long research excellence in the field of peptide science and significant mentorship and training of students, post-doctoral fellows, and colleagues.
The A-rated scientist has featured consistently amongst UKZN’s top 30 published researchers and has published more than 900 scientific papers and co-authored four books. He is Editor in Chief of several scientific journals and sits on the editorial board of others.
Peptides are short chains of amino acids with applications including biomaterials, nanotechnology and drug discovery. A prolific innovator, Albericio has filed more than 60 patents for peptide synthesis approaches and applications. His research has included work on peptides with therapeutic activities, particularly in the field of cancer and infectious disease research. His research group is investigating new methods of drug delivery and diagnostics through peptide synthesis; more than 30 of the commodities developed by the group have reached the market and his work is so extensive that it is possible to say that any peptide synthesised worldwide makes use of technology developed by his group.
Training and mentorship of students has been an important hallmark of Albericio’s work, he has supervised or co-supervised 72 PhD students and more than 70 masters students.
Albericio’s academic career began in his home country of Spain, where he received his PhD in Chemistry from the University of Barcelona. He went on to complete postdoctoral research at Tufts University and the University of Minnesota in the United States, and the Université d’Aix-Marseille in France. He returned to Spain in 1985 as Associate Professor at the University of Barcelona, leaving the institution in 1992 to take up the Directorship of Peptide Research at Millipore in Boston before returning in 1994 and being promoted to full Professor in 1995.
His career has included 12 years as Group Leader at the Institute for Research in Biomedicine in Barcelona and a stint as the founding Rector of Yachay Tech, a university in Ecuador.
Albericio has been deeply involved in efforts to promote entrepreneurship and innovation. He founded and served as the General Director of the Barcelona Science Park, an endeavour that led to the creation of almost 100 start-up companies. He also founded the “Emprendia” Network-Santander Bank; the first Latin American University Network for the Incubation of Companies to create a business network based on research and development results from universities. In South Africa, he is working on the development of BioDurban, a biotechnology incubator, and serves on the board of directors of several companies and foundations.
‘I consider myself as a representative of the New University, which allows me to combine teaching and research with a strong vocation for the transfer of knowledge from such research to society, enabling basic research to become transformative,’ he said.
Albericio joined UKZN in 2012 as a Research Professor after several years of collaboration with researchers at the Institution. One of his major accomplishments at the University has been the establishment of the Peptide Science Laboratory, opened in 2018, the only laboratory in South Africa devoted to the synthesis of peptides with pharmaceutical purposes.
Umfundi wase-UKZN weziqu ze-Mastazi, uMnuz Bayabonga Zulu, oqokwe waba ngomunye wabafundi abakhethwe ukuthi baye ku-Golden Key Leadership Summit.Click here for English version
Ngenxa yamangwevu akhe ezifundweni zakhe nasekusebenzeleni umphakathini, umfundi weziqu ze-Mastazi noyilungu le-Golden Key, uMnuz Bayabonga Zulu, uqokwe waba ngomunye wabafundi abangama-200 emhlabeni wonke abakhethwe ukuthi baye ku-Golden Key Leadership Summit e-Niagara Falls e-Canada.
UZulu uthi inhloso yengqungquthela bekuwukucija amalungu ukuthi akhule adlondlobale kwezemfundo, kwezobuholi nakwezokusebenza kanti kuningi akafundile; njengokuthi nje esigabeni esethulwe yisiKhulu esiPhezulu se-Niagara Workforce Planning Board, uMnuz Mario De Divitiis esibizwa ngokuthi Building Your Brand through Academics, Leadership, and Service, ufunde ukuthi ‘wonke umuntu uyigama thizeni’.
UZulu into emchaze kakhulu ngengqungquthela wukuthi omunye wezikhulumi onesifo esinokuthatha kancane, phecelezi i-autism, owathi akwakwazi ukufunda nokubhala kodwa ubhale incwadi. ‘Kuse ngokunye ngibona ukuthi asinqindwa wukungabi namandla kepha sinqandwa wukungaphokopheli. Impela akukho esingekwenza uma sitshela izingqondo zethu,’ kusho uZulu.
Into ayithakasele kakhulu wukuhlangana nezithunywa zakwamanye amazwe. ‘Lapho sidingide izinto ezithinta izinsika zokwenza kahle emfundweni, ubuholi, nokusebenza. Lezi zinto sizophindela nazo emuva emanyuvesi ethu. Ngethemba lokuthi sizokwenza ushintsho emiphakathini yakithi.’
