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2020 Kovsie ACT programme rounds off on an electrifying note!

04 February 2020 | Story Xolisa Mnukwa | Photo Charl Devenish

Kovsie Eco vehicle parade — A highlight for first-year and senior students is the ACT eco-vehicle building and parade through the streets of Bloemfontein.

Sunny skies, cheerful faces, and an overall great atmosphere surfed the University of the Free State (UFS) Bloemfontein Campus on Saturday, 1 February 2020 for the final series of events in the Kovsie ACT 2020 line-up.

The eco-vehicle parade kick-started the activities for the day and saw various student teams displaying their personalised pit-stop ‘sculptures’ along the streets of Bloemfontein. UFS residence teams Sonverlief (Houses Sonnedou, Veritas, Madelief); Soetmarmentum (Houses Soetdoring, Marjolein, Armentum); and Beykasium (Houses Beyers Naudé, Akasia, Imperium) came in first, second, and third respectively, obtaining the highest scores out of nine teams for their pit-stop sculpture constructions.

Following the parade, there were a number of fun but competitive eco-vehicle races between the teams. This included the Drag Race, Obstacle Course Race, Formula E Race, Endurance Race, and the Slalom Course Race that took place on the Mokete Square.

In the evening, students were serenaded by artists such as Early B and Spoegwolf. They danced to performances from the latest Amapiano music sensation, Kabza de Small, and legendary deep-house music duo, Black Motion, at the Rag Farm.

Assistant Director of UFS Student Life and Director of the Kovsie ACT office, Karen Scheepers, earlier urged students to get more involved in student-life programmes such as Kovsie ACT, in order to equip themselves with a variety of skills and a fulfilling university experience.

A number of senior and first-year students who were part of the action on the UFS Bloemfontein Campus this past Saturday, can attest to Scheepers’ advice.
“I’ve been looking forward to starting university for the longest time, and I am glad that I ended up at the UFS. I don’t feel alone, I feel like I can actually do this,” said first-year Psychology student, Thulisa Shezi.

“University isn’t as bad as everyone thinks it is, it’s just a matter of staying motivated, doing your work, and surrounding yourself with the right people in the process.” – Fourth-year Business Management student, Earl van der Westhuisen.

News Archive

“Leisure can be of great geographical importance”

2013-09-26

Prof Gustav Etienne Visser
Photo: Supplied
26 September 2013

Prof Gustav Etienne Visser (43) is Professor in Human Geography at the University of the Free State. He has been with the university’s Geography Department since January 2002 and became a full professor in 2009.
Visser completed his MA in Geographical Research at the Stellenbosch University in 1996 and finished his PhD in Geography at the London School of Economics and Political Science in 2000. His thesis was titled: Spatialities of social justice: reflections on South African Cities.

Visser was a Post-doctoral Fellow at the School of Geography, Archaeology and Environmental Studies at the University of the Witwatersrand before his appointment at the UFS. He now teaches Urban Geography to third-year students and Tourism and Development to MA students.

His research interests so far have been Identity-based consumption and urban morphological change, Tourism and development nexus and Critical reflections on South African Geographical Research.

Visser’s publications summary is as follows:

- Four books – edited collections
- 28 book chapters
- 71 refereed articles
- Nine academic commentaries and research notes
- 14 research reports
- and 38 conference papers

His latest research on how people’s leisure time influences our urban spaces, is fundamentally relevant to everyday life.

“We tend to forget to think about it, but how people spend their leisure time is part of their lifestyle,” says Visser.“ And our urban surroundings are influenced by the lifestyles of its inhabitants.”

When asked about his own leisure time and activities, Visser humorously responds “There is no such thing.”

However, he is passionate about eating, cooking and wine.
“I must also watch a series every day – Dexter is definitely my favourite.
“Furthermore, I also travel abroad for about three months of the year, which is mainly for my research concerning urban spaces.”

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