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10 July 2018 Photo Johan Roux
Global Leadership Summit starts off on a high note
Students have robust discussions on global issues of social justice and politics

 Global Leadership Summit 2018

The 2018 Global Leadership Summit opened on 8 July 2018 on the Bloemfontein Campus of the University of the Free State (UFS) with an exciting Africa-themed event where local and international students and faculty members from more than 14 universities were in attendance. Prof Puleng LenkaBula, Vice Rector: Institutional Change, Student Affairs, welcomed delegates to the UFS, encouraging them to explore the opportunities which the summit presents to them, to learn, engage and take back valuable lessons to their home institutions, and to impart valuable knowledge that they bring to their peers.

Students play a key role in social justice
Prof Francis Petersen, UFS Rector and Vice-Chancellor, welcomed delegates at the summit’s grand opening session on 9 July, at which he highlighted the importance of the participation of young people in social justice and leadership. He emphasised the drive which the university has towards engaged scholarship and the role it has in effecting positive change to communities around it, the country and the world at large. Prof Petersen engaged with Mr Jay Naidoo, founding General Secretary of the Congress of South African Trade Unions (COSATU) and cabinet minister. Mr Naidoo was the keynote speaker and addressed the issues surrounding indigenous knowledge, the values that can be found in it, and the role students can have in protecting and highlighting the value of such knowledge systems to bring future change in the world. “Where do we start in decolonising history? The next generation is rising up to that as more young people want to know about the beginning of the beginning,” Mr Naidoo said.

Human value is central to role of universities
A panel discussion was presented on the topic of the challenges of human value and what universities are doing about it, with Dr Vivienne Felix from New York University in the US, Prof Allen Kim, International Christian University in Japan, Dr Caroline Suranksy, University of Humanistic Studies in the Netherlands, and Dr WP Wahl from the UFS, facilitated by Adjunct Associate Professor Ashraf Mahomed from the University of Cape Town. Dr Suransky said: “If we were to identify ourselves as earthlings rather than with our nationalities, what do you reckon we would learn at universities? How do we inter-connect with the earth rather than try to change it?” she asked.

More than just a summit
The summit, which is a joint programme between the International Office, Student Affairs and the Institute of Reconciliation and Social Justice, will continue with more panel discussions, robust engagements and more activities. It will increase focus on critical thinking, on modalities capable of developing students to function effectively in an increasingly interdependent and complex world. It will also focus on building capacity in intercultural competencies, and grow an appreciation of cultural, historical, religious, linguistic, and political angles. The summit will include an excursion to Kimberley and to Galeshewe township in Northern Cape. Delegates will have the opportunity to attend South African cultural events such as the annual Vrystaat Kunstefees/Free State Arts Festival which will be held on the Bloemfontein Campus from 10-14 July, as well as other African theatre productions. 

News Archive

Nat Nakasa the inspiration behind UFS academic’s PhD thesis
2017-01-09

 Description: 001 Dr Willemien Marais Tags: 001 Dr Willemien Marais

Photo: Supplied

“I’m interested in alternative ways of approaching things, so I wanted to look at how journalism can be used in an unconventional way to contribute to a developing society.”

This is why Dr Willemien Marais, a lecturer in the Department of Communication Science at the University of the Free State (UFS), decided to title her thesis: Nat Nakasa as existential journalist, describing a form of journalism that places emphasis on the individual’s experiences.

“Existentialism is a philosophy that provides scope for an individual approach to life, and I like Nat Nakasa’s writing because of his excellent sense of humour despite his horrific circumstances as a black journalist during apartheid,” she says.

A practical approach to writing

Dr Marais analysed Nat Nakasa’s approach to journalism through articles he wrote in the early 1960s. She searched for relevant themes of existentialist philosophy in Nakasa’s work in order to prove that he could be read as an existential journalist.

She mentions that in terms of contemporary relevance, Nakasa’s approach to journalism suggests that existentialism could provide the journalist with a practical approach to writing, especially for those journalists working in developing societies.

“The relevance of this approach lies in the fact that any society is always between things – the old and the new – which might require the journalist to operate outside the boundaries of conventional journalism.”

This study was qualitative in nature because of the interpretation required. She mentions that it was basically one of many possible interpretations of Nakasa’s work; with this one using existentialism as a lens.

An intellectually stimulating thesis

Dr Marais quotes French existentialist Jean-Paul Sartre, who said that interpreting someone’s work, especially someone who was no longer alive, was open to “thousands of shimmering, iridescent, relevant meanings”, and her research represents one of these possible meanings of Nakasa’s work as a journalist.

When asked how long she had worked on her thesis, Dr Marais simply answered “too long!” She mentions that her thesis was initially more of an intellectual exercise. Whereas the actual act of writing took about four months, she spent many years thinking about the topic. “Now that all is said and done, I realise I had to grow into the topic. It took me a while to realise that true understanding does not come overnight!”

Dr Marais mentions that other than herself and the work of Nat Nakasa, there were no other roleplayers involved. “For many, many years it was just Nat Nakasa and I. It was frustrating and exhilarating all at the same time.”

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