Latest News Archive

Please select Category, Year, and then Month to display items

#YouthMonth: Celebrating youth empowerment (Brent Jammer)

13 June 2023 | Story Brent Jammer | Photo Supplied

The University of the Free State (UFS) is celebrating Youth Month by showcasing the positive influence of the institution on career development. As part of this initiative, we are sharing the stories of UFS alumni who are now working at the university.

Brent Jammer, Lecturer in the Department of Agricultural Economics, shares his UFS journey:

Q: Year of graduation from the UFS:

A: 2017, 2018, 2019

Q: Qualification obtained from the UFS:

A: I obtained my undergraduate degree in Agricultural Management with distinction in 2017 and received the ABSA award for best Bachelor of Agriculture final-year student at the faculty awards. In 2018, I obtained my honours degree in Agricultural Management with distinction and received the Standard Bank award for best BAgric Management honours student at the faculty awards. In 2019, I obtained my master’s degree in Agricultural Management.

Q: Date of joining the UFS as a staff member:

A: I joined the university as a permanent staff member (Lecturer) in September 2022.

Q: Initial job title and current job title:

A: After completing my studies, I went on to work as a production manager on a commercial farm where I managed approximately 1 500 sheep. I returned to the university in 2022 and was then appointed as a Lecturer in the Department of Agricultural Economics.

Q: How did the UFS prepare you for the professional world?

A: The UFS served as a great foundation where I built my expertise with the knowledge and skills that I gained while studying at the university. The biggest advantage of being a UFS graduate is my ability to adapt in any space outside my comfort zone, which in turn made me excel in my field. The UFS Faculty of Natural and Agricultural Science is indeed the front runner in producing excellent students who can make a difference in the agricultural industry.

Q: What are your thoughts on transitioning from a UFS alumnus to a staff member?

A: Transitioning from UFS alumnus to a staff member is still a dream come true for me, and it's actually funny that the people who taught me during undergraduate studies are now my colleagues. So, being among them and getting so much support is what makes me feel at home at the university.

Q: Any additional comments about your experience?

A: Additionally, I am also an emerging cattle farmer, where I implement all the skills I obtained from the university in practice. I farm with approximately 70 cattle where I employ youth members from my community as a means of ploughing back in order to reduce unemployment and enhancing livelihoods.

News Archive

UFS receives R13,7 Million for Research into Prehistoric Organisms

2007-03-27

Some of the guests attending the launch of the research contract are: Dr Siyabulela Ntutela (Deputy Director: Biotechnology at the Department of Science and Technology), Dr Godfrey Netswera (Manager of Thuthuka and the Support Programme at the National Research Foundation (NRF)), Dr Esta van Heerden (Platform Manager and lecturer at the Department of Microbial, Biochemical and Food Biotechnology at the UFS), Mr Butana Mboniswa (Chief Executive Officer of BioPAD), and Mr Vuyisele Phehani (Portfolio Manager for BioPAD).
Photo: Leonie Bolleurs

The University of the Free State (UFS) has been awarded a massive R13,7 million contract to conduct research into prehistoric micro-organisms which live under extreme conditions, for example in mineshafts.

This is one of the biggest research contracts awarded to the UFS in recent years.

The biotechnology research contract was awarded to the UFS by BioPAD, a South African biotechnology company that brokers partnerships between researchers, entrepreneurs, business, government and other stakeholders to promote innovation and create sustainable biotechnology businesses.

The project is endorsed by the Department of Science and Technology and the National Research Foundation (NRF), which contributes to the bursaries of the 17 postgraduate students on the programme.

The contract involves the establishment of a Platform for Metagenomics - a technique which allows researchers to extract the DNA from microbes in their natural environment and investigate it in a laboratory.

“Through this platform we will be able to understand deepmine microbial populations
and their potential application in the search for life in outer space. It is most likely
that, if life were to be found on other planets in our solar system, it would probably
resemble that which existed millions of years ago on earth. Apart from all this, these
organisms have unique properties one can exploit in biotechnological application for
South Africa and its community,” said Dr Esta van Heerden, platform manager and
lecturer at the UFS Department of Microbial, Biochemical and Food Biotechnology.
She is assisted by her collegues, Prof. Derek Litthauer and Dr Lizelle Piater.

“The platform aims to tap into the unique genetic material in South African mines
which will lead to the discovery of new genes and their products. These new and unique products will find application in the medical field (anti-cancer, anti-bacterial en anti-viral cures), the industrial sector (nanotechnology, commercial washing agents and the food industry), environmental sector (pollution management, demolition of harmful metals and other toxic waste),” said Dr Van Heerden.

According to Dr Van Heerden, the Metagenomics Platforms stems from the Life in
Extreme Environments (LExEN) programme which was started in 1994 by Princeton
University in the United States of America (USA) in South African mines with grants
from among others the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and
the National Science Foundation (NSF) in the USA. Other international collaborators
on the project include Geosynec Consultants Inc. (USA), Oak Ridge National
Laboratory (USA), the University of Tennessee (USA) and in South Africa the
Universities of the Witwatersrand, North West and Limpopo and companies like BHP
Billiton, MINTEK and mining companies like Harmony, Gold Fields and AngloGold
Ashanti.

The research field laboratory of the Metagenomics Platform, which was situated in
Glen Harvey, was moved to the Main Campus of the UFS in Bloemfontein. “In this
way the university has become the central hub for all research programmes. We are
also the liaison between the LExEN programme and the various mining companies
involved,” said Dr Van Heerden. The new laboratory was introduced during the
launch of the research contract.

“Our decision to commit BioPAD to this project stems from the company’s commitment to advance human capacity development to strengthen South Africa’s research infrastructure. It is also part of our aim to create and protect intellectual property,” said Mr Butana Mboniswa, Chief Executive Officer of BioPAD.

Talking on behalf of the UFS senior management, Prof. Teuns Verschoor, Vice-Rector
of Academic Operations, said that the university shares the excitement to be part of
the exploration of unknown forms of life, the discovery of new genes and
their products and in applying newly gained knowledge to better understand our
universe.

Media release
Issued by: Lacea Loader
Assistant Director: Media Liaison
Tel: 051 401 2584
Cell: 083 645 2454
E-mail: loaderl@ufs.ac.za
27 March 2007

Back

Economic and Management Sciences

Education

Health Sciences

The Humanities

Law

Natural and Agricultural Sciences

Theology and Religion

Open Distance Learning

Business School

We use cookies to make interactions with our websites and services easy and meaningful. To better understand how they are used, read more about the UFS cookie policy. By continuing to use this site you are giving us your consent to do this.

Accept