school of tourism and hospitality marks 50th anniversary: 1969 - … · 2020. 2. 5. · 2019...

Pieter du PreezThe first quadri-plegic to complete the Ironman triathlon

ConvocationIntroducing the new Executive Committee of the UJ Convocation

SportUJ men’s rugby team wins 2019 Varsity Sevens

ISSUE #4 January 2020 OFFICIAL UJ ALUMNI MAGAZINE

School of Tourism and Hospitality marks 50th anniversary:

1969 - 2019

UJ introduces Alumni Connect for graduates

World RankingsAcademic Ranking of World Universities

(ARWU) (ShanghaiRanking) 2019 601–700 7th 6th

QS World University Rankings 2020 501–510 5th 4th

Times Higher Education (THE) World University Rankings 2020 601–800

Joint 11th

Joint 6th

University Ranking by Academic Performance (URAP) 2018-2019 627 7th 6th

U.S. News and World Report’s Best Global Universities Rankings (BGUR) 2020 366 5th 5th

Center for World University Rankings (CWUR) World University Rankings 2019-2020 761 7th 6th

Webometrics Ranking of World Universities (Ranking Web

of Universities)July 2019 826 7th 6th

Regional RankingsQS BRICS University Rankings 2019 61 - 5th

Times Higher Education (THE) World University Rankings 2019 99 6th 6th

Young RankingsQS Under 50 University Rankings 2020 81–90 1st 1st

Times Higher Education (THE) Young University Rankings (THE YUR) 2019 151-200

Joint 2nd

2nd

Employment RankingsS Graduate Employability Rankings 2020 301-500

Joint 7th

Joint 5th

UJ IN THE RANKINGS

Stay Connectedwww.uj.ac.za/alumni

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A message from the Vice-Chancellor

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46UJ continues to lead South African universities in transforming the CA profession

34UJ crowned 2019 Varsity Basketball champions

32UJ Sport Senior Director Nomsa Mahlangu the first woman to be elected President of the Federation of Africa University Sports

From left: Mr Lubuto Kalenga, Prof Kinta Burger, Mr Nell Ledwaba, Dr Tinus van Zyl

CONTENTS

Editorial Team

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In this edition, you will find some of UJ’s recent success stories, that is why the magazine is called ALUMNI IMPUMELELO, which means success in IsiZulu. Through this publication we take time to celebrate some Illustrious Alumni, Events, Research and Honorary Doctorates. We invite you to follow us on social media and update your contact details on the UJ website. This will allow us to re-connect with you and for you to share in UJ’s journey. This journey includes positioning UJ as a leader in the Fourth Industrial Revolution.

15Prof Debra Meyer: Mitochondrial DNA reveals unexpected ancestral connections

1 INTRODUCING THE NEW EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE OF THE UJ CONVOCATION

3 UJ INTRODUCES ALUMNI CONNECT PLATFORM FOR GRADUATES

SCHOOL OF TOURISM AND HOSPITALITY6 School of Tourism and Hospitality celebrates 50 years

10 Celebrating a 50-year legacy of excellence in Tourism and Hospitality Education

11 Recognising alumni excellence in tourism and hospitality

12 From student to academic

13 The School of Tourism and Hospitality venues awarded a 4-star grading

INSIGHTS14 Education has a broader purpose, says UJ’s Prof Salim Vally

18 UJ research team develops AI application set to diagnose life-threatening diseases

19 Prof Samuel Oluwatobi Oluwafemi highlights the significance of nanotechnology in healthcare

21 UJ study reviews evidence on medicinal plants as alternative treatment for menstrual pain

23 Prof Marie Poggenpoel: High risk of violence and aggression among health professionals

25 SA-China Joint Research Centre on Chemical and Environmental Engineering

26 UJ researchers receive top honours at 2019 NRF Awards

HONORARY DOCTORATES27 Honorary doctoral degree for activist Kumi Naidoo

29 UJ honours renowned physicist and former Rwandan Science Minister Prof Romain Murenzi

30 UJ bestows honorary doctorate on former MIT Chancellor, Prof Philip L Clay

SPORT33 UJ men’s rugby team wins 2019 Varsity Sevens

35 Pieter du Preez The first quadriplegic to complete the Ironman Triathlon

37 Proteas’ captain Bongiwe Msomi is the new head coach of UJ Netball

39 TED x AND UJ – REIMAGINING THE FUTURE

42 STRONG REPRESENTATION OF UJ ALUMNI IN THE 2019 MAIL & GUARDIAN 200 YOUNG SOUTH AFRICANS

43 UJ TAKES ACTION AGAINST VIOLENCE

47 UJ RECEIVES MILLION DOLLAR CASH BOOST TOWARDS POVERTY AND INEQUALITY REDUCTION IN AFRICA

UJ HAS CONCLUDED THE ELECTION OF THE FIVE EXECUTIVE MEMBERS OF CONVOCATION. THE EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE OF THE UJ CONVOCATION (EXCO) COMPROMISES OF FIVE MEMBERS ELECTED BY THE CONVOCATION EXCO AND THREE EX OFFICIO MEMBERS, NAMELY THE VICE-CHANCELLOR, REGISTRAR AND THE SENIOR MANAGER RESPONSIBLE FOR ALUMNI.

IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE UJ STATUTE, THE COMPOSITION OF COUNCIL INCLUDES TWO EXTERNAL REPRESENTATIVES OF CONVOCATION, ELECTED BY CONVOCATION. A CANDIDATE IS REGARDED AS ‘EXTERNAL’ IF NEITHER A REGISTERED STUDENT OF THE UNIVERSITY OF JOHANNESBURG NOR IN THE EMPLOY OF THE UNIVERSITY OF JOHANNESBURG. THE TERM OF OFFICE OF THE MEMBERS IS FOR A PERIOD OF THREE YEARS.

Introducing the Executive Committee of the UJ Convocation

President of Convocation Member of EXCO

Dr Boitumelo Molebogeng Diale (Internal)

Dr Diale currently holds a position as the Head of Department of Educational Psychology in the Faculty of Education at UJ. She also chairs the Faculty of Education Transformation Committee and plays an advisory role in the University Transformation Office. Professionally, Dr Diale is a registered Educational Psychologist with the Health Professions Council of South Africa. She is the chairperson of the South African Career Development Association (SACDA), an Academic Board member of South African college of Applied Psychology (SACAP).

Deputy President Member of Exco

Ms Zanele Anathi Modiba (External)

Zanele Modiba is a personal development speaker, a marketing specialist and the Managing Director of her own strategic marketing consultancy, The Alternative. She is the creator and founder of the pioneering Kingdom Board Game – an African themed board game that promotes knowledge of all African countries and their practices.

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Council Representative Member of Exco

Mr Msizi Smiso Khoza (External)

Msizi Khoza is currently a Director at Absa’s Investment Banking division where he supports clients across the continent to tap into local and international capital markets in order to meet their financing needs. Msizi is a World Economic Forum Global Shaper and featured on the 2012 edition of the Mail and Guardian Top 200 Young South Africans.

Council Representative Member of Exco

Ms Mukovhe Confidence Tshilande (External)

Confidence Tshilande is an ambitious and dynamic geotechnical engineer, motivational speaker, preacher and mentor. She is a candidate engineer with the Engineering Council of South Africa and an Associate member of South African Institute of Civil Engineer (SAICE) and the International Society for Soil Mechanics and Geotechnical Engineering.

Member of Exco

Ms Mandy Wiener (External)

Mandy Wiener is one of the country’s best known and most credible journalists and authors. She worked as a multi award-winning reporter with Eyewitness News from 2004 until 2014. She has won a number of National and Regional Vodacom ‘Journalist of the Year’ awards, has been ‘The CNN African Radio Journalist of the Year’ and has received several commendations in the Webber Wentzel ‘Legal Journalist of the Year’ awards. In addition, she has received the National Press Club award in the Radio Category and the Social Media category and was awarded the ‘Rising Star - Women in the Media’ award in 2011. For more information, visit:

https:// www.uj.ac.za/alumni/convocation/Pages/Election-Results.aspx

ALUMNI IMPUMELELO 2

The University of Johannesburg (UJ) recently introduced a high-tech, online platform to drive engagement among its alumni, thereby enabling gra-duates to leverage on the power of mentoring services that the University provides.

The technological advances that the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR) brings about necessitated such a platform in line with the University’s strategic objective to shape graduates fully equipped to join the world of work as global citizens.

4IR is changing more than just the production processes of companies and their business models – it is changing the world of work and how people interact and live.

Prof Kinta Burger, UJ Registrar, says there are multiple barriers keeping many of the country’s young people locked out of the labour market and opportunities.

“Mentoring is a vital aspect of career and workforce development.

The UJ Alumni Connect system, an online platform, matches our graduates to a willing mentor who, through support, counsel, guidance, reinforcement and constructive engagement can help our graduates succeed in their career and meet their goals,” says Prof Burger.

