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02 November 2018 | Story Charlene Stanley | Photo Johan Roux
Grassroots Champions Rising Above Challenges
Prof Richard Teare, President of the Global University of Lifelong Learning (GULL) (far left), Karen Venter, Head of Service Learning (second from left) and Bishop Billyboy Ramahlele, Director of Community Engagement (second from right) with graduates of GULL’s non-academic programme.
Reciprocity. That’s what it’s all about when it comes to engaged teaching and learning in a community context.  Everyone must benefit – which includes getting recognition for what you’ve achieved,” says Karen Venter, Head of Service Learning in the Directorate: Community Engagement.
   
This conviction was put into practice at the recent Grassroots Community Engagement Awards. It was an opportunity to thank and award all the role players who made a success of this year’s Learning Festival, presented in partnership with Bloem Shelter on the Bloemfontein Campus earlier this year. During the festival, 55 skills development workshops were offered in a collaborative effort to create sustainable income-generating micro enterprises.

Global University for Lifelong Learning graduates

The awards function also doubled as a proper ‘Cap and Gown’ ceremony for 18 participants in the Global University for Lifelong Learning (GULL) programme. For the past three years, they’ve been involved in action learning on a uniquely designed Professional Bachelor Pathway to Holistic Development. This pathway is rooted in spiritual, personal, and professional development, where the learning of skills for entrepreneurship is key to gain personal and professional viability, moving from dependence to independence.

“GULL’s approach is to give people in the community a chance to advance themselves. Our focus is professional and not academic. It’s about life skills and professional skills where people don’t have the funds or qualifications to follow an academic route,” explained Prof Richard Teare, President of GULL, who came all the way form the UK to officiate the ceremony.
  
Academics and Life Skills running parallel

“What makes the UFS involvement in our programme so great, is that it’s run parallel with an excellent academic programme offered by the university.”

He emphasised the importance of graduation ceremonies, as it instilled a sense of pride and gave graduates an opportunity to reflect on how far they’ve come in improving their own circumstances. 

“This is a deep form of learning, because we are enabling people to move from their difficult circumstances and release their own inner potential.”

News Archive

Researchers international leaders in satellite tracking in the wildlife environment
2015-05-29

 

Ground-breaking research has attracted international media attention to Francois Deacon, lecturer and researcher in the Department Animal, Wildlife and Grassland Sciences at the UFS, and Prof Nico Smit, from the same department. They are the first researchers in the world to equip giraffes with GPS collars, and to conduct research on this initiative. Recently, they have been joined by Hennie Butler from the Department of Zoology as well as Free State Nature Conservation to further this research.

“Satellite tracking is proving to be extremely valuable in the wildlife environment. The unit is based on a mobile global two-way communication platform, utilising two-way data satellite communication, complete with GPS systems.

“It allows us to track animals day and night, while we monitor their movements remotely from the computer. These systems make possible the efficient control and monitoring of wildlife in all weather conditions and in near-to-real time. We can even communicate with the animals, calling up their positions or changing the tracking schedules.

“The satellite collar allows us to use the extremely accurate data to conduct research with the best technology available. The volume of data received allows us to publish the data in scientific journals and research-related articles.  

“Scientific institutions and the public sector have both shown great interest in satellite tracking, which opens up new ground for scientific research for this university. Data management can be done, using Africa Wildlife Tracking (AWT) equipment where we can access our data personally, store it, and make visual presentations. The AWT system and software architecture provide the researcher with asset tracking, GPS location reports, geo-fencing, highly-detailed custom mapping, history reports and playback, polling on demand, history plotting on maps, and a range of reporting types and functions,” Francois said.

Data can be analysed to determine home range, dispersal, or habitat preference for any specific species.

Francois has been involved in multiple research projects over the last 12 years on wildlife species and domesticated animals, including the collaring of species such as Black-backed Jackal, Caracal, African Wild Dog, Hyena, Lion, Cheetah, Cattle, Kudu, Giraffe, and Black Rhino: “Giraffe definitely being the most challenging of all,” he said.

In 2010, he started working on his PhD, entitled The spatial ecology, habitat preferences and diet selection of giraffe (Giraffa camelopardalis giraffa) in the Kalahari region of South Africa.

 

Since then, his work has resulted not only in more research work (supervising four Masters students) but also in a number of national and international projects. These include work in the:

  • Kalahari region (e.g. Khamab Nature Reserve and Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park)
  • Kuruman region (Collared 18 cattle to identify spatial patterns in relation to the qualities of vegetation and soil-types available. This project took place in collaboration with Born University in Germany)
  • Woodland Hills Wildlife Estate and Kolomella Iron Ore – ecological monitoring
  • A number of Free State nature reserves (e.g. Distribution of herbivores (kudu and giraffe) and predators (camera traps)

Francois is also involved with species breeding programmes and management (giraffe, buffalo, sable, roan, and rhino) in Korrannaberg, Rustenburg, Hertzogville, Douglas, and Bethlehem as well as animal and ecological monitoring in Kolomella and Beesthoek iron ore.

Besides the collaring of giraffes, Francois and his colleagues are involved in national projects, where they collect milk from lactating giraffes and DNA material, blood samples, and ecto/endo parasites from giraffes in Southern Africa.

With international projects, Francois is working to collect DNA material for the classification of the nine sub-species of giraffe in Africa. He is also involved in projects focusing on the spatial ecology and adaptation of giraffe in Uganda (Murchison Falls), and to save the last 30 giraffe in the DRC- Garamba National Park.

This project has attracted a good deal of international interest. In June 2014, a US film crew (freelancing for Discovery Channel) filmed a documentary on Francois’ research (trailer of documentary). Early in 2015, a second crew, filming for National Geographic, also visited Francois to document his work.

 

More information about Francois’ work is available at the GCF website. 

Read Francois Deacon's PhD abstract

Direct enquiries to news@ufs.ac.za.

 

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