Latest News Archive

Please select Category, Year, and then Month to display items
Previous Archive
12 September 2019 | Story Valentino Ndaba | Photo Charl Devenish
Arbor tree plant
To celebrate National Arbor Week the University of the Free State has embarked on a drive to plant 150 trees during the month of September

If you’ve wondered whether Arbor Month was important, you only have to look at the destruction and long-term damage that deforestation causes to the environment and the world’s inhabitants. To observe National Arbor Month, the University of the Free State’s has (UFS) kick-started a drive to plant 150 trees during the month of September.

To launch this initiative, the Rector and Vice-Chancellor, Prof Francis Petersen, alongside members of the rectorate, assisted the University Estates team in planting the first 10 of 100 trees at the Bloemfontein Campus on Wednesday 4 September 2019. A total of 50 trees will be planted on the Qwaqwa Campus.

Towards a sustainable future

“We have gone through periods of drought in the Free State that have severely impacted not only the plants but the trees on our campuses. The idea is to emphasise sustainability, and as a university, we believe that sustainability is important. As an education institution, we have to look at the generations that are still to come to our campuses,” said Prof Petersen.

He urged the Kovsie community to ensure that all practices across the campuses are linked to global standards of sustainability. “As we develop over the next couple of months and years, we will get much closer alignment between what we are doing as a university and the Sustainable Development Goals.

Drought-resistant man-made forests

Clusters of mini forests across the campuses will be created with a variety of trees including the karee, white karee, white stinkwood, and wild olive. These indigenous trees can adapt well to different soils including those that are poorly drained.

Celebrating Arbor Week

This year’s campaign was held under the theme Forests and Sustainable Cities. As part of the celebration, University Estates made a commitment to the environment by embarking on the green initiative which includes other project such as the upgrade of Red Square on the Bloemfontein Campus.

News Archive

King Letsie III wishes Moshoeshoe project every success
2004-10-14



King Letsie III of Lesotho attaches great importance to the Moshoeshoe project of the University of the Free State (UFS) and wishes it every success.

This was the message of King Letsie III to the audience that attended the première of the documentary on King Moshoeshoe, the founder of the Basotho nation, at the UFS last night ( Wednesday 13 October 2004).

The message was read on his behalf by Lesotho’s Minister of Communications, Science and Technology, Dr Mamphono Khaketla.

Dr Khaketla said that through this important initiative the UFS is sending an important message that the current and future leadership can learn useful lessons from past great leaders such as King Moshoeshoe.

She said the screening of the documentary on King Moshoeshoe was a joyous occasion where the leadership attributes of a great Basotho King, who lived more than two hundred years ago, have been captured on film.

“The initiative which has brought us together, demonstrates the importance which the University of the Free State attaches to leadership, particularly in our southern African region,” she said.

Dignitaries in the audience included the Lesotho Minister for Communications, Science and Technology, Dr Mamphono Khaketla, Queen Mopeli, the MEC for Education, Ouma Tsopo, the MEC for Safety and Liaison, Tate Makgoe, the Director General of the Free State, Dr Khotso de Wee, the Senior Private Secretary to King Letsie III, Mr Mabotse Lerotholi, the Vice-chancellor of the National University of Lesotho, Dr Mothibe, Acting Principal Secretary in the Ministry of Tourism, Environment and Culture, Mr Jobo Molapo, Chairman of the Council of the University of the Free State, Judge Faan Hancke, and Rector and Vice-chancellor of the University of the Free State, Prof. Frederick Fourie.

The documentary on the life and legacy of King Moshoeshoe was commissioned by the UFS as part of its Centenary year. It was produced by journalist Max du Preez and it will be screened on SABC 2 on Thursday 4 November 2004.
 

Info here

We use cookies to make interactions with our websites and services easy and meaningful. To better understand how they are used, read more about the UFS cookie policy. By continuing to use this site you are giving us your consent to do this.

Accept