Not only does the UJ Alumni Connect platform make provision for mentoring, but it also allows graduates to re-connect with classmates (locally and abroad), receive news and event updates as well as ongoing educational opportunities and employment offerings. The platform is fully integrated with social and professional networks, but also permits graduates to expand their networks and to cultivate a culture of giving back to their alma mater in the form of mentoring assistance.

“UJ is committed to new techno-logies that promote accessibility and interaction as a further step in preparing our graduates to be

future leaders. We are pleased to offer this service to our alumni and to open the door for relationship building,” says Prof Burger.

The Alumni Connect system follows the launch of UJ’s Digital Certification and Online Qualification Verification system that was introduced to increase security features relating to the certification process, to curb counterfeiting of certificates and allow for third parties to verify their qualification online, at no cost.

Google Play Store Link: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.graduway.ujalumni

For Apple users, download the “Graduway Community” app, once inside, select University of Johannesburg as your institution.

Apple Store Link: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/graduway-community/id1457549791

UJ introduces Alumni Connect platform for graduates

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ALUMNI IMPUMELELO 4

School of Tourism and Hospitality

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School of Tourism and Hospitality

a 50 yearJOURNEY

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The history of the School of Tourism and Hospitality (STH) at the University of Johannesburg dates to 1969. It all began with a vision that South Africa should develop hoteliers who would be able to compete with the rest of the world.

A rich history starting in 1969

In February 1969, slightly more than 20 students registered for a National Diploma in Hotel Management at the Witwatersrand College of Advanced Technical

Education. Three years later the Wits Hotel School, as it was affectionately known, started offering a three-year diploma in Hotel Management.

The restructuring of the higher education landscape in 2005 led to the founding of the University of Johannesburg (UJ). It was during this time that the former Technikon of the Witwatersrand Department of Tourism and the Wits Hotel School was merged into the School of Tourism and Hospitality.

The STH was officially opened on 30 August 2005 by Sol Kerzner, South African business magnate and founder of two of the country’s largest hotel groups, and Dr Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka, former Deputy President and current Executive Director of United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women (UN Women). The facilities at the customised Kerzner Building at UJ’s Bunting Road Campus have been designed to ensure a rich learning environment for practical and business skills.

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Metamorphosis over the last 10 years

Over the past decade, the STH transformed into a world-class institution that produces top-achieving students. Our alumni enter the tourism and hospitality sector as critical thinkers and problem-solvers. And they go on to address economic and societal challenges.

Not only has the School remodelled itself in terms of graduate profiles but also its staff profile and academic offerings. It now offers a full range of academic courses from short learning programmes to diplomas, honours and master’s degrees, and a doctorate. The STH is also well-known for its research profile, industry relationships and its commercial operations.

Since 2010, the STH’s research profile has expanded rapidly due to an increase in the postgraduate stream, growing scholarly profiles

of staff, postdoctoral research fellows, and an increased research affiliate network. The School has international and national partnerships with 43 senior research associates from 42 universities across the globe.

In 2017, the STH launched the Food Evolution Research Lab (FERL), a virtual lab that promotes research focused on the evolution of food, health and nutrition.

Awards, rankings and certifications

The School’s awards include being ranked 18th globally for Hospitality and Tourism Management In 2019, by the prestigious Shanghai Rankings. This is a tremendous jump from the first ranking in 2017, that placed the School in the 34th place. We are also position- ed 1st in Tourism and Leisure studies in Africa by QS World University rankings.

The STH’s commercial facilities were also recently awarded 4-star grading by the Tourism Grading Council of South Africa. This makes UJ the first higher education institution to achieve such grading in South Africa.

The future of hospitality and tourism in South Africa

Looking to the future, the STH is preparing itself towards the possibilities presented by the Fourth Industrial Revolution. The School is involved with disruptors in the sector, evaluating the impact of large-scale automation, artificial intelligence, the adoption of smart technologies and big data.

South Africa is buzzing with talent and the opportunities are countless. The STH is committed to giving the next generation the tools needed to embrace these chances in the tourism and hospitality sector.

ALUMNI IMPUMELELO 8

On 17 February 1969, 22 students were registered for the National Diploma in Hotel Management at the Witwatersrand College for Advanced Technical Education. Fifty years later, as the University of Johannesburg, we recognise and commemorate the rich history and legacy upon which the School of Tourism and Hospitality (STH) is built.

Today, the STH is known as a world-class institution driven by a consistent vision to develop critical thinkers and problem-solvers for the tourism and hospitality sector

in the era of the Fourth Industrial Revolution. Among its various accolades and milestones, we are proud to note that the School is a major graduate contributor for the sector, has made great strides to raise its research profile and ranking, and successfully operates 4-star graded commercial facilities across our various campuses. The STH is truly living up to its motto of trading with a purpose.

