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Innovative wool creations shine at Karoo Winter Wool Festival

25 June 2024 | Story Martinette Brits | Photo Carine van Zyl

OVK Innovation Competition Gala Event 2024 — The prize winners at the gala evening of the OVK Innovation Competition on 13 June 2024. From the left, in front: Emily Segame, Sophia Mekhoe, Sarah Lenong, Maserame Sebonyane, Ntabiseng Ndabeni. At the back: Elizabeth Mnwana, Carlize van Zyl (winner of the competition), Carien Vorster, Jana Vermaas, Doretha Jacobs, and Nelly Olayi.

The University of the Free State (UFS) Wool Wise Community Project was recognised for its innovative use of wool, receiving accolades at the OVK Innovation Competition held in conjunction with the Karoo Winter Wool Festival in Middelburg from 13–16 June 2024.According to Carien Vorster, project manager from the Department of Sustainable Food Systems and Development, participants were tasked with crafting practical items from wool. Their creativity shone through in their design of a lampshade, earning them second place. Doretha Jacobs, a lecturer in the Department of Sustainable Food Systems and Development, focused on making felt from Dorper fibre, noting that while Dorper sheep are primarily bred for meat, they sought to repurpose fibres that would otherwise be discarded.

The team achieved third place with their cushion, featuring a front made entirely of merino wool felt and a back crafted from upholstery fabric. “Each cushion contains a 100% duck feather inner, and their uniqueness lies in the hand-dyed wool and hand-placed designs on each felt piece,” explains Vorster.

Other notable entries from different teams included a duvet inner, shoe insoles, and oven gloves. The top prize went to a hand-felted coat.

Community project empowers local women in wool craft

The UFS Wool Wise Community Project originated as a spin-off from the Regional Universities Forum for Capacity Building (Ruforum) project, initiated in 2019 by the UFS Department for Sustainable Food Systems and Development.

According to Vorster, the Ruforum project encompasses various components such as research, farmer support, and community development, with a particular emphasis on community upliftment programmes. "Since 2019, we have conducted numerous wool workshops and training sessions where local women have participated to learn about wool processing," she explains.

"From these events, we identified women who are now integral to our programme. Their skills range from sewing, felt making, and hand embroidery, to knitting."

The project features eight women who create diverse products from scratch: Elizabeth Mnwana, Emily Segame, Georgina Collins, Maserame Sebonyane, Nelly Olayi, Sarah Lenong, Sophia Mekhoe, and Ntabiseng Ndabeni.

She emphasises that the project also manufactures conference bags for various events and stands as one of UFS's most successful community initiatives. "Ultimately, this project has the potential to become self-sustaining, with proceeds supporting the salaries of the eight women," Vorster concludes.

Competition boosts visibility and market reach

Participating in initiatives like the OVK Innovation Competition motivates them to stay current and benchmark their efforts against other businesses or individuals involved in felt product creation.

"Winning a competition can also significantly uplift team morale," remarks Vorster.

"Securing second and third place in this competition translates to increased visibility and marketing opportunities for us. This is crucial as we aim to expand our market reach and establish a sustainable income stream for the project," she concludes.

A worker packs the carded wool in layers preparing for the felting process.

The cushion (in front), secured the team third place at the OVK Innovation Competition.

The lampshade secured the team second place at the OVK Innovation Competition.

News Archive

New developments in the Faculty of Theology and Religion

2017-08-30

Bishop JM Khumalo, Apostolic Church of
Christ; Prof Fanie Snyman, Dean of the
Faculty of Theology and Religion; and
Rev Simon Galada, Wesleyan Church,
at the faculty’s official opening in
February 2017.
Photo: Eugene Seegers

At a meeting of the UFS Council last year, a name change was accepted for the Faculty of Theology, renaming it to the Faculty of Theology and Religion. This change signals openness in approach to other religions, in addition to those of Christian denominations. This is a development that took root in Europe a few years ago. Furthermore, a growing field of interest is the study of the impact religion has had and still has, even in highly secularised societies. This name change is the first of its kind in South Africa, which means that the faculty will lead the way in transformation and impact-based religious studies.

Exciting times lie ahead
Prof Fanie Snyman, Dean of the faculty, says of these refinements: “The new name and restructuring of departments will lead to a new synergy that will have an impact on our teaching and research in the faculty. Exciting times lie ahead for the Faculty of Theology and Religion!”

Apart from the change in the name of the faculty, departments within the faculty were also regrouped, with new names. The Departments of Old Testament and New Testament merged to become the Department of Old and New Testament Studies, while the Departments of Systematic Theology and Ecclesiology merged and will now be known as the Department of Historical and Constructive Theology. The former Departments of Practical Theology and Missiology became the Department of Practical and Missional Theology. The Department of Religion Studies remained unchanged to emphasise the importance of religion in South Africa and the world at large.
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Distinction of theological disciplines
The rationale for these groupings is the distinction of theological disciplines in terms of the study of texts (Old and New Testament), sources (Systematic Theology and Church History), and practices (Practical Theology and Missiology). One benefit of these newly-constructed departments is that they will be more cost-effective, but the more important advantage is that this will stimulate discussion and research across the various theological disciplines.

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