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UFS launches Greener SA: planting the seeds of a sustainable future

17 September 2025 | Story Martinette Brits | Photo Martinette Brits and Kaleidoscope Studios

The University of the Free State (UFS) launched Greener SA, a five-year initiative to plant 400 000 trees across South Africa, at the Paradys Experimental Farm on Friday 12 September 2025. Backed by the Mastercard Foundation through the TAGDev 2.0 programme and RUFORUM, the project brings together government, industry, students, and academics around a shared commitment to sustainability and food security. The launch was marked by the planting of the first 100 trees, a symbolic act that set the tone for the years ahead.

Prof Jan-Willem Swanepoel, Director of the Centre for Sustainable Agriculture, reminded the audience that the UFS is one of 12 African universities entrusted with a $100 million investment in agricultural transformation. “This project is not a hit-and-run – it’s about sustainability, inclusivity, and building value chains that empower farmers and entrepreneurs,” he said. He ended with a parable of a farmhand who could ‘sleep when the wind blows,’ urging everyone to be proactive in preparing for inevitable challenges.

Responsibility and partnerships

That call for responsibility was echoed by Elzabe Rockman, Free State MEC for Agriculture and Rural Development, who linked Greener SA to the presidential One Million Trees Programme. She cautioned that planting without accountability leads to wasted effort. “If we plant trees, we want to be sure someone takes responsibility for them,” she said, highlighting the need for fire-resistant species, fruit trees in community gardens, and natural borders to replace vulnerable fencing. Looking at the students from Kovsie ACT who joined the launch, she added: “Jobs are not going to fall from the sky. They will come from agriculture and the environment. Harnessing youth energy is the way forward.”

Industry also pledged its support. Representing Empact Group – the sponsor of the trees – Helena Prinsloo described tree planting as an investment in legacy. “At Empact Group, we believe that doing right by our community and our planet is not just a responsibility. It’s a value that defines who we are and how we lead,” she said. Quoting the proverb that societies grow great when people plant trees whose shade they will never sit in, she added: “Today we are sowing seeds of hope, resilience, and opportunities for generations to come.”

Science, vision, and practice

Prof Corli Witthuhn from the Faculty of Natural and Agricultural Sciences placed the launch in a global context, pointing to conflict, inequality, and climate change – and the sobering United Nations report showing that only 20% of the sustainability goals have been achieved. For her, the Greener SA project is a response to urgent global challenges. “We want our students to be globally work-ready,” she said. “That means beyond textbooks, and this farm represents exactly that. We don’t want to produce graduates with degrees, we want to produce graduates who can walk into a lab, into a policy meeting, into a business anywhere in the world and make an impact.”

Her message was supported by expert voices. Guest speaker Prof Ben du Toit from Stellenbosch University explained that agroforestry systems can simultaneously provide timber, food, biodiversity, and resilience. “Agroforestry is not planting trees over here and grazing over there – it’s about integration, so that benefits reinforce each other,” he said.

At the Paradys Experimental Farm, this integration is already underway. Johan Barnard, Farm Manager and Junior Lecturer, described how shaded tree pockets will improve grazing fields and protect water resources, while fruit trees planted in partnership with Kovsie ACT will contribute to student nutrition and new food value chains. “We’re capturing value chains and taking it to the next level so that our students have research opportunities and the farm delivers real outputs,” he explained.

The launch of Greener SA showed that tree planting is about much more than beautification. It is a collective commitment – to resilience in the face of global challenges, to science applied in practice, and to building partnerships that prepare the next generation to make an impact.

News Archive

Researchers international leaders in satellite tracking in the wildlife environment

2015-05-29

Ground-breaking research has attracted international media attention to Francois Deacon, lecturer and researcher in the Department Animal, Wildlife and Grassland Sciences at the UFS, and Prof Nico Smit, from the same department. They are the first researchers in the world to equip giraffes with GPS collars, and to conduct research on this initiative. Recently, they have been joined by Hennie Butler from the Department of Zoology as well as Free State Nature Conservation to further this research.

“Satellite tracking is proving to be extremely valuable in the wildlife environment. The unit is based on a mobile global two-way communication platform, utilising two-way data satellite communication, complete with GPS systems.

“It allows us to track animals day and night, while we monitor their movements remotely from the computer. These systems make possible the efficient control and monitoring of wildlife in all weather conditions and in near-to-real time. We can even communicate with the animals, calling up their positions or changing the tracking schedules.

“The satellite collar allows us to use the extremely accurate data to conduct research with the best technology available. The volume of data received allows us to publish the data in scientific journals and research-related articles.

“Scientific institutions and the public sector have both shown great interest in satellite tracking, which opens up new ground for scientific research for this university. Data management can be done, using Africa Wildlife Tracking (AWT) equipment where we can access our data personally, store it, and make visual presentations. The AWT system and software architecture provide the researcher with asset tracking, GPS location reports, geo-fencing, highly-detailed custom mapping, history reports and playback, polling on demand, history plotting on maps, and a range of reporting types and functions,” Francois said.

Data can be analysed to determine home range, dispersal, or habitat preference for any specific species.

Francois has been involved in multiple research projects over the last 12 years on wildlife species and domesticated animals, including the collaring of species such as Black-backed Jackal, Caracal, African Wild Dog, Hyena, Lion, Cheetah, Cattle, Kudu, Giraffe, and Black Rhino: “Giraffe definitely being the most challenging of all,” he said.

In 2010, he started working on his PhD, entitled The spatial ecology, habitat preferences and diet selection of giraffe (Giraffa camelopardalis giraffa) in the Kalahari region of South Africa.

Since then, his work has resulted not only in more research work (supervising four Masters students) but also in a number of national and international projects. These include work in the:

Kalahari region (e.g. Khamab Nature Reserve and Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park)
Kuruman region (Collared 18 cattle to identify spatial patterns in relation to the qualities of vegetation and soil-types available. This project took place in collaboration with Born University in Germany)
Woodland Hills Wildlife Estate and Kolomella Iron Ore – ecological monitoring
A number of Free State nature reserves (e.g. Distribution of herbivores (kudu and giraffe) and predators (camera traps)

Francois is also involved with species breeding programmes and management (giraffe, buffalo, sable, roan, and rhino) in Korrannaberg, Rustenburg, Hertzogville, Douglas, and Bethlehem as well as animal and ecological monitoring in Kolomella and Beesthoek iron ore.

Besides the collaring of giraffes, Francois and his colleagues are involved in national projects, where they collect milk from lactating giraffes and DNA material, blood samples, and ecto/endo parasites from giraffes in Southern Africa.

With international projects, Francois is working to collect DNA material for the classification of the nine sub-species of giraffe in Africa. He is also involved in projects focusing on the spatial ecology and adaptation of giraffe in Uganda (Murchison Falls), and to save the last 30 giraffe in the DRC- Garamba National Park.

This project has attracted a good deal of international interest. In June 2014, a US film crew (freelancing for Discovery Channel) filmed a documentary on Francois’ research (trailer of documentary). Early in 2015, a second crew, filming for National Geographic, also visited Francois to document his work.

More information about Francois’ work is available at the GCF website.

Read Francois Deacon's PhD abstract

Direct enquiries to news@ufs.ac.za.

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