Latest News Archive

Please select Category, Year, and then Month to display items
Previous Archive
22 June 2020 | Story Lelanie de Wet | Photo Sonia du Toit (Kaleidoscope Studio)
Barend Nagel, left, and Lelanie de Wet from the Department of Communication and Marketing.

The Department of Communication and Marketing is the proud winner of two prestigious international awards, recognised by their peers for outstanding work in the communications profession. 

These two international awards will increase the total number of international awards won by the department since 2014, to fifteen.

Lacea Loader, Director of the department, says: “Receiving international recognition from prestigious professional organisations such as the Council for Advancement and Support of Education (CASE) and the International Association of Business Communicators (IABC) is a huge achievement. It is the culmination of consistent high-quality work by a team of dedicated professional communicators, and I am extremely proud of these achievements – especially because the UFS was one of the few universities in the country to have achieved such international recognition so far this year.” 

CASE Gold Circle of Excellence Award
Lelanie de Wet, Manager: Digital Communication, and her team won an international award for the communication and marketing plan and the execution of the 2019 Kovsies Multilingual Mokete. This entry won a 2020 CASE Gold Circle of Excellence Award in the Diversity and Talent Management (Diversity Initiatives) category. The Northwestern University in the United States took Grand gold in this category and Tufts University, also from the United States, took silver. 
CASE is a global non-profit association dedicated to educational advancement – alumni relations, communications, development, marketing, and advancement services – sharing the goal of championing education to transform lives and society. 

Each year, CASE recognises best practices in advancement, as well as outstanding people contributing to the growth and understanding of the advancement profession. The awards acknowledge superior accomplishments with a lasting impact, demonstrating the highest level of professionalism, and delivering exceptional results. A total of 2 752 entries in 100 categories from 587 institutions were received for the 2020 awards. 

High praise was received from the judges for this project: “This is one of the most exciting entries we have seen in our many years of judging. With the theme of ‘I have a voice’, they celebrated the multiple languages spoken on their campus. The planning and emphasis on inclusivity were extraordinary. They engaged their entire community in the process and the celebration. As they said in their nomination form, We did not want this to be just another festival that happens ‘on’ campus, but rather a festival that happens ‘for’ campus. They succeeded beautifully.”

IABC Gold Quill Award of Merit
Barend Nagel: Audio-visual Specialist, won a 2020 IABC Gold Quill Award of Merit for his gender-based violence awareness campaign photographs in the Audiovisual communication skills category.

The IABC is a global network of communications professionals. For more than 40 years, IABC’s Gold Quill Awards have been recognising and rewarding excellence in strategic communication worldwide. The awards programme is recognised as one of the most prestigious in the communications profession. This is the 9th award the department has received from the IABC. In 2014, the department also received the prestigious IABC Jake Wittmer Research Award.

This year, the awards committee selected 201 entries as world-class, with 81 entries earning Excellence Awards and 120 Merit Awards. Winners come from all over the world, with 12 countries represented in the list of winners. Some of the competitors in the Audiovisual communication skills category included international companies such as Tiffany and Co., Crown Castle from the US, Sappi Southern Africa, and Cropley Communication from Australia.

The judges commended the creativity and innovation of the photographs:  “A very creative campaign that would leave a lasting impression on everyone who sees it.”
“A really innovate campaign likely to connect to the audience and make them think.”

News Archive

21 Icons: 21 Years of Freedom Collection at the University of the Free State
2015-09-02

   

In Prayer and Protest - Sophia Williams De Bruyn

The Johannes Stegmann Art Gallery, in partnership with 21 Icons, is hosting the 21 Years of Freedom Collection, an exhibition specially curated for the University of the Free State.
21 Icons celebrates a heroic past and inspires a hopeful future. The project was launched in 2013 as an initiative that uses film, photography and written narrative to celebrate the lives of extraordinary South Africans. It highlights people who have been catalysts in shaping society, on a local or global level and across a variety of contexts: in a social, political, environmental or artistic sense.

It is the brainchild of internationally renowned photographer and filmmaker Adrian Steirn, whose primary source of inspiration was the life of Nelson Mandela. In one way or another, all of the men and women featured in the project have extended his legacy, making a magnificent impact on South Africa and beyond.

  

Beautiful Sacrifice - Albie Sachs

21 Years of Freedom features 21 icons from the first and second seasons of the project. It includes the last official photographic portrait of Nelson Mandela and many of his friends and fellow struggle heroes. Behind each portrait lies a carefully planned concept that captures the essence of each icon, capturing their spirit and distinct legacy.

Among the other extraordinary South Africans featured in this collection, are struggle icons Ahmed Kathrada and Advocate George Bizos, Archbishop Desmond Tutu, human rights and environmental activist Kumi Naidoo, celebrated storyteller Gcina Mhlophe, Nobel laureate Nadine Gordimer, activist and musician Yvonne Chaka Chaka, gender activist Sophia Williams De Bruyn and artist William Kentridge.

    

The Full Report - Zubeida Jaffer

The 21 Icons was created as a movement for positive change. By sharing the stories of iconic South African men and women, the intention is to inspire new generations to follow in their footsteps.  With the country celebrating 21 years of democracy but still grabbling with injustices, the message that everyone can do something to make a difference, is portrayed in these powerful and inspiring stories.

Writer-in-residence and well-respected journalist, Zubeida Jaffer, who features among the collection of 21 striking photographs, opened the exhibition saying, “I feel like I’m surrounded by a circle of energy from which I have been fortunate to draw strength …It’s a choice that we make…whether to draw energy from those who are positive and forward looking or to surround ourselves with people who are fearful.  There is a lot to be fearful about in our country. We have lived through very fearful and difficult times.  But to cope with these times, those people and many others have kept their focus on hope.  They have kept their focus on what is possible…and what we would like South Africa to be in the future.”

For more information on 21 Icons: 21 Years of Freedom Collection contact the Johannes Stegmann Art Gallery at +27 (0)51 401 2706 or dejesusav@ufs.ac.za

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