Lo mfundi wezoHwebo uthe ukuthakasele ukuyomela iNyuvesi neNingizimu Afrika. ‘Ngizizwa ngiyisihlabani… Kube yinto enkulu kimi, eshintshe impilo yami ukuba phakathi kwezithunywa nezikhulumi ezihlakaniphile nezivela ezizweni ezehlukene nasezindaweni ezehlukene zomhlaba. Kuthi cosololo kimi!’
UZulu ubonge i-Golden Key International Honour Society noMqondisi oMkhulu oBambile woPhiko lwezokuXhumana e-UKZN, uNksz Normah Zondo, owenza ukuthi akwazi ukuthatha lolu hambo. Ubonge nonina, uNksz Fikile Ngcamu, umndeni wakhe, nebandla lakhe ngothando lwabo nokumeseka.
I-Golden Key International Honour Society iyinhlangano enkulu ehlonipha abantu. Ihlanganisa abantu abaphumelelayo emazweni abo, ezifundeni nasemhlabeni ngamathuba anqabile, imihlomulo nempumelelo. INhlangano igxila ekwenzeni kahle kwezemfundo, ukuthuthukisa ubuholi nokusebenzela umphakathi. Abantu baba ngamalungu ayo ngokumenywa kanti ngeyamalungu angamaphesenti ali-15 ezingeni leziqu zokuqala. Abafundi abayiziqengqe kuyo yonke imikhakha nabo bayamenywa, kubhekwa amagalelo abo ezifundweni.
I-Golden Key inamagatsha angama-400 emanyuvesi ahlukene emhlabeni. Uphiko ngalunye lwase-UKZN lineGatsha lalo eliholwa wuMengameli walo. UMnuz Zulu uwuMongameli oBambile weGatsha lophiko oluseMgungundlovu.
Eminye iminingwane nge-Golden Key itholakala emahhovisi e-Student Governance and Leadership Development ezimpikweni zase-UKZN.
Amagama: wu-Raylene Captain-Hasthibeer
Ithimba longoti benhliziyo elingabantu besifazane bodwa lase-Inkosi Albert Luthuli Central Hospital. Kusukela kwesobunxele wuNksz Parasthi Maharaj (ohleli), uDkt Lindiwe Sidali, uDkt Leanne Drummond, uDkt Kudzai Kanyepi no-Sister Nonjabulo Ndlovu.Click here for English version
Dr Veron Ramsuran, FLAIR Fellowship recipient.
Senior lecturer in the School of Laboratory Medicine and Medical Sciences at UKZN, Dr Veron Ramsuran, has been awarded the UK Royal Society Future Leaders - African Independent Research (FLAIR) Fellowship. In conjunction with the African Academy of Sciences (AAS) the Fellowship aims to produce Africa’s next generation of independent research leaders undertaking cutting-edge research that will address the global challenges facing the continent.
The Fellowships target talented African early career researchers with the potential to become leaders in their field and provide an opportunity to build an independent research career in an African institution. More than 2 000 applications were received across the world and 30 researchers, including Ramsuran, were selected as Fellows to conduct research in a sub-Saharan African institution. The FLAIR Fellowship offers £300 000 for two years as well as support, training, mentoring and opportunities to network both regionally and with the United Kingdom to develop international collaborations.
Ramsuran is a group research leader at the KwaZulu-Natal Research and Innovation Sequencing Platform (KRISP) and a senior lecturer in the School of Laboratory Medicine and Medical Sciences. He holds a PhD in Genetics from UKZN and spent the majority of his time during his doctoral research undergoing training in the United States. He was accepted for post-doctoral studies and engaged in cutting-edge research on HIV at the Ragon Institute of Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH), Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and Harvard University. He returned to South Africa to take up a Senior Lecturer position within UKZN’s Academic Acceleration Programme.
Ramsuran said that the FLAIR Fellowship will enable him to continue his research on HIV human genetics and to investigate which human genes cause people to progress to AIDS. This knowledge will be used to develop new treatment strategies. ‘I am extremely grateful to the UK Royal Society and the AAS for selecting me for this prestigious fellowship. I have confidence that we can conduct high quality science here in South Africa comparable to top international institutes. HIV is a major health concern for South Africa. With 7.1 million people … infected … we need to develop new strategies to end the epidemic,’ he said.
UDkt Pamela Pillay onguMholi Wezemfundo Kwezokufunda Nokufundisa eSikoleni Sezifundo Zokuxilonga Imithi kanye noKwelapha.Click here for English version
UDkt Pamela Pillay usuka kude njengoba eseqokwe njengoMholi Wezemfundo Kwezokufunda Nokufundisa eSikoleni Sezifundo Zokuxilonga Imithi kanye noKwelapha (i-LMMS). Uhola uhlelo lwe-UKZN Body Donor futhi ungumcwaningi ovakashile ohlelweni oluphambili lwe-United States National Institutes of Health (i-NIH) oluxhase uhlelo lwe-Developing Research Innovation, Localisation and Leadership in South Africa (DRILL).
