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18 August 2020 | Story Leonie Bolleurs | Photo Supplied
Liezel Rudolph believes opportunities do not fall into your lap, but you cross them when you do what you love, and you do it well.

On more than one occasion, Liezel Rudolph set foot on the SA Agulhas II, travelling the oceans to Marion Island in her quest to research climate change. She focuses her research on reconstructing the past climate of Marion Island. 

As Lecturer in Process Geomorphology in the Department of Geography Rudolph is involved in research on glacial and peri-glacial landforms, trying to understand the links between climate and the processes that shape these landforms.

An interview with her reveals more about this scientist, adventurer, and teacher who sees pursuing one’s research interests and teaching others about it as a dream come true.

 

“Part of being a woman is to know when to be strong and to speak up, and when to be humble and listen.” – Liezel Rudolph

Is there a woman who inspires you, who you would like to celebrate this Women’s Month?

“I would like to celebrate my mother who does everything to the full. She celebrates the little things; she dreams big and she does not fear the future. She values discipline, but nurtures growth and has always encouraged (me) to be the best version of me and not to compare myself to others.”

What are some of the challenges you have faced in your life that have made you a better woman?

“I don’t like being criticised and I don’t like failing. It has taken me several years to learn that not all criticism is negative and that not all failures are final. And that is OK. I have learned to be easier on myself, and on others when I (or they) don’t meet certain expectations.”

What advice would you give to the 15-year-old you?

“When I was 15 years old, I had no idea what life would be after school – and it scared me. I now know that by following my passion and doing what I am good at, I am doing myself and the world a favour. There is no point in making loads of money if you hate going to work every day. Opportunities do not fall into your lap, but you cross them when you do what you love, and you do it well.”

What would you say makes you a champion woman [of the UFS]?

“I would not say that I am a champion woman, yet. But I would like to think that I am a woman who does her job well, and who does ‘woman’ well, too. This means bringing what I have to the table, and not comparing, criticising, or competing with anyone about what else is on the table. I still have to grow a lot in this regard.”

 

 

News Archive

Universities can contribute to economic transformation
2010-01-27

At the lecture were, from the left: Prof. Neil Heideman (Acting Dean: Faculty of Natural and Agricultural Sciences), Prof. Hartmut Frank (University of Bayreuth, Germany), Prof. Bianchi and Prof. Jan van der Westhuizen (professor in Chemistry at the UFS).
Photo: Mangaliso Radebe 


Universities have a role to play in economic transformation and industrial development according to Prof. Fabrizio Bianchi, the Rector of the University of Ferrara in Italy.

This was the core message of his lecture on the topic Globalisation, Agriculture and Industrial Development that he delivered at the University of the Free State.

He said after the collapse of the agricultural industry in Italy as a result of the subsidies that the farmers were receiving from the government, the university had to step in.

“This was meant to maintain high prices and maximize the production but in the long run this approach created problems because the farmers were no longer producing high quality products but large quantities in order to receive subsidies,” he said.

“The result was that the government itself had to destroy those poor quality products. This was a completely unreasonable way to manage the economy”.

He said they had to abandon that approach and concentrate on quality because they realized that Italy could not match the prices and the quantity, in terms of production, of countries like China and the USA.

He said “knowledge and human resources” were the key factors that could get them out of that crisis; hence they came up with what he called “the Made in Italy approach”.

“We were working on the idea that food is part of culture and that it is not just simply for refueling the body,” he said.

“One of the fundamental ideas was to come back to the idea that production is the centre of the development process.”

“Quality is a very complex, collective issue,” he said. “You cannot understand development if you do not understand that you have to base it on strong roots”.

This approach resulted in the formation of several companies with specialized niche markets producing high quality products.

His visit to the UFS coincided with that of the 1991 Nobel Laureate in Chemistry, Prof. Richard Ernst from Switzerland, who was also part of the fourth presentation of the Cheese fondue concept.

The main thrust of this concept is that technical advances alone are insufficient for an agreement to be reached on the minimum respect between the various groups and individuals within a society. It proposes that for this to be achieved there has to be a concurrent development of empathy and emotional synergy.

Media Release
Issued by: Mangaliso Radebe
Assistant Director: Media Liaison
Tel: 051 401 2828
Cell: 078 460 3320
E-mail: radebemt@ufs.ac.za  
27 January 2010

 

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