UKZN'S TOP RESEARCHERS HONOURED

From left: NRF Executive Director: Human and Institutional
Capacity Development (HICD), Dr Romilla Maharaj; Dr
Deane-Peter Baker, School of Philosophy and Ethics;
Professor Orde Munro, School of Chemistry and NRF
Executive Director: Knowledge Management and
Evaluation, Dr Daisy Selematsela.

The recipients of the 2007 and 2008 Vice-Chancellor's Research Awards were recently announced at a special dinner held in honour of UKZN'S top researchers.

Professor Orde Munro of the School of Chemistry and Dr Deane-Peter Baker of the School of Philosophy and Ethics both received awards for the years 2007 and 2008 respectively.

Both were recognised by the Senior Awards Committee for their outstanding research achievements and international reputation earned. They were awarded funds in the range of R130 000 - R150 000 each to be used for expenses incurred in their research work.

Dr Baker has worked in the School of Philosophy and Ethics since 1999 and has been an enthusiastic and productive researcher, publishing well above the research average. His work is said to have demonstrated his position as a world class researcher.

2010 GOPIO INTERNATIONAL CONVENTION TO BE HELD IN DURBAN

Pro-Vice-Chancellor, Corporate Relations, Professor
Dasarath Chetty with the President of Mauritius,
Sir Anerood Jugnauth, and Lady Sarojini Jugnauth.

The South African branch of the Global Organisation of People of Indian Origin (GOPIO) and UKZN’s Professional Conferencing Services, have won the bid to host the 10th International GOPIO Convention in Durban from March 28-31 next year.

The conference will bring more than 1 000 delegates from 20 different countries to the city where they will engage with a similar number of their South African counterparts.

GOPIO, which has members in 25 countries representing 27 million people of Indian origin worldwide, is committed to the promotion of human rights and the cultural heritage of Indians. A delegation led by UKZN’s Pro-Vice-Chancellor: Corporate Relations, Professor Dasarath Chetty, who is also the President of GOPIO South Africa, presented a bid earlier this month to the GOPIO International Executive Committee in Mauritius where the proposal was unanimously accepted by delegates from Mauritius, France, the United Kingdom, Reunion, Sri Lanka and South Africa.

ACADEMY FOR WOMEN RESEARCHERS PLANNED FOR UKZN NEXT YEAR

Professor Cheryl Potgieter.

A Women in Research Academy will be established early next year to assist women researchers publish their scientific findings.

This was announced by the Dean of Research at UKZN, Professor Cheryl Potgieter, and Deputy Vice-Chancellor for Research, Professor Nelson Ijumba, who are both passionate about increasing the number of senior women academics at UKZN - especially those who have doctoral degrees.

The academy will also assist women in managing and developing their academic profiles as well as helping them make strategic career decisions.

Professor Potgieter said it was hoped the academy would play a major role in increasing the number of women - particularly black women - with PhDs in leadership positions in South African universities.

INTERNATIONAL CULTURAL DAY

Students celebrate
International Cultural Day.

Calls for an understanding and appreciation of cultural diversity were made by speakers at UKZN’s International Cultural Day Celebrations on the Westville campus on September 11. The theme of the event was Heal the World.

A collaborative initiative of the International Student Office and Corporate Relations, the event was also attended by students from the Durban University of Technology (DUT) and Mangosuthu Technikon. Six international and local students from the University of Zululand were accompanied by Mrs Gugu Gule from the University’s International Linkages Office. Countries represented included Belgium, Botswana, Burundi, Cameroon, Democratic Republic of Congo, France, Germany, India, Kenya, Mozambique, Nigeria, South Africa, Tanzania, Turkey, and Zimbabwe.

Welcoming guests, Deputy Dean of Students, Mr Themba Khumalo said every individual should make a contribution to `healing the world’ as suggested by the event’s theme. Learn, celebrate and appreciate the rich diversity our continent brings to the world,” he said

'DREAM...DREAM...DREAM' ARROW ART EXHIBITION CELEBRATES CULTURAL DIVERSITY

At the Culture, Communication and Media Studies (CCMS),
UKZN and ARROW Bechet certificate ceremony, from
left: Miss Patricia Lefora, ARROW Bechet student; Ms
Joy Seidle, ARROW Bechet Co-ordinator; Professor Ruth
Teer-Tomaselli, Deputy Dean, Postgraduate Studies:
Humanities, Developement and Social Sciences and
Professor Keyan Tomaselli, Head of CCMS.

