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Environmental Management gives postgraduates an international experience

02 February 2022 | Story Leonie Bolleurs | Photo Leonie Bolleurs

Summer school web read more — Chané Enslin, master’s student in the UFS Centre for Environmental Management (CEM); Stephanie Graumnitz, Institute of Hydrobiology at the Technical University Dresden (TUD); Dr Dirk Jungmann, Head of Ecotoxicology and Biomonitoring in the Institute of Hydrobiology at TUD; Sihle Mlonyeni, master’s student in the Faculty of Applied Science at the Cape Peninsula Technical University; Dr Marinda Avenant, Senior Lecturer in the CEM at the UFS; Akani Baloyi, master’s student in the UFS Disaster Management Training and Education Centre for Africa; and Sphindile Dlamini, master’s student in the Department of Zoology and Entomology on the UFS Qwaqwa Campus.

The Centre for Environmental Management (CEM) at the University of the Free State (UFS), in collaboration with Dr Dirk Jungmann from the Technical University Dresden, recently presented a virtual summer school on Blackboard, titled: Monitoring of surface water quality: General framework, tools and implementing disaster management aspects in urban areas.

The international group of 30 persons who attended the summer school mostly comprised postgraduate students and employees from, among others, the UFS and other tertiary institutions such as the Technical University Dresden (TUD), the Cape Peninsula University of Technology (CPUT), UNISA, the University of the Western Cape, Stellenbosch University, the University of Lesotho, and the University of Zimbabwe. Members of the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research also attended the summer school.

Experts present

Dr Marinda Avenant, Senior Lecturer in the CEM, believes the summer school provides students with a wonderful opportunity to be exposed to a topic, such as aquatic biomonitoring, over and above their normal postgraduate studies. “The presenters are all experts in their field and come from a range of disciplines (from hydrology and chemistry to the social aspects of water), as well as from different countries and perspectives,” she adds.

Some interesting topics covered during the summer school included a panel discussion on water management challenges in Southern Africa. Head of CEM, Prof Paul Oberholser, participated in this live discourse. In 2021, he won the NSTF-Water Research Commission (WRC) Award for his contribution to water resource management in SA over the past five years.

Also contributing a perspective on surface water quality was affiliated professor in CEM, Prof Anthony Turton, who delivered the keynote address on Managing surface water quality as an element of disaster management in urban areas.

Dr Alice Ncube from the UFS Disaster Management Training and Education Centre (DiMTEC) presented on women and disasters (including a case study on a stokvel in Botshabelo), and Dr Inga Jacobs-Mata from the International Water Management Institute (IWMI) provided a social perspective on the water resources sector.

Students excel

Five master’s students representing the UFS, the Technical University Dresden (TUD), as well as the Cape Peninsula University of Technology (CPUT), assisted with the organisation of the summer school. The Volkswagen Foundation in Germany, which funded a first summer school in 2019, provided funding that was used to appoint the five students.

According to Dr Avenant, they made provision for the appointment of these students in their project proposal to the Volkswagen Foundation. “The students played a key role in the planning of the virtual summer school; they specially came up with ideas to make the virtual sessions more interesting,” she says.

Among others, they managed the technical aspects of the sessions, introduced the speakers, arranged social activities for the virtual platform, and they produced podcasts. The podcasts of the speakers were distributed to the participants over the extent of two months, in order to learn more about the presenters.

“We were really impressed with the work of the students, who are all from the natural sciences,” says Dr Avenant.

News Archive

Qwaqwa Campus launches No Student Hungry Programme

2013-05-02

Samkelo Duma (white shirt) flanked by some of the guests during the launch of the NSH Programme on the Qwaqwa Campus.
Photo: Thabo Kessah
02 May 2013

The Qwaqwa Campus of the University of the Free State launched the No Student Hungry (NSH) Programme on Friday 26 April 2013. The programme aims to provide needy students with a daily balanced meal to enable them to concentrate in class and ultimately obtain their degrees. The programme – initiated by Vice-Chancellor and Rector Prof Jonathan Jansen in 2011 on the Bloemfontein Campus – already feeds hundreds of students.

Rudi Buys, Dean of Student Affairs who represented the Rectorate, encouraged students in need to focus more on their desire for greatness.

“Through this programme, you will be able you to shift your focus from the hunger pangs and rather focus all your energy on the hunger to make Africa great,” said Buys. “We want you to be different from the rest of your generation that is reluctant to compete for greatness. Many of your peers prefer mediocrity and it is our wish that through this programme, you can start learning to compete with the best,” Buys impelled.

According to the Qwaqwa Campus programme co-coordinator, Selloane Phoofolo, NSH operates on a primary and a secondary level.

“The primary level offers a food bursary to the students whose academic performance is above 65 percent and not receiving any form of financial assistance. For the 2013 academic year, we had 53 students applying and 31 have qualified. They are getting a meal for R25.00 a day at the Dining Hall,” said Phoofolo.

She further explained that, “On the secondary level, we provide monthly food parcels to 19 students who did not qualify for the food bursary. These food parcels are donated by Pick n Pay and Stop Hunger Now SA. For this, beneficiaries must undertake 40 hours of community service during the year. They must also partake in student activities. Their academic progress is monitored by the Office of Social Work.”

One of the beneficiaries, a final-year BA degree student Samkelo Duma, expressed his gratitude towards the UFS for giving him an equal opportunity to those in more fortunate situations to do his best in his studies. “It is difficult to study and concentrate on an empty stomach and I must say that the NSH is very helpful. I do not just get a meal, but I get a healthy meal to keep me going throughout the tough day,” Duma said.

Also present at the launch were the patrons of the programme, Ms Grace Jansen and Dr Carin Buys. They volunteer their time and energy to raise funds for the project.

Students apply for the allowances and are selected on the basis of financial need, academic results, active participation in student life programmes and commitment to give something back to the community.

You can also invest in these students' future by contributing R10.00 each time you sms the word 'Answer' to 38722.

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