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07 June 2018 Photo Prof CB Bousman, from Texas State University.
Quaternary International volume dedicated to UFS research fellow
Dr James Brink visits the Erfkroon site on the Modder River in the Free State.
The contents of a special issue of Quaternary International (QI), consisting of 13 articles and contributions by 45 authors (25 from abroad), was recently presented to Dr James Simpson Brink. The papers represent the broad range of topics covered by Dr Brink’s research interests.  

The special issue of QI was initiated to coincide with James Simpson Brink’s 60th birthday after he recently celebrated 35 years of ground-breaking research at the National Museum of Bloemfontein.

Dr Brink is affiliated to the Centre for Environmental Management at the University of the Free State (UFS).

Prof Louis Scott, researcher in the Department of Plant Sciences at the UFS, was the executive guest editor, and was part of a team of three guest editors (Dr Liora Horwitz from the Hebrew University in Jerusalem, and Dr Daryl Codron from the National Museum in Bloemfontein) who worked on this special issue of the journal, QI. 

In honour of a friend and colleague
“Dr Brink made contributions to osteology, Quaternary palaeontology, and archaeozoology, by investigating the environments and mechanisms that drove the evolution of mammal communities of southern Africa,” said the guest editors. 

“By studying the morphology of the endemic black wildebeest he demonstrated how the species evolved in the central interior of South Africa. He pioneered descriptions and dating of faunal assemblages that make up the so-called ‘Cornelian’ and ‘Florisian’ Land Mammal Ages. In this way he reconstructed the long history of environments in which Stone Age occupants survived in the region. The work included the age determination of the cranium with facial bones of an individual who lived at Floribad around 250 000 years ago.

Work enabled more important studies
“Dr Brink contributed more than purely academic insights in that he built and curated the modern mammal and fossil faunal collections of the Florisbad Quaternary Research Station. These collections made it possible for researchers, who came from all over the world, to visit the Free State and focus on spatial and temporal palaeoenvironmental trends. Apart from contributing to the functional diversity of mammalian species, this enabled the investigation of morphological and behavioural variations across populations and communities,” said the editors.

The topics of the papers in this special issue of QI are interdisciplinary and include different methods in archaeology, vertebrate palaeontology and past (or palaeo-) environmental reconstruction. The ages dealt with range from the relatively recent Iron Age to the Oldowan period, which is over a million years old.

According to Prof Scott, with a degree of overlap in the interdisciplinary fields studied, the papers can be arranged into 1) taphonomy and archaeozoology, relating to the processes resulting in the formation and preservation of fossil material in archaeological sites, 2) Stone Age archaeology, dealing with artefacts, stratigraphy and palaeoanthropology, and 3) palaeoecology, that includes palaeontology, isotope studies and palaeoenvironmental reconstructions.

The journal, published by Elsevier, will be distributed worldwide. 

News Archive

Guest lecture: Mr Pretorius, CEO of McCarthy Limited
2004-11-05

The challenges facing business leaders in a rapidly changing South Africa

“The world we used to know does not exist anymore. Leaders are continually dealing with crisis and opportunities, in a high-pressure environment,” said Mr Brand Pretorius, honorary professor from the University of the Free State , delivering his 13th guest lecture on the challenges facing business leaders in a rapidly changing South Africa .

Mr Pretorius, CEO of McCarthy Limited, identified certain trends which are responsible for changes to the South African business environment. He said the South African business environment is ever-changing, fast moving, complex and unpredictable. “As business people we have to deal with the impact,” he said.

“Years ago we were globally isolated. Now we live in a shrinking borderless world with crumbling trade barriers. Globilisation of our economy is accelerating. For South African business leaders this creates a sea of export opportunities,” he said.

Although there are ongoing demands for substantial profit growth from shareholders, the days of focussing only on their interests are gone, said Mr Pretorius. Stakeholder commitment now enjoys high priority and business leaders have to deal with the challenges accompanying black economic empowerment and employment equity.

Customers are also well-informed and demanding. Business leaders could easily loose the loyalty of their customers because of a hyper-competitive environment with an oversupply of goods and services.

Mr Pretorius stated that staff want to be involved and are looking for meaning in their workplace. Employers also have to deal with HIV/Aids in their workplaces. Trauma, absenteeism and financial implications could have a great effect on the viability of a business.

Against these changes Mr Pretorius pointed out the challenges business leaders are facing. In doing so a number of questions arise. The external business climate is characterised by turbulence and change. Internally there is a need for stability and meaning. How do we handle both challenges effectively?

Because of changes strategy decay is taking place and past strategies become irrelevant. Mr Pretorius said that business leaders need to modify their business models to prevent the downfall of their companies.

It is important for leaders to know what is happening in their world. “Continuous innovation is a critical success factor. The reality is that innovation is the only insurance against irrelevance,” he said.

Because of a changed environment leaders must perform and transform, simultaneously. How do we strike a balance between focused transformation and the achievement of world class performance, asked Mr Pretorius? “We need to bring about meaningful and sustainable empowerment, in order to create an inclusive economy and society. Leadership and management profiles should reflect the diversity of our teams, however at the same time every effort should be made to stop the brain drain and retain the expertise of experienced white managers.”

He also stated that leaders have an important role to play in terms of employment creation and corporate caring. “Sustainable stability and prosperity will not materialise without efforts in this regard.”

Mr Pretorius said that above challenges could be addressed by developing the ability to focus on creating a better future, rather than defending the past, a long-term vision, facing new realities, enhancing the value of brands and mobilising IT and the Internet to serve the business and customers better.

Retaining a positive vision of the future, embracing change and transformation, building your business according to the right principles and values and aspiring to be the best are some of the guidelines, according to Mr Brand, for future business success. He stated that creating a value advantage above one’s competitors, customer satisfaction and retention and inspirational leadership will add to the success of one’s business.

“We are indeed living in the era of the ultimate challenges, but also the ultimate opportunities. Let me clearly state that I have hope – in my view the tide has turned. Every day I experience small miracles inspired by ordinary people making an extraordinary difference,” said Mr Pretorius.

 

Media release
Issued by: Lacea Loader
Media Representative
Tel: (051) 401-2584
Cell: 083 645 2454
E-mail: loaderl.stg@mail.uovs.ac.za
5 November 2004

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