A confident, starry-eyed bunch of Bechet High School learners stole the show at the opening of the 'Dream...dream...dream' ARROW SA (Art: a Resource for Reconciliation Over the World) Art Exhibition held at the Bergtheil Museum in Westville on Wednesday September 9.

UKZN’s ARROW Programme is an innovative community-education programme which is located in the Faculty of Humanities, Development and Social Sciences. The project’s objectives include developing a creative dialogue by using a wide range of art forms among secondary schools in Plymouth in the UK, Palestine, Kosovo and South Africa.

This collaborative mixed media exhibition showcased prints by the late Vetkat Kruiper and newcomer Klankie Kruiper; paintings by Bill Fisher; and mixed media works by Sana Ebrahim. Works by South Roots and ARROW Bechet High School learners, as well as handcrafted Vetkat-inspired jewellery by 2nd-year Jewellery Design and Manufacturing students of the Durban University of Technology were also on view.

- Article Courtesy of Sana Ebrahim

NEW LOOK AT LIFE HISTORY IN BOOK PENNED BY UKZN ACADEMICS

From left: Professor Michael Samuel, Dean
of the Faculty of Education and Dr Rubby
Dhunpath, Director of Projects at the UTLO
are co-editors of the book, Life History
Research: Epistemology, Methodology
and Representation.

An innovative contribution to the genre of Life History Research is captured in a book edited by two UKZN academics, Professor Michael Samuel, Dean of the Faculty of Education and Dr Rubby Dhunpath, the Director: Projects at the University Teaching and Learning Office.

Life History Research: Epistemology, Methodology and Representation, published by Sense Publishers will be launched on September 25, aptly coinciding with the Faculty of Education’s Research Day which will showcase an array of research in Education.

The book emerges out of the work of a group of former PhD research scholars in the Faculty of Education who Professor Samuel had the opportunity to supervise in a doctoral cohort programme. Contributors include former UKZN scholars who are now academics in Australia, the United States and the United Arab Emirates spanning disciplinary streams such as HIV and AIDS, Speech-Language Pathology, Communication and Organisational Analysis.

One of the interesting features of the book is that it explores various conceptions of “truth” through the lived personal experiences of research participants and authors as they undertook their scholarly work in their different contexts. The book demonstrates how Life History Research provides an empirical basis to uncover what constitutes the truth and how this influences conceptions of epistemology and its implications for research methodology.

AWARD FOR SCHOOL OF NURSING ACADEMIC

Dr Gugu Mchunu.

Research into workplace health programmes by a School of Nursing academic has sparked interest amongst occupational health practitioners and earned the work an award.

Dr Gugu Mchunu, a lecturer in Community Health Nursing, bagged the award for best research article in the journal Occupational Health of Southern Africa.

Her article titled: The State of Workplace Health Promotion in South Africa: An Exploratory Study examined existing health promotion initiatives at small, medium and large companies in KwaZulu-Natal. The study formed part of Dr Mchunu's PhD research which started in 2005.

This was the first time Dr Mchunu's research was published, so winning the award came as "a pleasant surprise".

INDIGENOUS GARDEN CREATED AT EDGEWOOD CAMPUS

Enthusiastic students and staff planting indigenous
trees and shrubs at the Edgewood campus.

A new indigenous garden, which will serve as a teaching resource for Biological Sciences students, was developed on the Edgewood campus to celebrate Arbor Day on September 3.

A large group of students attended the event and planted indigenous trees and shrubs. Information on and uses of trees of the year was presented by Dr Nadaraj Govender, Head of the School for Science, Maths and Technology Education.

Trees of the year for 2009 include the Monkey Thorn (Acacia galpini), Tree Fuchsia (Halleria lucida) and Round-leaved Teak (Pterocarpus rotundifolius).

FIDSSA AWARD FOR UKZN TECHNICIAN

Mrs Bronwyn Joubert.

Novel research by a UKZN microbiologist proving the ability of Chlamydia (a bacteria causing genital ulcers) to grow in human skin cells has earned a reward from the Federation of Infectious Diseases Societies of Southern Africa (FIDSSA).