UPillay wakhulela elokishini lasePhoenix enyakatho netshonalanga yeTheku futhi waphothula umatikuletsheni wakhe e-Solvista Secondary school. Ekhulela emphakathini omncanyana, nobambisene; wakhuthazwa amalungu omndeni wakhe, abalingani kanye nabafundi bakhe ukubekezela. Uphothule iziqu zakhe zokuqala nezobudokotela e-UKZN futhi usiza abafundi abaningi ngeziqu zabo ze-Onazi, Mastazi nezobuDokotela. Izihloko anentshisekelo ngazo kwezokucwaninga ukwehlukahluka kwemizimba yabantu, ezomthetho kwezokwelapha ama-bioethics kanye nokuziphatha okuhle kwezokucwaninga. Ohlelweni lwe-DRILL, ungumcwaningi ovakashile emkhakheni wezenqubonhle kwezoCwaningo lweZempilo.
UPillay unentshisekelo enkulu ngohlelo lokunikela ngezitho zomzimba. Uphawule wathi, ‘Uhlelo lokunikela ngezitho zomzimba lungena ngaphansi kokuFunda Nokufundisa; ngakho-ke, ngithathe lesi sikhundla sokuba ngummeleli wezomkhakha wezemfundo. Lo ngumsebenzi omkhulu kodwa sinalo ithimba elibhekelele lokhu elibandakanya i-Senior Technician, i-Academic Leader of Research nezinye izifundiswa zomnyango. Njengoba izifundo zami ze-PhD zihlobene nezinqubo zokutholwa kwezidumbu zabantu eziKhungweni Zemfundo Ephakeme eNingizimu Afrika, senginentshisekelo yokwakha ubudlelwane nomphakathi ngokuqwashisa mayelana nokunikela ngezitho zomzimba.’
Ukuthatha le ndima yokuba ngumholi wezemfundo kuwumsebenzi owethusayo kodwa uPillay ukwenze lokhu ngenkuthalo enkulu. 'Isikhundla sami esisha sobuholi siyisinyathelo esilandelayo kule ndlela yami yokuthuthuka njengomuntu kanye nasohambweni lwami lwezemfundo. Nginomdlandla omkhulu ngalokhu kuqokwa okuyingqayizivele njengoba kungenza ngibe yisifundiswa, umholi ekufundeni nasekufundiseni kanye nomcwaningi. Umbono wami... ukuhlinzeka ngokweseka ngokubambisana nabasebenzi abaqeqeshiwe bezemfundo ukuze kusetshenziswe amasu okufunda nokufundisa eSikoleni se-LMMS angabazuzisa abafundi futhi andise imiphumela. Ngaphezu kwalokho, iSikole sizobe sibhekene nezinguquko zohlelozifundo lweziqu zesayensi yezokwelapha futhi mina namalungu ethimba lami sizobandakanyeka ngokugcwele ngaphakathi kweSikole ukuqinisekisa ukuthi le phrojekthi iyaphothulwa ekupheleni kwesikhathi sami seminyaka emithathu. Ngizolwela iqophelo eliphezulu ekufundeni nasekufundiseni ku-LMMS.'
UPillay usebenza njengelungu lomkhandlu we-Anatomical Society of Southern Africa (ASSA), usihlalo weKomiti Lezimilo Kwezokucwaninga kwe-ASSA Anatomy kanye nomunye wosihlalo be-ASSA Clinical Anatomy Research Group. Useshicilele amaphepha angaphezu kwangama-20 kumajenali agunyazwe ngabe-ISI futhi usebenza njengombuyekezi wangaphandle nomhloli wangaphandle kwamanye amanyuvesi. Ushadile futhi unendodana eneminyaka eyisikhombisa ubudala, uKeolan.
‘Ekhaya, ngiyasazisa kakhulu isikhathi somndeni wami. Ngithanda ukuthi ngingumama onobungani nokumnandi ukuhlala naye, ngihlale ngizidlalela (futhi ngingenangcindezi). Kanti futhi ngibonga kakhulu ukuba nomyeni ongesekayo ohambweni lwami lwezemfundo,’ kusho uPillay.
Amagama: MaryAnn Francis
Isithombe: Rajesh Jantilal
Mr Clement Agoni will attend the 28th World Economic Forum Summit on Africa.
