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03 November 2022 | Story Leonie Bolleurs | Photo Supplied
Dr Liezel Rudolph
Dr Liezel Rudolph, a lecturer in the Department of Geography, recently returned from an expedition to Gough Island in the South Atlantic Ocean, where she was involved in research that aims to better understand the landscape evolution of some subantarctic islands and their response to long-term climate change.

A study of subantarctic islands tells us that, in general, the Southern Hemisphere is experiencing a rise in temperature, with an increase in rainfall in some locations, and other areas becoming drier. The annual temperature and rainfall average remain the same in some places, but there is a change in seasonality and synoptic weather events.

This is according to Dr Liezel Rudolph, a lecturer in the Department of Geography at the University of the Free State (UFS). She recently returned from an expedition to Gough Island in the South Atlantic Ocean, supported by the South African National Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment, the National Research Foundation, and the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds.

This teacher of modules on Process Geomorphology and fieldwork techniques at the UFS, says the objective of her work on the island was to do a geomorphological survey of the island and explore the suitability of geochronological dating techniques on the island’s substrate. 

She explains that with geochronological methods one can determine the age of rock material as well as the rate of landscape change on the island. “In other words, dating when the volcano was formed and determining how long it takes for weathering to break down the rock material, and erosional processes to remove soil material.”
 
The research she is involved in, forms part of a SANAP-NRF-funded project, Sub-Antarctic Landscape Climate Interactions, which aims to better understand the landscape evolution of some subantarctic Islands and their response to long-term climate change. 

Studying the past to understand the present

According to her, studying landscape change enables one to better understand climate change over a long period of time. 

She states that the more regions are investigated, the clearer the picture of climate change will become. “The Earth is a large, complex system. By studying climate change in one location, one cannot simply assume that the same type and rate of change is occurring everywhere else. It would be like imaging a 1 000-piece puzzle by building with 10 pieces. The Southern Hemisphere is predominantly ocean, which makes it difficult to pin down land-atmosphere interactions – but the subantarctic islands give us the opportunity to create data points for the Southern Hemisphere, which would otherwise be a very large missing piece of the puzzle,” explains Dr Rudolph.

She says the interaction between ocean, atmosphere, and land remains complex and it is important to study the entire picture in order to fully understand how this is happening. Especially since the climate is changing at a drastic rate.

Dr Rudolph, whose research at the UFS is focused on constraining the last glaciation of subantarctic Marion Island though various proxies and dating techniques, says the subantarctic islands are very sensitive to changes in climate. 

A clearer picture of climate change

She was part of previous expeditions to the island. Although all these expeditions had different goals, according to her, they all aimed to answer the same questions, which are how the island’s landscape has developed throughout history and what the climatic drivers were during its evolution. 

“The landscape responds to changes in temperature and precipitation. Under colder, wetter conditions – when the island’s surface is subject to a freeze-thaw process – a range of peri-glacial landforms will develop. These landforms will still be evident in the landscape years later under a different climate, for example, warmer or drier conditions. We can study these landforms in real-time and establish whether they are actively forming or are relict features that formed under different climatic environments,” remarks Dr Rudolph.

The research, which is taking place in collaboration with the British Antarctic Survey, is co-led by Prof Werner Nel from the University of Fort Hare, and Prof David Hedding from the University of South Africa. 

• Dr Rudolph is grateful to the Government of Tristan da Cunha, which is responsible for managing the conservation of Gough Island, for permitting them to do scientific work on the island. 

News Archive

UFS awarded tenders worth R22,5 million for Maths and Science teacher-training
2010-03-17

The Centre for Education Development (CED) at the University of the Free State (UFS) has received tenders worth about R22,5 million over the past two years from four provinces to train Mathematics and Science teachers from underperforming schools.

The CED has received tenders from the following provincial departments of education: Free State, Northern Cape, North West and Mpumalanga.

“The centre has a good reputation for the training of teachers in these disciplines and has been involved with the upgrading of Maths and Science teachers for at least 15 years,” said Prof. Daniella Coetzee, Director of the CED.

It is currently busy with the training of North West teachers after being awarded a R13,5 million tender by the Province as part of its quest to improve pass rates in Mathematics and Natural and Physical Sciences in underperforming schools.

“The tender is for the upgrading of the knowledge and methodology of teachers for Mathematics and Natural and Physical Science, as well as the upgrading of the knowledge of subject specialists in the North West Province,” said Prof. Coetzee.

For this project the centre trains 1 000 teachers and 90 subject specialists from underperforming schools over a period of three years.

The programme commenced in February this year with a baseline assessment of the teachers to determine knowledge and methodology gaps upon which to focus in the training.

“After the programme has been completed we will also do a post-assessment to see if there had been progress,” she said.

The training is offered only on Saturdays at Vryburg, Klerksdorp, Makapanstad, Brits and Zeerust and is presented by lecturers from the CED as well as selected and trained tutors from the North West province.

“We have successfully completed another Maths, Science and Technology project for the North West Department of Education. We have also completed similar projects for the Northern Cape and one for the Free State Department of Education,” she said.

These completed projects entailed formal qualifications (Advanced Certificate in Education) in Maths, Science and Technology and were worth in excess of R5 million.

The CED has just been recently awarded yet another tender in excess of R4 million over a period of two years by the Mpumalanga Department of Education.

Prof. Coetzee had the following to say about the CED being the preferred choice of these provincial Departments of Education: “It has to do with the fact that the CED has been performing well with the upgrading of teachers. It has proven itself as a leader in the in-service training of Maths and Science teachers in South Africa.”

Media Release
Issued by: Mangaliso Radebe
Assistant Director: Media Liaison
Tel: 051 401 2828
Cell: 078 460 3320
E-mail: radebemt@ufs.ac.za  
17 March 2010

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