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17 September 2021 | Story Nitha Ramnath

Prof Francis Petersen, Rector and Vice-Chancellor of the University of Free State, South Africa, invites us to rethink our relationship with the world in a series of ‘Courageous Conversations’ on the theme of ‘The Global Citizen’. Prof Petersen argues that COVID-19 has been a powerful ‘disruptor’ – it was a stark reminder of the need to rethink our identity, of where we belong, our ‘normative’ view of citizenship – if we want to secure long-term survival of our civilisation and the environments that support it.

Global Citizen and the role of Digital Futures – Monday, 27 September - 13:30 SAST / 12:30 BST 

How we turn information into intelligence is the subject of SACC’s next ‘Courageous Conversation’ with University of the Free State Vice-Chancellor, Prof Francis Petersen, in his series debating ‘The Global Citizen’.  “I believe the world needs multi-disciplinary solutions to its global problems.  For this reason, I established the Interdisciplinary Centre for Digital Futures at the University of the Free State as part of my vision to infuse the natural and social sciences and the humanities with everything that digital brings to a multi-disciplinary approach in order to solve real-world problems through the power of big-data analysis,” says Prof Petersen.

Prof Philippe Burger, the UFS Pro-Vice-Chancellor for Poverty, Inequality, and Economic Development, together with Prof Katinka de Wet and Herkulaas Combrink, the interim co-directors of the Interdisciplinary Centre for Digital Futures, will join Prof Petersen to discuss the value that such an approach can bring to finding solutions to real-world problems. They will also share information on some of the exciting projects of international relevance that they are working on. Agriculture and food security, medicine, and attitudes to issues such as, for example, vaccination, education, governance, and ethics are key foci of the centre.

Join us to find out how big-data analysis and a multi-disciplinary approach can transform understanding and deliver solutions to some of the challenges we face as citizens of the world.  

To RSVP click here 


The Global Citizen Courageous Conversations series

In partnership with the South African Chamber of Commerce based in the United Kingdom, the Global Citizen Courageous Conversations series that was launched on 26 May 2021, brings together powerful voices from public life, intellectuals, public interest and business leaders, academics, naturalists, religious leaders, astrophysicists, economists, ecologists, and others.

If you missed our previous Global Citizen Courageous Conversations, you can watch the replay on YouTube, or visit the South African Chamber of Commerce website for the recordings. 


News Archive

Wayde van Niekerk conquers Stockholm
2014-06-05

Wherever Kovsie athlete Wayde van Niekerk goes, a trophy seems to follow. This time, Van Niekerk vanquished the rest of the track in Stockholm, Sweden. He won the 200 m for men at the Sollentuna Grand Prix athletics meeting in a time of 20.53 seconds.

This victory closely follows Van Niekerk’s smashing the record in the men's 400m sprint. A record that went unbeaten for 15 years. He re-wrote this piece of history while competing at the Diamond League in New York. Van Niekerk now sets the new SA record at 44.38 seconds. He placed second over-all in the New York race.

In the past six months alone, he has already featured in the SA Student Championships in the 200 m, U/23 National Championships and the Senior Men's National 400 m Championships. He has also participated in the World Junior Championship in Canada and the World Championships in Russia.

At this stage, Van Niekerk is looking forward to the SA National Finals later this year and hopes to break the SA record – which forms part of his journey to Brazil in 2016.

"No success story is easy. One has to keep pushing harder and be the best they can be on and off the track. Never give up, because you are an inspiration," he encourages young athletes.

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