Mr Clement Agoni, a PhD student in Pharmaceutical Chemistry, has been invited to attend the 28th World Economic Forum Summit on Africa that takes place in Cape Town from 4 - 6 September. He will be part of a delegation of 60 Global Shapers, 65 Young Global Leaders and 40 Schwab Foundation Social Entrepreneurs who will represent the Forum’s three Foundations. The Africa Summit is second only to the Forum’s Annual Meeting in Davos in terms of size and brings together high-level public and business figures from across the region and the globe.
Agoni is a social entrepreneur with a passion for youth and community development. He received his Master’s degree summa cum laude in Pharmaceutical Chemistry. His PhD focuses on the applications of advanced computational tools to explore and reveal molecular insights on drug-target interactions as well as the design of new therapeutic agents for diseases of global health concern such as tuberculosis, cancer, HIV and AIDS and malaria. He is the founder of Dream Laboratory Consult, a social enterprise dedicated to providing quality health care to remote communities in Ghana through mobile clinics.
A Global Shaper from the Tamale Hub of Ghana, Agoni is currently associated with the Global Shapers, Durban Hub, where is he is part of the health team involved in organising medical screening and health education in rural communities within the eThekwini Municipality. He also serves as a Programme Mentor with the Tony Elumelu Entrepreneurship Programme. Motivated by his personal motto, “live to leave a legacy (L3)”, he hopes to inspire other young people.
Dr Sazelo Mkhize and Dr Sogo Angel Olofinbiyi who have published research on the social dimension of risk behaviours among adolescent prostitutes in Lagos metropolis, Nigeria.
Criminologists in the School of Applied Human Sciences, Drs Sazelo Mkhize and Sogo Angel Olofinbiyi’s research on Social dimension of risk behaviours among adolescent prostitutes: Insight from South-Western Nigeriahas been published in the Cogent Social Sciences academic journal.
Mkhize, Olofinbiyi and authors Dr Siyanda Dlamini, Dr Witness Maluleke and Mrs Olunike Blessing Olofinbiyi worked collaboratively. Dr Olofinbiyi designed the study and led data collection, analysis and writing of the manuscript while Mkhize critically reviewed it before submission for publication.
The study examined the social dimension of risk behaviours among adolescent prostitutes in Lagos metropolis, Nigeria. More specifically, it examined the relationship between educational attainment and drug use among female adolescent sex workers; investigated the relationship between drug use and criminal behaviour; examined the impact of drug use on the nature of the sex they engage in; and analysed the relationship between educational attainment and consistent use of male condoms by female adolescent sex workers.
It found that 90.7% of the respondents joined the sex industry due to poverty and hunger, while 98.6% were aware of the diseases that can be transmitted through sexual intercourse. All the respondents had knowledge of HIV and AIDS and 91.7% identified sexual intercourse as a major route of HIV transmission.
‘There was a significant relationship between the use of drugs and the nature of sex of female sex workers … 99.7% of the respondents used male condoms regularly in every sexual act, 5.5% of the respondents used female condoms at irregular intervals in every sexual act, while 84.8% compromised the use of condoms with financial rewards,’ said Dr Olofinbiyi. ‘Consequently, a high percentage of the population was assumed to be at risk of HIV/AIDS, while 7.2% of the sample had become pregnant while on the job and 3.1% of these pregnancies were terminated through induced abortion.’
Furthermore, 44.1% of the drug-addicted, low-income sex workers were found to be involved in criminal activities and 60.3% were victims of different types of violent sexual experiences. The study concluded that socio-economic constraints are the primary factors that push adolescent girls into prostitution in Nigeria and that the same factors hinder them from practicing safe sex within the sex industry.
‘The Nigerian government should develop programmes that will reduce poverty … and unemployment … in order to reduce adolescent/adult prostitution with its attendant problems of HIV transmission and criminal activities in the country,’ said Mkhize.
Kusuka kwesokunxele: UMnu Mfanelo Ndlovu, iBamba LePhini likaShansela uSol Brian McArthur, uNgqongqoshe wesiFundazwe uMnu Sihle Zikalala noDkt Nomkhosi Luthuli.Click here for English version
ISikole Seziqu Zezamabhizinisi neZobuholi (i-GSB&L) eKolishi Lezifundo ZoMthetho NeZokuphatha bebesingethe izingxoxo phakathi kukaNgqongqoshe wezokuThuthukiswa KoMnotho, eZokuvakasha NezeMvelo (EDTEA) eSifundazweni sakwa-KwaZulu-Natal, uMnu Sihle Zikalala, nabafundi abaxhaswe yilo mnyango.
I-EDTEA ne-GSB&L baye bangena esivumelwaneni sokubambisana baqeqeshe abasebenzi bezokuthuthukiswa komnotho wendawo kanye nochwepheshe bezocwaningo ukuze kuhlonzwe imikhakha yezomnotho engase ikwazi ukuheha ukutshalwa kwezimali bese ngaleyo ndlela ilekelele ukuthuthukiswa komnotho futhi yakhe nemisebenzi.
