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24 May 2018 Photo Leonie Bolleurs
UFS and CUT joint SASUF Research Symposium discusses urbanisation
From the left are: Prof Nils Ekelund from Malmö University in Sweden; Buhleng Masake, Honours student in Spatial Planning at the Department of Urban and Regional Planning at the UFS; Per Schubert from Malmö University in Sweden; and Wanda Verster, UFS Department of of Architecture.
The University of the Free State (UFS) and the Central University of Technology (CUT) recently joined hands with the Swedish University Forum (SASUF). The universities jointly presented at a research seminar with the theme: ‘Urban Rural Dynamic’. The seminar was a side event to the stream ‘Urbanisation in the 21st Century’ of the SASUF Sweden-South Africa Research Week that took place in the same week. This stream of the research week was academically chaired by Wanda Verster from the UFS Department of Architecture. 

SASUF is a collaboration of 30 universities in Sweden and South Africa together with embassies, civil society organisations, funding agencies and ministries in both countries of which CUT and UFS are partners. Other themes of the research week were ‘Climate Change, Natural Resources and Sustainability’; ‘Transforming Higher Education Curricula’; ‘Social Transformation Through Change’; ‘Understanding the Burden of Disease’; and ‘Digital Technologies, Big Data and Cybersecurity’. One of SASUF’s main goals is to connect researchers with funding agencies, industry, ministries, and society in working towards the Sustainable Development Goals. 

Tri-partite between local and international universities
The first day of the event was hosted by the UFS Department of Architecture on the Bloemfontein Campus and was supported by the UFS Department of Urban and Regional Planning. 

The focus of the seminar was on the rural/urban dynamic that secondary cities are frequently experiencing.

Researchers from the UFS, CUT and Malmö University in Sweden presented at the seminar. Stuart-Denoon Stevens, an honours student from the Department of Urban and Regional Planning at the UFS, presented his research on human settlements. “There are 200 million informal settlements in Africa. In 1994 there were 260 informal settlements in South Africa. Today we have 2600 informal settlements,” said Stewart. 

Take hands, not handouts
He believes that one needs to support what is happening rather than introduce new technology all the time. “Take hands, not handouts,” he said. 

Presenters from the CUT included Dilip Das, who presented on sustainable urban roads and transport, as well as Oke Saheed, who gave an overview of research on sustainable water resources and environment. Prof Nils Ekelund, the head of the Department of Science, Environment and Society at Malmö University in Sweden, presented on perceptions of the ecosystem services concept. He presented together with his colleague, Per Schubert, a lecturer in physical geography. 

The Director: Internationalisation at the UFS, Cornelius Hagenmeier, stressed in his welcoming remark the contribution SASUF and the side event organised by UFS and CUT make toward comprehensive internationalisation and strengthening the local collaboration between the two universities in Bloemfontein. 

News Archive

UFS changes format of graduation ceremony
2011-04-17

 

The highest number of qualifications in the history of the University of the Free State (UFS) will be awarded at the autumn diploma and graduation ceremony from 9-11 May 2011, which will be held in the Callie Human Centre on our Main Campus in Bloemfontein.

From this year, the format of the ceremony will change to make it more visible to students and the public. For the first time, all the doctoral and master’s degrees from each respective faculty will be conferred during one ceremony on 11 May 2011, instead of each faculty handling these qualifications individually. Another change in the format is that the procession will gather on the Red Square in front of the Main Building and move to the Callie Human Centre from there. Both academic staff and graduands will partake in the procession.

A total of 3 674 qualifications will be conferred during this year’s graduation ceremony, including 629 diplomas, 2 613 Bachelors and honours degrees, 372 master’s degrees and 58 doctorates.

An honorary doctorate in Drama and Theatre Arts will also be awarded to theatre stalwart Mr Pieter Fourie. He is one of the most acclaimed Afrikaans playwrights in South Africa and probably the only person to have left his mark as an actor, director, artistic director and writer.

Mr Fourie was awarded the Gerhard Beukes prize for drama , was honoured for his contribution to the arts by the South African Academy for Science and Arts and was appointed as trustee of the Arts and Culture Trust of the State President in 1997. He has also served as a committee member of the South African Academy for Science and Arts.

Mr. Fourie has also been the proud recipient of the Hertzog prize for drama, two FNB-Vita awards and a Fleur Du Cap award.
 

The full programme for the respective ceremonies is as follows:

  • Monday, 9 May 2011:

At 08:30, certificates and diplomas, excluding PGED and PGES, will be awarded to graduates from the Faculty of Education and at 12:00 PGED, PGED and B and honours degrees will be awarded to students from the same faculty. At 15:30 on the same day, certificates and B and honours degrees will be awarded to students in the Faculty of the Humanities.

At 19:00, the Faculties of Education, the Humanities and Economic and Management Sciences will have their prize-giving ceremonies for outstanding achievers.

  • Tuesday, 10 May 2011:

At 08:30, students in the Faculty of Economic and Management Sciences will graduate and at and 12:00 the Faculty of Natural and Agricultural Science will join them. This includes students in BML, B.Admin., B.Pub. and related honours degrees. At 15:30, 503 students from the Faculty of Natural and Agricultural Sciences will receive their certificates, diplomas and B and honours degrees.

At 19:00, the Faculties of Health Sciences, Natural and Agriculture Sciences, Law and Theology will have their prize-giving ceremonies.

  • Wednesday, 11 May 2011:

The Faculty of Health Sciences, the Faculty of Law and the Faculty of Theology will be awarding their certificates, diplomas and B and honours degrees at 08:30. At 12:00, all faculties will award a total of 372 master’s degrees and at 15:30 a total of 58 doctorates will be conferred.

The Chancellor’s Dinner will take place in the Centenary Complex on the Main Campus of the UFS at 19:00.

The graduation ceremony of our Qwaqwa Campus will take place in the Rolihlahla Mandela Hall on the Qwaqwa Campus on 7 May 2011 at 10:00. All the faculties at this campus will confer their degrees, certificates and diplomas at this ceremony.
 


Media Release
21 April 2011
Issued by: Lacea Loader
Director: Strategic Communication
Tel: 051 401 2584
Cell: 083 645 2454
E-mail: news@ufs.ac.za

 

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