It is befitting that this 50th-anniversary celebration took place in September, which is recognised at Tourism and Heritage Month.

A message from the Vice-Chancellor

A big thank you to all our industry partners and alumni for their continued support. Congratulations to the winners of the Golden Circle and Rising Star Alumnus Awards, Gert Brumme and Thobile Dlamini.

May the School of Tourism and Hospitality proceed to grow from strength to strength in the next fifty years and beyond!

Prof Tshilidzi Marwala

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In February 1969, just over 20 students were enrolled for the National Diploma in Hotel Management at the Witwatersrand College for Advanced Technical Education in Braamfontein, Johannesburg. Fast-forward 50 years and here we are, celebrating this milestone as the School of Tourism and Hospitality (STH).

The STH has nearly 800 students and 65 staff and is one of six schools in the College of Business and Economics at the University of Johannesburg (UJ). The School is ranked first place for Tourism and Hospitality in Africa by the QS World University Rankings (2018 and 2019) and is ranked 18th globally by the prestigious Shanghai rankings.

It is a privilege to be at the helm of the institution. As we pay tribute to our humble beginnings, I want to recognise and pay tribute to those who came before me, starting with the late Leon Malan, the first Director of the former Wits Hotel School and the late Dr. Japie van Lill, the father of our Executive

Dean who was Head of Business Development at the school.

Further praise goes to Dr. Reinet “Dok” Mornet, Prof. Jane Spowart and the late Prof. Connie Mokadi who were all part of the transition phase of the school. Not to mention Mr Andre Mynhardt, the first Director of the STH in 2005, and of course, Prof Daneel van Lill who was the Director of STH until the end of 2010.

This tribute would not be complete without celebrating the talented staff who have, over the years, been at the heart and soul of this School. And whose hard work resulted in the STH’s astonishing accolades and its multitude of achievements. It was heartening to see many of them in attendance at our anniversary celebration.

Given that change is a constant, we know that whatever we do today we need to do better tomorrow because growth is a choice. At the STH we value diversity and inclusion as we believe that therein

Celebrating a 50-year legacy of excellence in Tourism and Hospitality Education

lies our strength. Standards of excellence are not carved in stone. They are constantly being redefined and it’s important to recognise that, what was graded as excellent last year may not be so this year. And that is why we must keep mastering new skills.

As we recollect the past and re-imagine the future of tourism and hospitality education, I am reminded of the great bridges we have built that have connected the old with the new. This bridge-building is behind some of the success of the STH as we continue to connect with industry and alumni. Relationships are a choice. Charles Spurgeon said: “Carve your name on hearts and not on marble.” So, let us continue these wonderful relationships.

To all our alumni: we do hope you will come back regularly to the STH and continue to share with us your time to teach, coach, and mentor the students, and perhaps also learn a thing or two from the millennials. I know I continue to do so!

A MESSAGE FROM DR DIANE ABRAHAMS, DIRECTOR OF THE SCHOOL OF

TOURISM AND HOSPITALITY

Dr Diane Abrahams

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The School of Tourism and Hospitality (STH) has a deep tradition of acknowledging past students for their enrichment of the industry. Since the School’s inception in 2005, a total of 36 awards have been made across two categories − STH Rising Star Alumnus Award and STH Golden Circle Alumnus Award.

Rising star Thobile Dlamini

The Rising Star Alumnus Award is bestowed upon STH alumni who have been serving the industry for five to ten years. Recipients of this award demonstrated ground-breaking work that set them apart from their peers. This award acknowledges their contribution, serving as a measure against which future-fit tourism and hospitality leaders are developed.

Thobile Dlamini is the latest recipient of a Rising Star Alumnus Award. She graduated from the STH at the University of Johannesburg (UJ) with a National Diploma in Hospitality Management in 2011. Two years

later she completed a BTech in Hospitality Management and is presently doing her Master’s in Hospitality Management studies.

Dlamini’s career in the hospitality industry kicked-off in 2011 as a trainee at the Protea Hotel Parktonian All-Suite in Braamfontein. She has held other positions since her internship and her passionate ‘go-getter’ character saw her named General Manager at the Road Lodge in Isando in 2016. She has been running the hotel as a profitable establishment for the past three years.

Golden Circle member Gert Brumme

The Golden Circle Alumnus Award was first introduced in 1988 when STH was still known as the Wits Hotel School. This award is presented to alumni who are respected by their peers as extraordinary achievers and contributors to the wellbeing of the tourism and hospitality industry at large.

