AI Build-up Workshop Presenters

Theme: Practical Applications of Intelligent Document Processing in Libraries and Archives

23 July 2026 | 09:30 - 11:00

Presenter: Niklas Zimmer
Time: 09:30–11:00  Harare, Pretoria
Register: LIASA Zoom

Biography:

Niklas Zimmer is the Digital Scholarship and Data Curation Manager at FCTEC, South Africa, with extensive experience in digitisation, digital libraries, data curation, digital preservation, and artificial intelligence. He previously managed Digital Library Services at the University of Cape Town and has contributed to large-scale digitisation and AI-driven preservation initiatives across Africa. His work explores how technologies such as Intelligent Document Processing, OCR, automated metadata extraction, document classification, and workflow automation can improve access to library and archival collections. He is particularly interested in developing responsible, standards-based approaches that balance technological innovation with human oversight, data sovereignty, privacy, quality control, and long-term preservation. Zimmer has published and presented widely on AI-supported digitisation, digital transformation, cultural heritage preservation, and research data management, helping libraries and archives progress from experimental AI projects towards practical and sustainable implementation.  

Theme: AI-Powered Metadata and Knowledge Discovery Symposium

11-12 June 2026

Venue: Pont de Vaal, Parys, Free State, South Africa

The symposium will feature multiple presenters and organisations contributing to discussions and workshops on AI, metadata, cataloguing, and knowledge discovery. Sessions will include AI in Cataloguing, intelligent systems for knowledge discovery, and hybrid presentations from various partners and institutions.

The symposium will also feature presenters such as Bongiwe Shongwe (UKS) , who will present on AI in Cataloguing on Thursday, 11 June 2026, at 09:00 - 12:00.

View Programme

Topic: Ethics in AI

20 August 2026 | 09:30 - 11:00

Presenter:Dr Jacques Matthee
Time: Aug 20, 2026 09:30 Harare, Pretoria
Zoom link to follow

Biography:

Dr Jacques Matthee is a Senior Lecturer and Vice-Dean for Learning, Teaching, Innovation, and Digitalisation in the Faculty of Law at the University of the Free State, South Africa. His research focuses on legal pluralism, African customary law, criminal law, and medical law, with particular interest in the regulation of traditional healing and culturally embedded practices. He explores how legal systems engage with culture, religion, crime, and healthcare, including the constitutional and human rights implications of such intersections. His work contributes to more nuanced and culturally responsive approaches to criminal liability and healthcare governance, and he has published and presented widely in these areas. In addition, Dr. Matthee is actively involved in projects on legal pluralism. Beyond his research, he is deeply engaged in teaching and learning in higher education, contributing to curriculum development, educational resources, and innovative, blended learning practices in legal education. 


Topic: Ethics in AI

12 May 2026 |18:00 - 20:00

Presenter:Judge Henk Roelofse
Time: May 12, 2026 18:00 Harare, Pretoria
Link

Biography:

Judge Henk Roelofse, who has served as a Judge in the Gauteng and Mpumalanga High Courts since 2018 and has more than 20 years of legal experience, will present an insightful session on AI & the Law: Understanding the Risks and Responsible Adoption in Legal Practice, exploring the role of Artificial Intelligence in the legal sector.
AI AND THE LAW

Topic: Essential Literacies

21 October 2026 |14:00 - 16:30

Presenter: Nick Tanzi
Time: Oct 21, 2026 14:00 Harare, Pretoria
View Webinar

Biography:

Nick Tanzi is an internationally recognised library technology consultant and author of Making the Most of Digital Collections Through Training and Outreach (2016) and co-author of Best Technologies for Public Libraries: Policies, Programs, and Services (2020). He is a former column editor of "The Wired Library" in Public Libraries magazine and was named a 2025 Library Journal Mover & Shaker. Tanzi currently serves on the Public Library Association's Transformative Technology Task Force. He shares his insights on the intersection of libraries and technology at https://the-digital-librarian.com.
Nick Tanzi

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