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20 July 2022 | Story Nonkululeko Nxumalo | Photo Supplied
UFS Academic staff job shadow in Germany
From the left: Helene van der Merwe (Lecturer: Sustainable Food Systems and Development), Herkulaas Combrink (Lecturer: Economic and Management Sciences, and Interim Co-director of the Interdisciplinary Centre for Digital Futures), Prof Dirk Fornahl (Research associate/researcher at Friedrich Schiller University Jena), Dr Karen Booysen (Lecturer: Business Management), Ketshepileone Matlhoko (Junior Lecturer: Sustainable Food Systems and Development), Gretha Lotz (Technopolis intern), Prof Johan van Niekerk (HOD: Sustainable Food Systems and Development), Prof Katinka de Wet (Associate Professor: Sociology, and Interim Co-director of the Interdisciplinary Centre for Digital Futures)


A group of academic staff and PhD students from the University of the Free State (UFS) recently visited the Friedrich Schiller University Jena (FSU) in Germany for a three-week (27 May-16 June 2022) regional innovation training workshop and job shadowing. The opportunity was extended to the university’s Interdisciplinary Centre for Digital Futures (ICDF) as well as the faculties of Natural and Agricultural Sciences and Economic and Management Sciences.

Building a regional innovation cluster for agriculture

With this training, the UFS, in collaboration with the FSU, the Department of Science and Innovation (DSI), the Technology Innovation Agency (TIA), the Department of Small Business Development, Tourism and Environmental Affairs (DESTEA), the Department of Agriculture (DOA), and other industry partners, aims to build a regional innovation cluster for agriculture in the South African perspective that drives innovation, technology advancement, and trade methodology among academic institutions, the government, and industries.

“The collaboration between the UFS and the FSU will have significant benefits for both universities in terms of knowledge sharing and learning. However, the biggest benefit of this project is to build a better community, facilitate innovative solutions for future challenges, and provide academic collaborations,” said Herkulaas Combrink, Interim Co-director of the ICDF.

Another regional innovation cluster in the agricultural sector is arranged within the Cape Winelands region and is centred on wine and liquor production. The projects between the UFS and the relevant stakeholders will grow other agricultural spheres such as textiles, livestock, and diverse crop irrigation.

“We are interested in a broad topic focused on climate change in the challenging context of developmental issues, inequalities, pressing issues of food insecurity, and demands/ opportunities brought about by the Fourth Industrial Revolution,” Prof Katinka de Wet, Interim Co-director of the ICDF, highlighted.

According to Combrink, the UFS has been engaging online and in person with academic staff from FSU since 2021 to build the skills and capacity to drive this regional innovation.

“Academic institutions, government, and industry rely on these integral bridges to drive a sustainable digital future as well as to capacitate the next generation with the skills to increase the level of innovation required to remain relevant in the context of tomorrow,” he also said.



News Archive

Kovsie Face of Facebook – the search is on
2014-04-07

 
Victor Ngubeni, our first Face of Facebook winner, 2013/2014

Our sensational Kovsie Face of Facebook competition is about to launch into its second year.

This is a golden opportunity for students who want to be a regular in front of the camera. As the winner, you will present videos for our UFS Facebook and YouTube pages.

How to enter
You need to complete an entry form, which you can download from [KovsieLife] or [Blackboard]. You can also pick up an entry form at the reception desk in the Student Life Centre (SRC Building).

Submit your completed entry form at the reception desk mentioned above before 10:00 on Friday 11 April 2014.

Auditions
You will need to tell us in a minute, on video, why you should be our next Face of Facebook. Dress creatively, bring along props or posters and let your personality shine through.

The details for the auditions are:

  • Date: Tuesday 15 April 2014
  • Time: 08:30 – 13:00 and 14:00 – 16:30
  • Place: Bloemfontein Campus, North Block (of the Main Building), ground floor

Voting
The top ten videos will be loaded onto our UFS Facebook page. The public can then vote for their favourite by ‘liking’ the video. Remember, only those who have ‘liked’ the UFS Facebook page will be able to vote.

After voting ends, the person with the most ‘likes’ will be the winner and serve as our 2014/15 Face of Facebook.

Now, get those entries in!

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