The most recent alumnus to achieve Golden Circle status is Gert Brumme. Gert has had a thriving career in the hospitality industry since he graduated from the Hotel School in 1977. He now holds the position of Divisional Operations Manager at Legacy Hotels and Resorts, and also serves as a director on several boards. Under his leadership, many of the resorts and lodges in his portfolio have received international recognition like the RCI Gold Crown Award.

Ambassadors in the hospitality industry

Reflecting on the significance of the awards STH Director, Dr Dianne Abrahams says: “I think it’s always important to connect with your alumni because they are the ones who are your ambassadors out in the industry. Hosting an event where they can come back, reconnect, and give back to the school is essential. Acknowledging their achievements is also significant and this is what we are doing through the Alumni Awards.”

Recognising ALUMNI EXCELLENCE in tourism and hospitality

From left: Golden Circle member Gert Brumme, Dr Diane Abrahams, Rising star Thobile Dlamini

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From student to academic

Mr Donald Brain, Senior Lecturer

Ms Refiloe Lekgau, Assistant Lecturer

Mrs Nanikie Mhlongo-Zungu, Academic Head of Hospitality

Ms Ita Geyser, Lecturer

The School of Tourism and Hospitality (STH) is celebrating its 50th anniversary. We spoke to some of the School’s lecturers who were once students but returned as academics.

Mr Donald Brain, Senior Lecturer

An STH alumnus, Donald has been a lecturer at the School since 1989. He qualified with a Diploma in Hotel Management at the former Wits Hotel School, after which he spent some time in the industry before returning to the School as a junior lecturer. “I began my lecturing career as a restaurant practical lecturer and later moved on to food and beverage studies,” he says. “I’ve had many wonderful experiences and my time with the STH has been most joyous and fruitful.” Thinking back to his time as a junior lecturer he is thankful for his mentors - Dr Renier “Dok” Mornet, Felix Sullivan, and Pieter Viljoen. But he is most grateful for the privilege bestowed upon him to help prepare so many young people to work in the wondrous industry of tourism and hospitality.

Ms Refiloe Lekgau, Assistant Lecturer

Refiloe’s first interaction with the STH was in 2015, when she enrolled as a first-year tourism student.

“I like to refer my academic journey being completely incidental. I had the bare minimum understanding of what tourism is. I’m ashamed to admit I thought that it was just about travelling.” But, she grew to fall in love with this industry. The STH developed her passion for tourism and hospitality and was instrumental in her success which includes winning the World Tourism Young Talent Award. “To me, the school signifies growth and transformation for the individual and the industry at large.”

Mrs Nanikie Mhlongo-Zungu, Academic Head for Hospitality

Nanikie’s journey with the STH is a thread of breaking boundaries. She was among the first group of black graduates in the country to obtain a Diploma in Food Service Management. Then, in 1995, she was the first black female lecturer at the then Wits Hotel School’s Department of Food Service Management. Today she is the academic Head for hospitality at the School. “It has not always been easy, but this leads me to another key theme worth mentioning – the role of strong women, particularly other black women who have supported and nurtured my continued growth within the STH. I am particularly grateful to my

predecessor, Dr Hema Kesa, and Dr Diane Abrahams for allowing me room to thrive and grow as an academic.

Ms Ita Geyser, Lecturer

Ita believes that her career in the hospitality industry has come to full circle. An alumnus of the STH, she studied Catering Management at the then Wits Hotel School. After working in the industry for a few years she returned to the School as a lecturer and for the past 12 years has been ploughing back her knowledge to the next generation of hospitality professionals. “Hospitality can be a tough environment to work in,” she says. “However, what I appreciate most is that it is a happy industry. It is an industry of working in beautiful environments, meeting incredible people and making people happy.” She believes that the hospitality industry is the one sector where you can provide anyone with skills and those skills can quickly empower them to run their businesses and make a living for themselves. “Looking forward to the next 50 years, I foresee more growth. Institutions like the STH have a significant role to play in developing the next crop of industry leaders.”


School of Tourism and Hospitality venues

grading

awarded a

The University of Johannesburg’s (UJ) School of Tourism and Hospitality (STH), has made history when it was bestowed a 4-star grading for its Meetings, Exhibitions and Special Events (MESE) venues by the Tourism Grading Council of South Africa earlier this year.

Cutting edge conference facilities

The Kerzner @ UJ at the Bunting Road Campus is the commercial arm of the STH and boasts state-of-the-art conference and banqueting facilities. Its two conference rooms combined can host 200 delegates and the auditorium seats 147 people. A further selection of executive boardrooms and meeting rooms cater for smaller groups. The Kerzner Building also showcases a culinary theatre that seats 54 delegates, and the Alumni Bar and tasting room, the Waterford Restaurant, and the Design Café coffee shop serve a variety of cuisines.

