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17 October 2024 | Story André Damons | Photo Supplied
Dr Mutshidzi Mulondo
Dr Mutshidzi Mulondo, academic in the Division of Public Health within the Faculty of Health Sciences at UFS.

Dr Mutshidzi Mulondo, an academic in the Division of Public Health within the Faculty of Health Sciences, at the University of the Free State (UFS), has won a prestigious Global Health Award at the margins of the Global Health Summit in London, the UK.

Dr Mulondo, who is a Novartis Reimagining Healthcare Scholar and a Visiting Scholar at the Beaver College of Health Sciences at Appalachian State University, in the US, was a finalist in two categories: ‘Mental Health and Well-being’ and ‘Rising Star’. She won the Zenith Global Health Award under the category ‘Mental Health and Well-being’. The awards ceremony took place on 28 September and saw health professionals and academics gather in Europe for the auspicious occasion.

“This nomination and selection are an honour that bears testament to my dedication and commitment to SDG 3 (Good Health and Well-being). I hope this win serves as inspiration to young people, particularly to young women in academia and in the sciences,” says Dr Mulondo. The awards are an esteemed platform renowned for celebrating global recognition and excellence, fostering collaboration and innovation in the healthcare sector. They further serve as recognition for contributions made through education, research and/or technology and innovation.

Eco-anxiety

Dr Mulondo, who was invited to attend the summit for the first time, joined a panel of speakers on the session theme ‘mental health and climate change’ where she shared insights on eco-anxiety – the intersection of climate change and mental health which was coined by Albrecht as the chronic fear of environmental change.

Research by the McKinsey Health Institute, says Dr Mulondo, a fellow of the UFS Emerging Scholar Accelerator Programme (ESAP) and member of the UNESCO AG for Women in Science, indicates that more than 75% of young people are pessimistic about the future due to climate change. Most young people in the activism frontlines experience activist burn-out from consistent campaigning, while others experience eco-gaslighting from those who feel climate change is a non-issue. These negative emotions are further exacerbated by young people’s exposure to social media of constant images and conversations about environmental degradation due to climate change.

Pact for the future

Dr Mulondo flew to London from New York after participating in the 79th United Nations General Assembly’s Summit of the Future and Science Summit, as well as the New York Climate Week. She further provided insights into the adoption of the Pact for the Future which was adopted during the Summit of the Future. “With only 17% of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) targets on track to be achieved by 2030, 18% stagnant and 17% regressed to pre-2015 when the goals were first adopted (SDG Report 2024), Mental Health still remains among 10 global health issues to track according to the World Health Organisation (WHO),” says Dr Mulondo.

“The Summit of the Future, which is regarded as a once-in-a-generation high-level event,” she continues, “was aimed at establishing a new global consensus to safeguard the present and future generations. Current challenges such as health pandemics, political unrest, and climatic changes were factored into discussions to keep apace with the changing world in the adoption of the Pact for the Future”.

Recommendations and mitigation efforts should focus on encouraging those experiencing eco-anxiety to focus on joining collective action efforts (i.e. campaigns to clean ocean and beach environments (etc,) so that they feel they are doing something towards saving the planet. “This will help alleviate the feelings of ‘hopelessness’ which some experience from not knowing what to do about the environmental degradation. Furthermore, intergenerational collaboration is necessary for young people to voice their concerns and innovative ideas on the issue, while the older generation listens and further shares their lived wisdom. Ultimately, collective support (Ubuntu) is what is needed as part of the mitigation efforts,” concludes Dr Mulondo.

News Archive

Good quality wheat essential for bread production
2016-11-29

Description: Robbie Lindeque Tags: Robbie Lindeque 

Robert Lindeque, wheat breeder at the ARC
Small Grain Institute in Bethlehem.
Photo: Supplied

“Wheat quality, specifically grain protein, is of the most crucial components determining the profitability of wheat farmers.”

This is according to Robbie Lindeque, wheat breeder at the ARC Small Grain Institute in Bethlehem. As a wheat breeder, one of his primary aims is to make a contribution to sustainable wheat production in the inland of South Africa.

A closer analysis of bread wheat protein

With his PHD thesis, "Protein quality versus quantity in South African commercial bread wheat cultivars”, Lindeque answered critical questions regarding the South African wheat industry. The major question of his PhD, which he received on 30 June 2016, was whether protein quality could compensate for protein quantity as a measure of bread quality in South Africa.

The three main wheat-producing areas in South Africa, the dryland summer rainfall region (Free State), dryland winter rainfall region (Western Cape), and the cooler irrigation regions (Northern Cape), were used as a starting point for the study.

Proteins are essential for the baking of good quality bread. Worldwide, the utilisation of wheat flour shipments in the baking industry is determined by the protein proportion of the shipment.

Lindeque says the aim of his thesis was to determine whether a closer analysis of bread wheat protein would provide a better indication of good or bad bread quality. “The conclusion from this study was that both protein quantity and protein quality from all three production areas in South Africa varies constantly in accuracy regarding the estimation of bread volume, mainly as a result of environmental factors,” says Lindeque.

Results relevant to the wheat industry

In 2012, application was made to the Winter Cereal Trust for funding of the project. After funding was approved – thus making the Winter Cereal Trust the main partner – seed samples were collected from the 2012 and 2013 national cultivar adaptation trials.

“After this, the seed underwent protein and flour analyses, which added a third year to the study, with the fourth year consisting of statistical processing and documenting of the results,” says Lindeque.

Funding by the Winter Cereals Trust contributed to the fact that the study constantly attempted to keep issues and results as relevant as possible to the wheat industry.

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