Mrs Bronwyn Joubert, a senior technician at the Department of Medical Microbiology, received an award for her research paper titled: The 'Chlamydial' escape route from the cell determines clinical presentation of lymphogranuloma venereum, which the Federation judged the best abstract oral presentation at the 3rd Joint Congress of the Federation of Infectious Diseases Societies of Southern Africa (FIDSSA) in Sun City.

Mrs Joubert's presentation forms part of her PhD in Microbiology research which started in 2006.

Mrs Joubert explained to the Congress the methodology used in proving that chlamydia was able to multiply in the human skin cells. In laboratory-based tests, human keratinocytes (human skin cells) were incubated at 33deg C for 48 hours after being infected with Chlamydia trachomatis, the bacteria causing genital ulcers or lymphogranuloma venereum (LGV), to determine the rate at which it multiplies.

RED RIBBON UNVEILED AT EDGEWOOD IN MEMORY OF HIV AND AIDS VICTIMS

Staff and students at the remembrance ceremony.

The Edgewood SRC and Campus HIV/AIDS Support Unit (CHASU) unveiled an AIDS red ribbon on September 11 to remember students who have died from HIV and AIDS.

The inscription on the red ribbon reads: “In memory of loved ones lost to HIV and AIDS. Dedicated by the SRC and CHASU.”

The event formed part of an ongoing “Know your Status Campaign” which encourages students to undergo an HIV test. It is supported by New Start - a non-profit organisation which tests students while CHASU provides counselling.

Deputy Dean in the Faculty of Education, Professor Thabisile Buthelezi; Deputy Dean of Students, Mr Themba Kumalo; Mr Thulani Shusha of the eThekwini Health Department; CHASU’s Miss Kogie Govender and members of the Edgewood campus SRC and Peer Educators lit candles and released red balloons while sharing their commitment to fighting the pandemic. The AIDS ribbon is located at the main entrance of the campus.

UKZN A SPONSOR OF HIV PREVENTION COURSE FOR TRADITIONAL HEALTH PRACTITIONERS

Traditional Health Practitioners celebrate at a graduation
ceremony upon completion of a course on HIV Prevention.

A celebratory mood prevailed at the Durban Exhibition Centre when 696 traditional health practitioners (THPs) graduated after participating in an HIV Prevention Course.

UKZN's Research Chair in Indigenous Health Care Systems partnered with the eThekwini Municipality, the Provincial Department of Health and the Traditional Health Practitioners' Association to introduce the course which forms part of the Biomedical and Traditional Health Practitioners Collaboration on HIV and AIDS. The course is funded by the United States-based organisation, President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Research (PEPFAR).

The event signified the importance of collaboration between modern medicine and traditional health practitioners in creating awareness on HIV and AIDS. The one-week course comprised Advanced HIV and AIDS Awareness, Prevention Approaches, Clinical Guidelines, Monitoring and Evaluation, Basic Medical Supplies and an Introduction to VCT and ARV Awareness.

NEW WRITERS’ TRAILS FROM KZN LITERARY TOURISM

UKZN’s Professor Lindy Stiebel, Project Leader of KZN Literary Tourism, has developed two new literary trials: the Inanda, Ntuzuma and KwaMashu (INK) Writers’ Trail and the Cato Manor Writers’ Trail.

The first literary trails to be developed were Grey Street Writers, Alan Paton and Rider Haggard. The project’s main objective is to create interest both in writers and the places to which they are linked in KwaZulu-Natal.

Professor Stiebel, Acting Head of the School of Literary Studies, Media and Creative Arts, has been involved with developing KZN Literary Tourism since 2001.

The INK Trail, developed in partnership with the eThekwini Municipality, outlines a very rich heritage and features literary luminaries such as Mandla Langa, Angelina Sithebe, Mewa Ramgobin, John Dube, Ellen Kuzwayo, and Manilal and Sita Gandhi.

FLATFOOT PARTNERS WITH INTRODANS EDUCATIE

Children from the Dudlu Ntombi Project perform at the
Dorothy Nyembe Hall in Cato Manor.

The collaboration between expert dance teachers from the Flatfoot Dance Company and Holland's Introdans Educatie benefited UKZN's Drama and Performance teachers and students through a ten-day training programme and a sharing of ideas.

The extensive programme of day projects and workshops also incorporated the training of more than 600 youth dancers belonging to Flatfoot’s Dudlu Ntombi and Heshe Nsizwa Projects based in Umlazi and KwaMashu. The workshops were conducted at Danville Girls High School and Merebank Secondary School, and included students from the Howard College, Pietermaritzburg and Edgewood campuses.