Ibamba lePhini likaShansela, uSolwazi Brian McArthur, uthe kube yithuba eliyikhethelo ukuba iNyuvesi yaKwaZulu-Natal ibe yingxenye yalo mzamo ogqugquzela futhi oweseka uhlelo lokuqeqeshelwa umsebenzi, izinhlelo zabafundi abenza iziqu zabo, osomabhizinisi kanye nabafundi esebeneziqu ezigxile futhi ezenzelwe ukuthuthukiswa komnotho wendawo.
Ugcizelele ukubaluleka kokubambisana ekugqugquzeleni ukuthuthukiswa kwamakhono lapho kuphuculwa umnotho womphakathi. 'I-UKZN isanda kwamukela Isu Lokusimama okuyilo elizocaba ubudlelwane obuzohlomulisa izinhlangothi zonke kanye namanye amanyuvesi, izimboni kanye namazinga kahulumeni ahlukahlukene. Injulalwazi eyisisekelo ukuba kuhlanganiswe izinhlobo zamakhono, amacebo obuhlakani kanye nezinsiza zezinhlangano ezinkulu nezinamandla ezingase zikwazi ukwakha imihlomulo emikhulu kubo bonke ababandakanyekayo.'
'Ubambiswano oluqhubekayo phakathi komnyango ne-UKZN, sewakhe uhlaka olusebenza ngempumelelo lokuhlonza nokondla abaholi bakusasa kwezokuthuthukiswa komnotho nokuyibo esibahloniphayo ngale ntambama,' kwengeza uMcArthur.
UZikalala uye wakuchaza ngokusobala lokho okulindeleke kulaba abangabahlomuli balolu hlelo wabakhuthaza ukuba badlale indima ekuthuthukiseni umnotho waseNingizimu Afrika ngaphansi kwe-Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR).
'Ukuze siphumelele ku-4IR kufanele sakhe ithimba lwabantu abaqeqeshiwe abazokwazi ukwamukela futhi bawasingathe amathuba amasha alethwa ezobuchwepheshe bokusebenza ngokudijithali. Yisizukulwane senu okumele sibe phambili, sisungule izindlela zobuciko obusha futhi sithole izixazululo ezintsha neziphumelelayo ezizokwenza intuthuko yethu ibe nenzuzo,' kuqhuba yena.
Uzwakalise ukubonga komnyango eNyuvesi ngokuba ibambisane ukuqeqesha abafundi bomnyango kahulumeni okuyibo abazothwaliswa umthwalo wokuthuthukiswa komnotho. ‘Lolu bambiswano ludinga ukuhlakulwa lukhuthazwe ukuze lukhiqize uhlobo olusha lochwepheshe kanye nosomabhizinisi abangamaciko ngokucabanga.'
Abangabahlomuli bangaphambilini ababili baxoxe ngolwabo uhambo kule ndlela. UDkt Nomkhosi Luthuli, uMfundisi we-GSB&L kanye nowayeqeqeshelwa umsebenzi uthe i-EDTEA yabona okuthile kuyena yena ayengakuboni. Amathuba amaningi awathola amsiza ukuba ahlela ngendlela uchwepheshe anguye namuhla. Wanxusa abahlomuli bamanje wathi: 'Qhakambisani futhi nitshale isikhathi nemizamo eminingi ekukhuleni kwenu, nithole imfundo futhi nihambe ngaphezu kwebanga elihanjwe ngabanye. Kuyinto enhle ukuthi sineziqu zemfundo kepha awanamsebenzi walutho le ezweni, sebenzelani ukuzuza amakhono ahlukahlukene.'
UMnu Mfanelo Ndlovu, umsunguli we-Electri-Coal Technologies kanye nowayebhekelela i-Regional and Local Development Development (RLED), wancoma izinsizakalo zokusekwa yiKolishi nge-psychometric test eyadalula ukuthi ungusomabhizinisi kanye ne-EDTEA ngokuxhasa ngezimali zokwakha isibonelo sebhizinisi lakhe lapho ehlanganyele kuphrojekthi yokubhekelela. Wengeze ngokuthi ubambiswano lwamnika ithuba lokuba yisithunywa sokwenza ushintsho emphakathini wakhe.
'Ngiyiphonsela inselele intsha ukuba isebenzisane nohulumeni futhi idlale indima ecacile ekuthuthukisweni komnotho nasekwenzeni iKwaZulu-Natal umhlanganyeli ophambili we-GDP,’ kuphetha yena.