Mr Gerald Hamadzirip, the operations manager overseeing all the business units under The Kerzner @ UJ, believes that the grading will be a major morale boost, not only for clients but also for staff and students. “The grading will unquestionably add a flair of confidence for our staff and students to proceed to deliver an experience which is equal to this standard and even beyond,” he says.

“Although we operate as a business entity, this is also where we harness and grow the talent in the field of hospitality management and food and beverage operations,” he explains. “We call it trading with a purpose − operating a business whilst building opportunities for our students to gain practical working experience.”

50 years of milestones

The 4-star grading could not have come at a better time as the School marks the 50th anniversary of its legacy institutions – going as far back as the days when the Wits Hotel School first opened its doors.

In closing, Prof Tichaawa said that the STH was pleased by the Tourism Grading Council’s recognition of its facilities. “This milestone certainly bodes well in terms of us further cementing our position as a leading academic institution in our field, which also operates top-class and 4-star graded MESE facilities. We encourage the UJ community to keep supporting us and wish to invite all prospective clients, be it from industry or the corporate sector, to come and sample what we have to offer.”

Other than the industrial kitchens in the Centre of Culinary Excellence, a broad range of hospitality services is also offered at the UJ Kingsway Campus and the Johannesburg Business School.

A major achievement

“Being the first school in the country to have its commercial facilities graded is a major accolade,” says Prof Tembi Tichaawa, STH Academic Head of Tourism. “More so, being graded 4-star. It speaks volumes about the standard of our facilities and the level of service quality you can expect as a client.”


Education has a broader purpose,says UJ’s Prof Salim Vally

Insights

ATTENTION MUST BE PAID TO “SHOUTS AND WHISPERS OF RESISTANCE ONTO A WIDE-ANGLED LANDSCAPE” THAT LINKS POLITICAL AND SOCIO-ECONOMIC ISSUES TO THE DAY-TO-DAY CONTEXTUAL ISSUES OF TEACHING AND LEARNING.

The often-misinterpreted nature of the relationship between education and society is reduced to narrow economic ends. Whether it is in the media, policymaking, academic writings or public debate, the relationship between education and skills, particularly the skills-mismatch discourse, frequently dominates discussions, especially those on unemployment in South Africa, says Prof Salim Vally, Director of the Centre for Education Rights and Transformation and the NRF-SARChI Chair in Community, Adult and Workers’ Education at the University of Johannesburg (UJ).

Prof Vally delivered his professorial inauguration address titled ‘Between the Vision of Yesterday and the Reality of Today: Forging the Pedagogy of Possibility’ in the University’s Council Chambers, Madibeng Building, Auckland Park Kingsway Campus on Wednesday, 4 September 2019.

He said this seemingly common-sense approach places the burden of responsibility squarely on individuals and their “deficits”, while obscuring the real systemic obstacles to procuring decent and remunerative employment.

He pointed to the vision of education for liberation that existed in the broad liberation movement during the struggle against apartheid, focusing specifically on “People’s Education” and “Workers’ Education”.

Reflecting on the history of the education liberation movement, Prof Vally explained that the purpose and value of education and the country’s rich tradition of educational praxis are based on social justice and democratic citizenship. “Instead of an instrumental and narrow role for education reduced solely to the labour market requirements of business, economic growth and international competitiveness, the purpose of education is much broader,” he said.

Examining the reality of apartheid’s legacy on education, compounded by some post-apartheid policies – particularly the overarching macro-economic neoliberal strategy, Prof Vally stressed that it links the latter to the paradox that while post-apartheid education policies established the formal basis for social justice and equity through legislation, in reality these laudable goals remain unattainable and elusive.

In the face of the desultory state of schooling and the failure of neoliberalism, the “solutions” advocated, including strident calls for the privatisation of education and resorting back to an apartheid-like disciplinary regime, are dangerous and will exacerbate existing inequalities, he warned.

One of the questions explored is whether the elision of social class analysis and meaningful community participation in education policy

deliberations has contributed to the failure in addressing and overcoming the profound inequalities and social cleavages that characterise the South African education system.

In his address Prof Vally insisted that close attention must be paid to “shouts and whispers of resistance onto a wide-angled landscape” that links political and socio-economic issues to the day-to-day contextual issues of teaching and learning and the structural character of poverty and inequality.

Alternatives and possibilities are vital because of the failure of the system. The “assault on education and reason”, increasing inequality, devastating unemployment and the rise of obscurantist, xenophobic and misogynistic discourse, militarism as well as the unprecedented ecological crisis, means that meaningful education that addresses these exigencies is decisive, he concluded.

