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UFS Department of Geology co-host of GeoCongress 2025

25 March 2025 | Story Leonie Bolleurs | Photo Supplied

The Department of Geology at the UFS is co-hosting this year’s GeoCongress 2025 with the Geological Society of South Africa. Pictured is Dr Martin Clark, Senior Lecturer in the Department of Geology and convener of the congress.

The Department of Geology in the Faculty of Natural and Agricultural Sciences at the University of the Free State (UFS) and the Geological Society of South Africa will co-host GeoCongress 2025, set to take place from 23 to 27 June 2025 on the UFS Bloemfontein Campus. This prestigious biennial academic event, themed: Embracing change through collaboration, will bring together leading academics, students, and industry experts from across South Africa to explore the latest advancements in geosciences.

The congress reflects the university's commitment to academic excellence, quality, and impact – core tenets of its UFS Vision 130. As a research-led, student-centred, and regionally engaged university, the UFS continues to transform itself to stay relevant within the dynamic and ever-changing international higher education sphere.

Prof Vasu Reddy, Deputy Vice-Chancellor: Research and Internationalisation, says “The university is proud to co-host this major gathering of established and emerging earth scientists from a variety of disciplines, who will present relevant, timely research topics to a wider audience. The theme underscores the centrality of geosciences to our aspirations as a university for the country and continent, directing us towards a collective sustainable future. We are excited by the ideas to be featured at this conference. More importantly, we are inspired by the prospect of further promoting real interaction and innovation between academia, industry, and society for impactful change.”

A platform for scientific excellence

It is fitting for the UFS to co-host this event, as geologists in the Department of Geology as well as in the province have made significant contributions across multiple fields, including economic geology, palaeontology, and geomorphology.

In the Department of Geology, for instance, researchers are exploring a wide range of topics, including magmatic processes in the platinum-group-bearing Bushveld Igneous Complex, AI-driven prospectivity modelling of global deposits, meteorite impact-related processes in the Vredefort impact structure, and geological and structural studies in the Namaqualand region.

In the Free State, known for its rich mineral resources, including gold, diamonds, and coal, geologists have played a big role in exploring and developing these resources, particularly in the Free State Goldfields, one of South Africa’s leading gold-producing areas. The province also boasts significant coal deposits, important for power generation. In palaeontology, geologists have helped uncover valuable fossil sites, including the Florisbad hominid site, offering insights into the history of life on earth. Additionally, their research in geomorphology, especially around the Florisbad area, has shed light on unique landscapes and depositional environments, including lunette dunes.

In agriculture, geologists have worked closely with farmers to ensure sustainable land use, providing important information on soil composition and erosion prevention. They have also played a key role in the study of groundwater resources, helping to identify and assess borehole sites for irrigation and domestic water supply, which is key to farming in the region. The Institute for Groundwater Studies (IGS) at the UFS is the only institute in South Africa dedicated to geohydrology. Founded in 1974 by Prof FDI Hodgson, the IGS is the oldest institute at the university and has produced more than 1 000 postgraduate students. The institute conducts research on a wide variety of water-related topics. Of special interest is its contribution to the mining and industrial sectors in terms of water management, minimisation of pollution, as well as understanding the nature and behaviour of South Africa's aquifers. The IGS provides a complete service to these industries through field investigations, the development of specialised field equipment, an accredited laboratory, and computer models for aquifer management.

Building on these contributions in the field, GeoCongress 2025 marks an important event on South Africa’s geoscience calendar, showcasing the latest scientific advancements, innovative research, and practical applications shaping the industry. With engaging academic sessions, dynamic workshops, and practical field excursions, the conference offers attendees the opportunity to participate in meaningful discussions, attend insightful presentations, and take part in excursions that bring theory to life.

Opportunities for networking and growth

GeoCongress 2025 is more than just an academic gathering – it is an opportunity for professional growth and networking. Participants will meet peers, mentors, and industry leaders, establishing connections that can lead to new research projects and collaborations.

There is plenty to look forward to at this year's conference. Here are the key dates and event highlights for GeoCongress 2025.