Amagama: Lungile Ngubelanga
Isithombe: Albert Hirasen
From left: Professor Nobuhle Hlongwa, Dr Gugu Mazibuko, Ms Rooweither Mabuya and Dr Makhubu-Badenhorst at the International Mother Tongue Day celebrations.
The African Languages Cluster in UKZN’s School of Arts hosted the South African Centre for Digital Language Resources’ (SADiLaR) celebration of International Mother Tongue Day on 1 March. SADiLaR is part of the South African Research Infrastructure Roadmap in the Department of Science and Technology and the celebration was held to mark UNESCO’s International Year of Indigenous Languages.
The isiZulu mother tongue celebration on the Pietermaritzburg campus attracted 86 guests, including students and lecturers from the University, officials from the Department of Arts and Culture, the Usiba Writers Guild, eThekwini Municipality Language Unit, Durban University of Technology students and the South African National Lexicography Unit (SANLU).
Dr Gugu Mazibuko, senior lecturer in African Languages directed the programme, which was presented in UKZN’s official languages, English and isiZulu, through simultaneous interpreting. Isambane Cultural Group performed at the opening and guests were welcomed by Dr Makhubu-Badenhorst, African Languages Cluster leader. Ms Rooweither Mabuya, SADiLaR’s isiZulu researcher highlighted the importance of creating a digital footprint for South African languages and outlined SADiLaR’s contribution in the form of various computational tools and resources. SANLU member, Mr Terence Ball’s interesting talk touched on the constitutional obligations that all government departments, entities and SANLU have to promote indigenous languages and the importance of using dictionaries to improve literacy levels. Keynote speaker, Acting Dean of the School of Arts Professor Nobuhle Hlongwa focused on isiZulu’s historical context and how the language has grown and developed over time.
The question and answer session that followed demonstrated that the event had raised new questions in terms of language development and the future of indigenous languages. A lively discussion was also held on the next step in developing isiZulu as a language of research, teaching and learning.
UKZN Sociologist, Dr Mariam Seedat-Khan, was invited by the eThekwini Municipality to be part of their programme on Critical Thinking and Reading Skills at the Bayview Library in Chatsworth.
Seedat-Khan noted that learners’ average attention span is between six and 20 minutes. It varies depending on initial interest in the topic, the room temperature, the time of day, and the learner’s energy level. ‘A change of pace at least every six to 10 minutes can give participants the chance to refocus and renew their interest in the topic. It is important that the pace of the teaching corresponds with the attention span of the learners,’ she said.
Professor Genene Tessema Mola (right) greets Professor C. Muthamizhchelvan from the SRM Institute of Science and Technology at the ICONN Conference in India
Professor Genene Tessema Mola of the School of Chemistry and Physics delivered a plenary presentation on the effect of bimetallic nano-composites on the performance of thin film organic solar cells at the fifth International Conference on Nanoscience and Nanotechnology (ICONN 2019), held at the SRM Institute of Science and Technology in India.
First held in 2010, the biennial ICONN conference is organised by the SRM’s Department of Physics and Nanotechnology, and attracts researchers from across the world working in the fields of Nanoscience and Nanotechnology. Previously hosted by Shizuoka University in Japan, GNS Science in New Zealand, the Asian Nanoscience and Nanotechnology Association in Japan and the National Chiao Tung University in Taiwan, the 2019 conference was sponsored by India’s Department of Science and Technology’s Science and Engineering Research Board, the country’s Defence Research and Development Organisation and private industry partners. It attracted more than 1 000 participants, including academics, researchers, members of industry and students.
Mola, who conducts research in the field of Material Science and Device Physics, has experience of working with materials including silicon and germanium as well as organic semiconductors. He was invited to present a plenary lecture thanks to his more than 10 years of work in the field of nanostructured materials and thin film solar cells, which has been published in several high impact journals.
The presentation focused on investigations on polymer-fullerene based thin film organic solar cells with and without nano-structured metal particles and composites to improve solar energy harvesting. His research group has routinely fabricated laboratory scale thin film solar cells and studied the effect of metal nano-particles on device performance in terms of changes in the optical, electrical and microstructural properties of the photoactive films. These solar cells are solution process-able and the 200-nanometre-thick absorber films can be deposited on transparent substrates such as glass, metal or plastic to convert solar energy into electricity. The advantages of this new generation of solar cell technology include low device processing costs, their lightweight nature and the fact that they are environmentally friendly. As such, they are important renewable energy sources.
Mola’s presentation was well received by fellow scientists and researchers. He said that the conference was also an opportunity to learn about important developments in the synthesis and applications of nano-structured materials. Conversations with other leading researchers gave rise to fresh research ideas and potential opportunities for collaboration.