Prof Salim Vally


Prof Debra Meyer: Mitochondrial DNA reveals unexpected ancestral connections

A recent opinion piece by Prof Debra Meyer, Alumna, Executive Dean of Science and Professor of Biochemistry at the University of Johannesburg (UJ) was published in The Conversation on September 1, 2019.

Biochemists study life on a molecular level. So, as a biochemist, it made sense to investigate my own existence at that deepest of levels, which is why I had my DNA sequenced – my mitochondrial DNA, or mtDNA, to be exact.

This genetic material is found inside mitochondria, the sub-cellular compartments or organelles where food is converted into energy. DNA from this organelle is passed down primarily from mothers to their children. During fertilisation, the father’s sperm transfers his chromosomal DNA into the female egg, leaving the mitochondria behind.

If any of the male mitochondria are transferred into the egg, it is usually destroyed by internal processes.

AS A COUNTRY WE FOCUS ON APARTHEID AS THE ORIGIN OF ALL OUR ILLS, WHILE OUR SLAVERY HERITAGE IS LARGELY FORGOTTEN.

Prof Debra Meyer


However, recently published work has shown that in a small number of cases, mitochondria from the father got into the egg, was not destroyed and was passed on to the children.

In most cases though, sons do not pass along mtDNA to their children. Every mother, however, transfers her mtDNA to her daughter who will in turn transfer it to her daughter and so on throughout the ages. Because mtDNA does not change much over time, maternal lineage information from thousands of years ago becomes accessible today.

My female ancestor would, I thought, be Khoi-San. That’s what family records and knowledge of my immediate ancestors suggested. The Khoi-San were Southern Africa’s first people, and dominated the region for thousands of years.

I expected to belong to the haplogroup L0, typical for all Khoi-San and many Coloured people. “Coloured” is a racial classification introduced by the apartheid-era Population Registration Act to refer to a multiracial ethnic group native to South Africa with Khoi-San, Bantu, Afrikaner, English, Indian and South Asian ancestry.

A haplogroup is a genetic population group of people who share a common ancestor on either the matrilineal or patrilineal line. The results of the sequencing tests surprised me: my mtDNA was assigned to the M2 haplogroup, a group whose origins are described as not native to Africa (see Figure 1) yet common to Cape Malay or Cape Muslims who have their origins outside the continent.

Historically, people in this group were brought over from South-East Asia to South Africa as slaves for European colonisers. Apartheid displaced the slavery narrative to the recesses of South African history: as a country we focus on apartheid as the origin of all our ills, while our slavery heritage is largely forgotten. Now, as my experience shows, developments in

mtDNA sequencing are returning it to view. This is important because South African identity is more complex than just black and white, and slavery shaped the society in ways that should not be ignored.

The history of haplogroups

So, what is haplogroup M2, the one I have discovered I belong to? Haplogroup M, together with its sister group N, originated from the same ancestor – known as haplogroup L3. Members of this haplogroup are believed to be the first humans that migrated out of East Africa between 80 000 and 60 000 years ago. Once these ancient humans left the African continent, they went on to populate the world.

Haplogroup M is found almost exclusively in Asia (Figure 2); M2, with an estimated age of 50 000 years, is found primarily in South East India and Bangladesh.

I was suspicious of my results. But my siblings’ mitochondrial DNA sequencing results were assigned to the same haplogroup and analyses done at three different laboratories – two national and one international – reached the same conclusions. So, I was left with finding a way to get this outcome to make sense.

The colonisation of what is today the Western Cape province and the subsequent contact of the indigenous Khoi-San with Europeans and their slaves provides a plausible explanation as to how the mitochondrial M2 haplogroup pattern could end up in someone with documented Khoi-San ancestry.

Colonisation

The dominance of the Khoi-San in Southern Africa was ended by the Verenigde Oost-Indische Compagnie – VOC or Dutch East India Company in 1652 with the establishment of a refreshment station that became a colony and, finally a settlement.

The VOC’s plans required labour.

So the first shipment of slaves, mostly captured in present-day Angola or Guinea, was brought to the Cape in 1658 by the slave ships Amersfoort and Hasselt, respectively. In subsequent years, the vast majority of slaves were brought in from Madagascar, the Indian subcontinent and South East Asia (Figure 2). Some of these female slaves brought the M2 haplogroup with them.

For the 180 years of slavery at the Cape, slaves far outnumbered the colonial population. The colonial economy could not function without the use of slave labour, meaning slave ownership was widespread. There are records of inter-marriage between the KhoiKhoi and San populations with colonial slave populations, as well as with African farmers and white settlers.