• Call for abstracts: Closes on 31 March 2025

• Early bird registration: Closes on 31 March 2025

• Final registration deadline: Closes on 22 June 2025

Event highlights:

• 23 and 24 June 2025: Pre-conference workshops and field trips

• 25 to 27 June 2025: Conference programme featuring keynote speakers, academic sessions, and networking opportunities

Registration fees:

• Standard registration: R3 500 (from 1 February 2025)

• Students and retirees: Flat rate of R500 (proof of registration required for students)

Additional costs:

• Workshops and one-day excursions: Visit the GeoCongress website for information on the costs

• Conference/gala dinner: R500

For more information, please contact us at secretariat@geocongress2025.org.za.

News Archive

Migration is a developmental issue - experts

2010-06-01

Pictured from the left, front, are: D. Juma, Mr Williams and Prof. Hussein Solomon (University of Pretoria); back: Prof. Bekker, Prof. Lucius Botes (Dean: Faculty of the Humanities, UFS) and Dr Wa Kabwe-Segatti.
Photo: Stephen Collett

“Migration offers more opportunities for economic growth than constraints. It is an integral part of the processes of globalisation and regional integration.”

This was a view shared by one of the speakers, Dr Monica Juma from the Africa Institute of South Africa, during a panel discussion hosted by the Centre for Africa Studies (CAS) at the University of the Free State (UFS) last week as part of the celebrations of Africa Day on 25 May 2010.

The discussion was premised on the theme, Migration and Africa: From Analysis to Action.

Dr Juma said migrants could be assets for host countries or cities because of their resourcefulness. She said they brought along essential skills that could contribute immensely to the economic development of their host countries or cities.

“Governments are beginning to see migration as a tool for development and working together in developing immigration policies,” concurred another speaker, Mr Vincent Williams from the Institute for Democracy in South Africa (IDASA).

He said, if managed properly, migration could yield positive results. He said effective management of migration should start at local and provincial levels.
And for this to happen, he said, the current immigration laws should be amended as he felt they were no longer relevant, because they were based on what countries wanted to achieve in the past.

“Reform national immigration legislation to encourage permanent settlement and improve service delivery mechanisms and bureaucracy to match population movements,” Dr Aurelia Kazadi Wa Kabwe-Segatti, from the Forced Migration Studies Programme at the University of the Witwatersrand recommended.

However, Mr Williams pointed out that policy convergence was a difficult thing to achieve as migration was a politically sensitive issue. He said decisions that countries made on migration could have a negative or a positive bearing on their relations with one another.

Dr Juma also raised the issue of unskilled migrants which, she said, could be a burden to governments. This was reflected in the current South African situation where foreigners offered cheap labour and thus rendered South Africans who demanded higher salaries unemployable. This was a contributory factor to the xenophobic attacks of 2008. What was essentially a labour problem then manifested itself as a migration problem.

Prof. Simon Bekker from the University of Stellenbosch said South Africa was still losing a significant number of skilled professionals to Europe and North America due to an assumption that spatial mobility led to social or economic mobility.

He also suggested that the government should not restrict internal migration but should address the problem of migration across the borders into South Africa.

Senior Professor at the CAS, Prof. Kwandiwe Kondlo, said while the discussion covered a broad scope, there were some gaps that still needed to be filled in order for an all-inclusive view to prevail. One such gap, he said, was to also accord indigenous traditional institutions of governance space in such deliberations and not base discussions on this issue only on the Western way of thinking.

Africa Day is the day on which Africa observes the creation of the Organisation of African Unity (OAU) on 25 May 1963, to promote the unity and solidarity of African states and act as a collective voice for the African continent; to secure Africa’s long-term economic and political future; and to rid the continent of all remaining forms of colonialism. The OAU was formally replaced by the African Union in July 2002.

Media Release
Issued by: Mangaliso Radebe
Assistant Director: Media Liaison
Tel: 051 401 2828
Cell: 078 460 3320
E-mail: radebemt@ufs.ac.za
1 June 2010

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