Mola has been at UKZN for eight years, and has published 92 articles in refereed journals in the course of his career. He has supervised 35 postgraduate students from honours to PhD level and is currently pursuing research in the fabrication and characterisation of solution process-able thin film solar cells, which has attracted interest from both academia and industry.
‘There is … huge investment in this research field globally because of the high potential of the new technology in reducing the costs for solar cell, [and the] lightweight and mechanical flexibility of the devices,’ said Mola. ‘South Africa can benefit from this potential, since energy security is a priority in the country, and the world is moving towards clean sources of energy like these.’
Photograph: Supplied by Genene Tessema Mola
Mr Sbusiso Hlongwa (pictured at the podium) from UKZN addresses learners at the Mandla Mthethwa School of Excellence.
Learners at the Mandla Mthethwa School of Excellence, a state-of-the-art rural school in eNdumo, northern KwaZulu-Natal, were motivated to work harder after learning about the different courses on offer at UKZN.
Mr Sbusiso Hlongwa of the University’s Corporate Relations Division delivered a talk to Grade 8 and 9 learners at the school and distributed information on different fields of study.
The R298-million school is the first such institution to be built in a rural area and was officially opened late last year. A fee-paying school that is surrounded by no-fee schools, it has 45 classrooms, three workshops, three laboratories, a library, a well-equipped media centre, a multi-purpose classroom, a dining hall, swimming pool, boarding facilities and many other amenities.
After a short presentation Hlongwa responded to a volley of questions, including whether it is possible to change one’s field of study after the first-year and whether a student who receives a bursary would retain it if he/she obtained lower marks than in the first-year of study.
Grade 9 learner, Miss Lihle Mngomezulu, 13, said she learnt that, in order for students to maintain momentum, working hard should start at school.
‘Mr Hlongwa educated us on what we should focus on, how to choose our subjects for the field we choose to study and how to get into university,’ said Mngomezulu.
Miss Bongeka Ndlovu, 13, would like to pursue a career in Engineering or Science. She said that she learnt that learners should research what courses different universities offer; otherwise they might find themselves doing something they don’t want to do.
Mr Sambulo Nxumalo, 14, said that he obtained information on how to apply to university and how to get information on the course he is interested in.
School Principal, Dr Bhekisisa Mthabela, praised Hlongwa for his informative presentation and said he would like to see learners from his school pursuing tertiary education and giving back to the community.
‘This is the deepest rural area in KwaZulu-Natal and the community are the poorest of the poor.
The provincial legislature together with corporate organisations decided to offer learners from rural areas the same opportunities and education that is offered at some of the popular high schools in the city.
‘We want to help learners to be able to compete on the same level. We also need medical doctors, engineers, pilots and construction companies here. We push our learners to work hard and set high standards. We are preparing them for 2022 and beyond,’ said Mthabela.
Words and photographs: Taschica Pillay
Blood Lions and YouthForLions with the workshop presenters.
The Blood Lions “YouthForLions” team hosted a workshop for more than 120 high school and university students at UKZN’s Howard College Theatre on Saturday, 2 March.
The event highlighted and discussed activities associated with the captive lion breeding industry in South Africa, and other pressing conservation and tourism topics, such as responsible tourism, ethical volunteering programmes, and the harm caused by interacting with wild animals. This was followed by a screening of the award winning film, Blood Lions® which follows acclaimed environmental journalist and safari operator Ian Michler, and Rick Swazey, an American hunter, on their journey to uncover the realities of the multimillion-dollar lion breeding and canned hunting industry in South Africa.
The Blood Lions “YouthForLions” campaign is a global movement aimed at informing and engaging the world’s youth around the realities of tourist activities that exploit lion, such as cub petting and walking with lions; and these activities’ contribution to the canned hunting industry in South Africa.
The students were inspired by presentations by YouthForLions Co-ordinator Cath Jakins; Wildlife ACT’s Mark Gerrard and Zama Ncube; Thompsons Africa’s Janine Southwood; Youth 4 African Wildlife’s Fortunate Phaka; and Project Rhino and Rhino Art’s Grant Fowlds; as well as Nune Jobe (Trails Guide and Youth Mentor), Melumsi Matiwane (Rhino Art Educator), and Ben Wallace (Videographer).
Following the presentations and the film, the students broke into groups and were given the task of creating a unique YouthForLions campaign to create awareness around the critical conservation issues they learnt about during the workshop. The Blood Lions “YouthForLions” team were thoroughly impressed by the wide variety of ideas presented by the 11 groups and faced the difficult task of deciding which was the most captivating and original campaign. The winning group received a two-day trip to the iconic Hluhluwe-iMfolozi Game Reserve where they will have the opportunity to track and monitor wild lions and other priority species with conservation NGO, Wildlife ACT.
