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14 December 2020 | Story André Damons
Dr WA Lombard
Dr WA Lombard from the Department of Agricultural Economics in the Faculty of Natural and Agricultural Sciences was a winner of the Joseph F Donnermeyer New Scholar Award from the International Society for the Study of Rural Crime.
A researcher and lecturer from the University of the Free State (UFS) Department of Agricultural Economics has received an international award for his research on the economic impact of stock theft in South Africa.

Dr WA Lombard from this department in the Faculty of Natural and Agricultural Sciences was announced as the winner of the Joseph F Donnermeyer New Scholar Award from the International Society for the Study of Rural Crime (ISSRC) earlier this month (December 2020).

Award for an early-career researcher

Dr Lombard received the award for the research he conducted for the article: ‘Economic impact and factors affecting sheep and goat theft in South Africa’, published in Acta Criminologica: African Journal of Criminology & Victimology. The award is bestowed on an early-career researcher for a publication pertaining to rural criminology during the past 12 months. An early-career researcher is someone who has received a PhD within the past seven years and is showing stable research development.

“Winning this award is a very big honour for me. You always wonder if others view the research you are doing as important. It makes it even more special knowing that researchers from around the world could have won this award. I didn’t think I stood a chance,” said Dr Lombard.

According to him, this was the first award he had entered for after being encouraged by Mr Willie Clark from UNISA’s School for Criminal Justice and chairperson of the Stock Theft Prevention Forum.

Rural-crime research receiving attention

“It is great to know that research conducted by the UFS is considered valuable and of good quality by researchers around the world. It is also good to know that rural-crime research is receiving attention. Many feel this field of research is being neglected,” added Dr Lombard.

The award is named after ISSRC president, Joe Donnermeyer, and acknowledges his many years of work, his pioneering role in rural criminology as a sub-discipline, and his strong and ongoing support and mentorship for emerging academics.

• The other winner is Dr Kate Farhall of the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology and Melbourne Technical College in Australia.

News Archive

Judge Ian van der Merwe unanimously re-elected as Chairperson of the UFS Council for a third term
2015-09-23


Judge Ian van der Merwe

The Council of the University of the Free State (UFS) unanimously re-elected Judge Ian van der Merwe as its Chairperson for another three years at its meeting on Friday 11 September 2015, which took place on the Bloemfontein Campus.

Judge Van der Merwe serves as Judge of the Free State High Court. He is an alumnus of the UFS and has been a member of the Council since 9 March 2007.

In accepting his re-election, Judge Van der Merwe said that he was honoured and grateful for the support. “I will do my best not to disappoint the Council and will do what is in the best interest of the UFS,” he said.

“The UFS is privileged to have in the person of Judge Van der Merwe a man of great public standing and a wealth of experience in the governance of universities, to continue to lead the Academic and Human Projects of the institution at such a critical moment in the history of South Africa”, said Prof Jonathan Jansen, Vice-Chancellor and Rector of the UFS.

Judge van der Merwe was elected as Chairperson of the UFS Council during a meeting on 20 November 2009 and was unanimously re-elected for a second term on 16 November 2012. His third term will commence on 1 January 2016.


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