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18 July 2024 | Story VALENTINO NDABA | Photo SUPPLIED
Nelson Mandela Month 2024
Celebrating #UFSMandelaMonth2024: Building a brighter future through community and care.

Mandela Month at the University of the Free State (UFS) is a time to honour Nelson Mandela's legacy through reflection, action, and community engagement. Guided by Vision 130, UFS aims to make a profound societal impact by fostering sustainable relationships and supporting societal development.

Community Engagement Indaba

As South Africa celebrates Mandela Month, the Directorate of Community Engagement hosted the Community Engagement Indaba at the Bloemfontein Campus from 10-11 July 2024. This year's theme was “Building Self-reliance, Self-sufficiency, and Self-sustainable Livelihoods for Entrepreneurship”. 

The Indaba was a vibrant platform for staff, students, and community members to exchange knowledge and skills on how to implement the objectives of our Engaged Scholarship strategy and policy.

This was an opportunity to engage in education, training, and networking with experts from various disciplines. Topics of discussion included:

• Self-sufficiency, self-reliance, and self-sustainable living
• Contextualising curriculum to respond to societal impact
• Entrepreneurship
• Personal development and transformation
• Subsistence farming
• Growing and manufacturing of cannabis products
• Nutrition and health, food security

Helping future educators dress for success

Mandela said: “Education is the most powerful weapon you can use to change the world.” This Mandela Month, the Teaching Practice Directorate supported fourth-year and Postgraduate Certificate in Education (PGCE) students who lack professional clothes for their teaching practice, impacting their confidence and hampering their first impressions.

The Faculty of Education of the Qwaqwa Campus is conducted a donation drive for formal clothing and workwear to help our UFS-produced aspiring educators enter the world of work with enthusiasm and confidence.

Soup kitchen at HCYCC

On Mandela Day, the Faculty of Theology set up a soup kitchen at the Heidedal Children and Youth Care Centre. This event is an initiative aimed at providing nutritious meals to children and youth, fostering community engagement.

It’s in your hands: Food Environment Programme

The ongoing Food Environment Programme tackles student food insecurity, aiming to create a healthy food environment. Says Annelize Visagie from the Food Environment Office: “The Food Environment Programme is designed to address the many dimensions of the food environment; assisting students who suffer from food insecurity and hunger is part of the overall programme. The University of the Free State has previously identified student food insecurity and hunger as a significant problem, with as many as 59% of students identified as not knowing where their next meal will come from. In addition, they have recognised that food insecurity has added stress to students’ lives which has a negative impact on their studies.”

The programmme includes the following initiatives:

No Student Hungry Programme: Provides one balanced meal per day.
• Food Parcel Programme: Distributes food parcels with non-perishable items.
• Community Gardens: Enhances campus food security in collaboration with Kovsie ACT and the Centre for Sustainable Agriculture.

Eat&Succeed: Provides valuable insights, practical tips on making affordable and nutritious meals.

Click to view documentClick on the email to donate to these initiatives or call +27 51 401 3258.

Join us in making a difference and showing our commitment to care as we celebrate Mandela Month by at the UFS. Together, we can honour Nelson Mandela’s legacy of service and societal development. Every Day is Mandela Day at UFS.

News Archive

UFS theologians contribute to new Greek and Afrikaans Interlinear Bible
2012-12-25

 
At the event were, from the left: Prof. Francois Tolmie, Mr Chris Johnsen, Prof. Jonathan Jansen and Prof. Hermie van Zyl.
07 December 2012

Prof. Jonathan Jansen, Vice Chancellor and Rector of the university, received a copy of the new Interlinear Bible in Greek and Afrikaans from members of staff of the Faculty of Theology and CUM book publishers. The Bible was given to Prof. Jansen by Mr Chris Johnsen from CUM books.

The Greek and Afrikaans Interlinear Bible is a translation containing the original Greek text as well as a literal Afrikaans translation.

This Bible is the culmination of a project started seven years ago by a team of nine theologians including the Dean of the Faculty of Theology, Prof. Francois Tolmie as well as other faculty members, Prof. Hermie van Zyl and Prof. Pieter de Villiers. Mr Johnsen lauded the staff for their “tremendous contribution” to the project. With this edition, South Africa becomes the seventh country in the world to publish an Interlinear Bible.

“The departure point of this version is not a translation, it is the Greek text,” Mr Chris Johnsen said about the aim of this new work. Prof. Tolmie agreed with the publisher, saying this Bible is meant for people who do not have access to the Greek text and who want to understand it.

Prof. Jansen thanked all involved for his copy, noting the important role belief is playing in his own life as well as his work on campus.
 

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