"We had a beautiful meeting of North and South dance educators sharing and exchanging ideas on how to promote dance education, dance learning, dance teaching, and dance practices. It was very exciting," said Miss Lliane Loots, Flatfoot Dance Company's Artistic Director and dance lecturer in the Howard College campus's Drama and Performance Studies Programme.

UKZN PROFESSOR ELECTED VICE-PRESIDENT OF ASRSA

Professor Jannie Smit.

Professor Jannie Smit of the School of Religion and Theology has been elected Vice-President of the Association for the Study of Religion in Southern Africa (ASRSA).

“I am honoured to serve with eminent scholars and leaders who spearheaded the processes that led to the National Policy on Religion and Education in 2003,” said Professor Smit.

The new President is Professor David Chidester of the Institute for Comparative Religion in Southern Africa, who is world-renowned for his prize-winning book: Savage systems: colonialism and comparative religion in Southern Africa (1996). Professor Chidester is based at the University of Cape Town.

The Treasurer is Professor Chrissie Steyn of Unisa, who is well known for her New Age studies and her book: Worldviews in transition: an investigation into the New Age movement in South Africa (1994). She also co-authored the foundational multi-religious: The Human Search for Meaning: a multireligious introduction to the religions of humankind (1996; 2nd ed. 2008).

UKZN SCHOOL OF MUSIC PROFESSOR CONTRIBUTES TO MENTORING WORKSHOP

Emeritus Professor Beverly Parker of the School of Music was one of four editors who participated in a mentoring workshop at Rhodes University recently.

The South Eastern Workshop on Southern Africa (SEWSA) was organised by the Women’s Academic Solidarity Association (WASA) at Rhodes and modelled on a similar American workshop.

Seventeen women academics from Rhodes, Walter Sisulu University, Fort Hare University, Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University, the University of the Limpopo, and the Human Sciences Research Council presented papers they hope to publish. Some of the presenters are lecturers, and others are postgraduate students.

The editors commented on the papers which had been sent to them ahead of the workshop and engaged all the participants in discussion of each paper, both to assist individual authors to improve their papers and to help the participants develop a critical mindset.

TWO ACCOLADES FOR UKZN ACADEMIC

Dr Vijialakshmi John.

A UKZN academic’s community outreach endeavours and research accomplishments have won her two awards.

Dr Vijialakshmi John, a lecturer at the School of Education Studies, was invited to join the UKZN Chapter of the Golden Key International Honour Society and was awarded by the eThekwini Municipality’s Association of Clean Communities for her initiatives to create awareness on waste management.

Dr John’s doctoral thesis titled: An ecosystemic perspective on the raising of deaf children by hearing parents: a mixed methods study received high praise from both international and national examiners earning her a place at the Golden Key International Honour Society.

FURTHER INTERNATIONAL RECOGNITION FOR MEDICAL UKZN PROFESSOR

Professor Umesh Lalloo.

The Head of the Pulmonology and Critical Care at the Nelson R Mandela School of Medicine, Professor Umesh Lalloo, has scored yet another peer-reviewed journal success.

He has accepted an invitation to serve as Associate Editor for the International Journal of Tuberculosis and Lung Disease this September.

Once regarded as one of the top ten reviewers for Chest, the official Journal for the American College of Chest Physicians, Professor Lalloo said this appointment stemmed from consistent research contributions on tuberculosis and HIV and lung diseases, particularly research exposing the XDR-TB outbreak in KwaZulu-Natal in 2006.

In his capacity as Associate Editor, Professor Lalloo, who takes on the responsibility of co-ordinating submissions in his area of expertise - TB, HIV, pneumonia and asthma - will likely focus on publishing research relevant for the region.

FINANCE FOLK GET SPORTY AND PLANT TREES

"On the ball" - Finance Division
Pietermaritzburg campus hits Casual
Day out the park!

Finance Division Pietermaritzburg
campus springing in to action on
Casual Day.

Staff members at the Finance Division on UKZN's Pietermaritzburg campus combined Casual Day with Arbor Week this year by dressing up in their sporting gear as well as planting four trees.

One of the trees was the Tree Fuschia which is indigenous and is also one of South Africa's Trees of the Year for 2009.

After the tree planting was over, participants enjoyed a braai and a day of activities which included a competition for the "sportiest dressed" man and woman.