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08 May 2024
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The Dean of the Faculty of Natural and Agricultural Sciences, Prof Paul Oberholster, has the pleasure of inviting you to the inaugural lecture of Prof Dirk Opperman.
Date: 21 May 2024
Time: 17:30
Venue: Equitas
Click here to RSVP before Wednesday, 15 May 2024. Alternatively, contact Christelle van Rooyen on +27 51 401 9190.
About Prof Dirk Opperman
Prof Dirk Opperman obtained his PhD in Biochemistry at the University of the Free State in 2008. This was followed by postdoctoral research on directed evolution with Prof Manfred T Reetz at the Max Planck Institute for Coal Research (Germany). In 2010, he was appointed in the Department of Microbiology and Biochemistry. He subsequently established structural biology at the UFS, and his current research focus lies at the interface of evolutionary and structure-function relationships of biocatalysts, and their application in green chemistry. He is an NRF B-rated researcher with co-authored papers in Science, Nature Communications, and Angewandte Chemie.
His research has been funded by both local and international organisations, ranging from industries such as SASOL to the Global Challenges Research Fund (GCRF, UK). He has a long-standing collaboration with researchers at the Delft University of Technology (TUDelft, the Netherlands) and is currently part of a European Research Area Network Cofund (ERA-NET Cofund) partnership on Food Systems and Climate (FOSC) that develops biocatalysts for upcycling waste.
Prof. Frans Swanepoel appointed to represent Africa
2010-03-02
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| Photo: supplied |
Prof. Frans Swanepoel, Director: Research Development and involved in the Centre of Sustainable Agriculture at the University of the Free State, is one of 15 official delegates appointed by the Rome-based, United Nation’s Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) to represent the Africa continent at a Global Conference on Agricultural Research for Development (GCARD). The purpose of GCARD 2010 is to develop an action plan and a framework for improving agricultural research globally. These will involve blueprints for collaborative action for agricultural research and innovation, new relationships that push agricultural development forward and new tools and relationships directly related to increased food production and security. The first of a series of meetings will take place in Montpellier, France during March 2010. Prof. Swanepoel is the only delegate from South Africa included in the official African delegation.