Latest News Archive

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

UFS trains student volunteers to fight food insecurity

09 March 2023 | Story Lunga Luthuli | Photo Lunga Luthuli

Volunteer Training 1 — Volunteer students participating in a two-day training by KovsieACT to learn fundamental principles of gardening, including soil preparation, planting, watering, fertilising, and pest management.

To ensure food security for students, KovsieACT – in collaboration with the Department of Sustainable Agriculture and Food Systems – held training sessions for approximately 150 student volunteers at the University of the Free State (UFS) community gardens on the Bloemfontein Campus.

The UFS project consists of two large food tunnels, which provide an educational intervention that addresses food insecurity on campus, and by extension, food insecurity challenges students experience in their hometowns, at home, and in their villages.

Karen Scheepers, Assistant Director: Student Life, said: “The purpose of this training is to equip students with the necessary skills to identify or recognise the need for and importance of planting and taking care of vegetables. Participating students also learned the fundamental principles of gardening, including soil preparation, planting, watering, fertilising, and pest management.”

During the training held on 8 and 9 March 2023, students were also trained to choose the right seeds and to start their own seed germination project. “The aim is to provide students with the knowledge and skills they need to grow and maintain a thriving vegetable garden,” added Scheepers.

The training was conducted by experienced professionals from the department, with students also getting an opportunity to ask questions and interact with fellow students who share their passion for gardening.

Scheepers said: “This training is a great opportunity for students to learn new skills, make new friends, and connect with the community. It will also help them to lead a healthier and more sustainable lifestyle.

The training is an extension of the institution’s No Student Hungry Programme (NSH), which continues to ensure that hundreds of students are supported with food parcels, including vegetables and non-perishable items. The NSH programme provides food to insecure students through modest food allowances and daily access to one balanced meal.

News Archive

Kovsie student translates and interprets between English and Mandarin

2012-11-14

Chen-Shu
14 November 2012

When television channel e.tv recently interviewed successful Chinese businesspersons in South Africa and Tanzania, they turned to Kovsie student Chen-Shu Fang to translate from English into Mandarin. Chen-Shu, who has completed a BA Honours in Linguistics, is the first student in the Department of Linguistics and Language Practice translating and interpreting between English and Mandarin.

Born in Taiwan, Chen-Shu started her high-school education in South Africa in 1997 and matriculated in 2001. She completed a Bachelor’s degree in Taiwan, but returned to South Africa in 2011, enrolling for studies in the Department of Linguistics and Language Practice. After completing her honours degree in June 2012, Chen-Shu decided to also enrol for the practical honours module in Translation Studies in preparation of her Master’s degree next year.

“I have some background knowledge in linguistics, but during my studies at the UFS, I discovered an interest in interpreting and translation. Therefore, I changed my main focus from Linguistics to Language Practice,”says Chen-Shu.

This year, Chen-Shu also started offering translation and interpretation services. Her first interpreting brief from the Unit for Language Facilitation and Empowerment (ELFE) at the UFS was for Dairy Belle where she had to interpret for a technician from China. She furthermore assists in the translation of the website of Hsiang Chun Orchid Garden, a Bloemfontein-based company (www.hcorchids.co.za).

“I have a great interest in translation, and would also like to offer my language skills and knowledge gained in this course to the Mandarin-speaking community in Bloemfontein. This degree has given me the opportunity to practise and enhance the necessary language practice skills. ”

On assessing Chen-Shu’s translations, an external marker for Mandarin from Rhodes University commented as follows on our department’s course: “I am impressed by your generous and relaxed attitude towards such a diverse group of students, so that they can actually follow a translation course and develop translation skills within their own, unique context”.

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