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12 September 2018
What can or should higher education contribute to transformation and development by advancing the human well-being and agency of all students? How would our universities need to change to truly foster human development? 

These are the common questions cutting across the papers which will be presented at the International colloquium on ‘Researching well-being, agency and structural inequalities: comparative perspectives’. The University of the Free State’s (UFS) South African Research Chairs Initiative (SARChI) Chair in higher education and human development research programme led by Prof Melanie Walker will host the colloquium on 19 September 2018 at the Bloemfontein Campus.

The colloquium presents critical scholarship on development and also serves to celebrate the second five-year term of the SARChI Chair. The event has been structured to enable opportunities for early career researchers from the UFS to present their work alongside that of experienced scholars from the UK, US and South Africa, working on human development, development ethics and on education.
 
Date: Wednesday 19 September 2018
Time: 09:00-17:00
Venue: Chancellor’s Room, Centenary Complex, Bloemfontein Campus

Enquiries: Contact Elize Rall at rall.elize@gmail.com or on 076 792 9999 and CC Lucretia Smith at SmithL3@ufs.ac.za or dial 051 401 9856.

Click on the attached documents for the invitation and programme

News Archive

Year-long programme to celebrate the story of life and survival
2009-02-13

 
At the launch of the UFS's year-long programme to celebrate the story of life and survival were, from the left: Prof. Schalk Louw, Department of Zoology and Entomology, Prof. Jo van As, Department of Zoology and Entomology, Prof. Maitland Seaman, Centre for Environmental Management, and Prof. Matie Hoffman, Department of Physics. All four are associated with the UFS.
Photo: Hannes Pieterse

A year-long programme to celebrate the 200th anniversary of the birth of Charles Darwin and the 150th anniversary of the publication of his scientifically important book “The Origin of Species” was launched yesterday (the birth date of Darwin) by the University of the Free State (UFS) on its Main Campus in Bloemfontein.

The UFS is the only university in the country that is presenting such an extensive programme on life and survival. Yesterday’s launch programme entailed a portrayal of the life of Darwin and a presentation on what nature tells us about cosmic history. It was the start of a year-long lecture programme in which various departments at the UFS will take part.

“The lecture programme, called “The story of life and survival”, forms a cycle of the progress of man and does not only focus on Darwin. The programme aims to portray the influence of Darwin’s theory of evolution on a wide range of disciplines. We see this as a good opportunity to promote science in its broadest context,” says Prof. Jo Van As, head of the Department of Zoology and Entomology at the UFS.

The lecture programme will include topics such as the geological evolution of our planet, extinction, Darwinian agriculture, the road to civilisation, the proliferation of technology and communication, human demography and the human impact on the environment. It will be concluded in February 2010 with a lecture on the future of evolution.

The programme is spearheaded by the Department of Zoology and Entomology at the UFS, in conjunction with the National Museum and the Central University of Technology.

“Today evolution is no longer considered to be a theory and is widely accepted by most serious scientists as the process responsible for the diversity of life on our planet,” says Prof. Van As.

Complete programme:

26 February 2009: The geological evolution of our planet
13 March 2009: Origin of life, prokaryotes and eukaryotes
24 March 2009: Extinction
16 April 2009: Evolution and biodiversity of plants
30 April 2009: Evolution and biodiversity of animals
14 May 2009: The mechanisms of evolution: Heredity and Natural Selection
28 May 2009: Origin of humankind
4 June 2009: Darwinian agriculture
30 July 2009: Road to civilisation
6 August 2009: Human demography
20 August 2009: Proliferation of technology and communication
10 September 2009: Human impact: On the environment
8 October 2009: Human impact: Resistance, ectoparasites, HIV/Aids, antibiotics
22 October 2009: How to care for the world
12 February 2009: The future of evolution

Media Release
Issued by: Lacea Loader
Assistant Director: Media Liaison
Tel: 051 401 2584
Cell: 083 645 2454
E-mail: loaderl.stg@ufs.ac.za
13 February 2009

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