The students left the event with deeper understanding of the captive breeding industry, as well as the terms “responsible tourism” and “ethical wildlife volunteering”. They were also exposed to possible career paths and opportunities in the conservation field.
Gerrard commented: ‘It is vital to see such a huge group of youth here posing such relevant questions to the speakers. This event is a great initiative to work towards developing our future leaders in the conservation space.’
Jakins added that: ‘Engaging with the youth of KwaZulu-Natal at our workshop today has been such an amazing experience for myself and the rest of the Blood Lions “YouthForLions” team. It is really inspiring to see such passionate young people getting together to help make a difference for our wildlife.’
Clockwise from left: Professor Rozena Maart and Ms Coral Bijoux with her artwork.
Gender Studies student, curator and artist, Ms Coral Bijoux’s work is featured at the Dreams, Wishes and Expectations RECYCLED exhibition at the historic 352-year-old Castle of Good Hope in Cape Town. The exhibit is part of the Voices of Women Museum exhibition series, which is funded by the MTN SA Foundation. Professor Rozena Maart, UKZN Gender Studies, was the keynote speaker at the opening of the exhibition.
She adds that the “feminine” is also positioned as one of strengths within the muted-ness and dares to continue to bring to one’s attention the strangleholds that render one’s dreams unrealised. ‘Daring to dream irrespective of, in spite or despite all else is the position of “the free”...and we all have the possibility for that position,’ Bijoux said.
For more information, email the curator coralbijoux.65@gmail.com. The website is under development, but you may view www.amazwi-voicesofwomen.com.
Photographs: Roger Jardin, Coral Bijoux, Creative Feel
Sociologist, Mr Malcolm Draper, who has contributed to international conservation publications.
Sociologist, Mr Malcolm Draper, contributed a chapter on “National Parks, Eco-Frontiers, and Transfrontiersmanship in Southern African Conservation” to Nature Conservation in Southern Africa published by Brill in Leiden, The Netherlands (2019), following a conference with Leiden’s African Studies Centre at Stellenbosch University.
Draper has been a speaker at Leiden’s African Studies Centre and previously contributed a chapter titled, “Holy Trout: New Zealand and South Africa” to Backcasts: A Global History of Fly Fishing and Conservation (2016) published by The University of Chicago Press 50 years after their publication of Norman MacClean’s A River Runs Through It.
His first chapter illuminates how shifting paradigms of human engagement with nature can lead to inversion rather than progression. It shows that a mediagenic and transfrontiersmanship approach was adopted to market southern Africa as an ecotourist destination, a post-national and post-colonial borderless product with culture (particularly indigenous culture) given primacy over and fused with nature, rather than the two being alienated from one another as was the case during the imperial and colonial era.
‘Ecocriticism has opened a new frontier for scholarship and, while showing the shortcomings of the programme, it can also appreciate the sincerity of postmodern transfrontiersmen’s journeys of reconciliation with their past as conquerors turning inward to the ultimate frontier to be tackled within the Western self. Such a perspective can challenge the anti-neoliberal orthodoxy,’ said Draper.
His second chapter expands on his published work on trout in South Africa to compare it with the New Zealand experience.
Draper has been fishing for trout since he was young and manages to combine his passion with his profession. He enjoys wielding his rod as a research instrument and has assisted with World Bank funded research on fly-fishing and tourism in the Maloti-Drakensberg Transfrontier Park between Lesotho and South Africa. There are pictures of him fishing for the indigenous yellowfish in the ensuing book, The Maloti Drakensberg Experience published by the Maloti Drakensberg Transfrontier Project (2007).
Draper has also followed the story of trout in Zimbabwe and Kenya. His interest in tourism took him to New Zealand where he spoke at a conference in Waikato and published a chapter on “African Wilderness” in the ensuing book. While there he fished for southern hemisphere parallels and differences between the introduction of trout and the establishment of conservation institutions.
An essential part of this was a rod-wielding pilgrimage to Scotland. The resulting essay, “Holy Trout” is part of a volume on fly-fishing and conservation published by The University of Chicago Press. He extended these ideas as a featured speaker at the World of Trout Congress at Montana State University, Bozeman.
Draper also helped to organise the World Wilderness Congress initiated by late South African conservationist, Ian Player. His work is published in the proceedings and The International Journal of Wilderness. This led to fishing in Alaska. He co-authored two of the chapters in the book that resulted from the Congress, one with Fisheries scientists on trout management and the other with an historian and an anthropologist on the social and cultural values of trout. It will be published soon by the American Fisheries Society.