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Dr Madiope participating in annual Adelaide Tambo lecture at TUT

10 September 2020 | Story Eugene Seegers | Photo Sonia du Toit (Kaleidoscope Studio)

Dr Marinkie Madiope in official UFS gown — Dr Maria Madiope

Everywhere you look, our colleagues at the UFS are stepping up and stepping into the new digital space. With the move to virtual events, staff members at the university are able to participate in discussions and webinars across the continent at various other institutions of higher learning.

One such virtual event recently took place for Women’s Month. The Tshwane University of Technology hosted the Annual Adelaide Tambo Memorial Lecture on 27 August. The theme was Is the face of the boardroom in global organisations changing women representation in influential positions?

Dr Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka, United Nations Under-Secretary General and Executive Director of UN Women, focused in her presentation on themes regarding girls’ education and women’s health, both of which have been threatened by the COVID-19 pandemic.

As the respondent, Dr Maria Madiope, Principal of the UFS South Campus, dealt with the patriarchal domination and violence that modern women and girls endure, as well as the way “their sexuality and aptitude is disrespected and how they are subjugated and side-lined in the political, corporate, social, and cultural arena.” She said that it is incumbent on the modern generation of women to reignite the flame that fuelled the struggle for feminine recognition and equality. “We are beholden not only to the legacy of those that came before us, but also to the eager eyes that look up to us,” she concluded.

Dr Madiope also announced her support for Dr Mlambo-Ngcuka’s Generation Equality campaign against gender-based violence, and she echoed the sentiments of the rallying hashtag #JustChair, which breaks down discrimination based on the use of gendered terms such as ‘chairman’ for the leader of a meeting or corporation.

Dr Adelaide Tambo’s life was characterised by a love of knowledge, as she believed that people need as much power to be able to handle challenges facing the country, the continent, and the planet. She strove for the emancipation of women in general, focusing on the importance of education and how it can improve a woman’s life, and encouraged a strong culture of learning.

The event was livestreamed on Facebook and Zoom; go to https://www.facebook.com/805899996152814/videos/1036964343420927 to watch the full presentation.

News Archive

Kovsie students receive American Cancer Society Award

2012-08-30

Kovsie students during one of their purple cake sales
30 August 2012

South Africa’s first student-driven CANSA (Cancer Association of South Africa) Relay for Live, organised by students from the University of the Free State, has received an International Award from the American Cancer Society.

Showing solidarity with survivors of cancer, those who have battled and lost loved ones to the disease, the Kovsie students were rewarded with the society’s 2011/2012 Heart of Relay Award for youth involvement. The award was handed out at a ceremony in Mossel Bay in the Western Cape.

The Relay for Life is a global initiative that has been running for 26 years. It is an overnight relay event where teams of people camp out around a track. Members of each team take turns walking and running around the track. They also participate in a Luminaria ceremony where loved ones lost to cancer are remembered.

Relay for Life events are held for the general public as well as tertiary institutions. The Relay for Life event, held on the Bloemfontein Campus at the beginning of the year, was the first student organised one in South Africa.

Leading up to the event, Kovsie students engaged in a number of cancer awareness campaigns. These included purple cake sales and a shava-thon event. All money raised was donated to the Cancer Association of South Africa.

Sibusiso Tshabalala, founding chairperson of the Kovsie initiative, says the students worked with the local chapter of the Childhood Cancer Foundation (CHOC). “The event was generally learning about cancer, sharing the idea of solidarity and bringing students together.” Sibusiso says a similar project is planned for next year.

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