Add to this the unrecorded and involuntary unions between especially the masters and their slaves, and it becomes easy to envisage sexual contact between a female slave and a European male circa 1660 – and the birth of a female child or children who went on to have offspring-producing relationships with other European/Slave/Khoi-San/Coloured men in subsequent cycles until eventually one such cycle produced my great-grandmother. This is illustrated on page 17 (Figure 1).

A possible maternal heritage chart with starting point circa 1660, presupposing 9-10 family cycles until the birth of my great grandmother in 1904, provided the ages of the females when giving birth were between 24-25 years of age. Based on family records, John Doe could have been European/Khoi-San/Slave/Coloured.

With one or more of the male ancestors in my maternal lineage being Khoi-San, the cross-over sharing of chromosomal DNA between parents explains the Khoi-San phenotype – that is, observable, physical characteristics – in my family.


AFRICA

L0

L3

M2

Some of the VOC’s Slave RoutesMovement of haplogroup M, relevant to this discussion.

Atlantic Ocean

India Ocean

ASIA

EUROPE

AUSTRALIA

N

Advances in technology

Without the technology to sequence mitochondrial DNA, I would not know of my ancestral links to slavery. Artificial intelligence is making sequencing faster, cheaper and more accurate, while machine learning algorithms that improve with experience are

accelerating our ability to compare large, complex DNA sequencing data sets and interpreting its meaning.

Chances are, then, that in a few years mtDNA sequencing will disclose even more disruptive ancestral information – and allow us to see ourselves

and our histories more clearly.

*This opinion piece by Prof Debra Meyer was published in ‘The Conversation’ on September 1, 2019. *The views expressed in the article are those of the author/s and do not necessarily reflect those of

the University of Johannesburg.

BECAUSE MTDNA DOES NOT CHANGE MUCH OVER TIME, MATERNAL LINEAGE INFORMATION FROM THOUSANDS OF YEARS AGO BECOMES ACCESSIBLE TODAY.

Routes used by the VOC slave ships juxtaposed against the predicted movements of Haplogroup M. Source 1: https:/en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Haplogroup_M_(mtDNA)#/media/File:Peopling_of_eurasia.jpg . Source 2:https://slavery.iziko.org.za/sites/default/files/images/2015-11-06/DetailedMap.jpg

Figure 1

Figure 2


A TEAM OF SCIENTISTS FROM THE UNIVERSITY OF JOHANNESBURG, COLLABORATING ACROSS THEORETICAL AND EXPERIMENTAL PHYSICS AND COMPUTER SCIENCE, DEVELOPED AND TRAINED A NEW MACHINE LEARNING (ML) TECHNIQUE TO FINALLY PREDICT AND DIAGNOSE DISEASES SUCH AS LUNG CANCER, TUBERCULOSIS, CARDIOVASCULAR DISEASES AND MALARIA. THEIR FAR-REACHING RESULTS WERE RECENTLY PUBLISHED IN IEEE XPLORE.

The accurate diagnosis of diseases is critical to the survival of humans. At times, due to the overlapping nature and similarities of the symptoms, it can be challenging for an inexperienced clinician to properly diagnose diseases. Misdiagnosis of diseases has often led to increased costs, time and even death.

However, to save costs and improve the quality of human diagnosis, artificial intelligence (AI) techniques have been applied. According to the white paper released by healthcare advisory PinnacleCare, 64% of medical practitioners surveyed testified that 10% of misdiagnoses lead to serious injury.

UJ scientists have now made a significant breakthrough in both technique and understanding. Based on a suite of artificial neural networks (ANN) that they had designed and trained to acquire knowledge about the task at hand,

machine learning has discovered a new forest building method.

According to the lead author, Prof Qing-Guo Wang of UJ’s Institute of Intelligent Systems, the case study on the diagnosis of autistic spectrum disorder shows that the proposed method achieves the prediction accuracy of the ensemble at above 96% with reduced variance, which is much better than those reported in the literature.

“In this new collaboration with Prof Tshilidzi Marwala, UJ’s Vice-Chancellor and Principal (a leading AI expert) and Mr Adeola Ogunleye, Machine Learning Engineer, we combined ‘Decision Trees’ and regression methods which are usually found in two difference branches of machine learning to take advantage of each.”

A number of intelligent systems integrate two or more AI techniques (ANN, SVM, KNN) with a

UJ research team develops AI application set to diagnose life-threatening diseases

From left: Mr Adeola Ogunleye, Prof Qing-Guo Wang, Prof Tshilidzi Marwala


Prof Samuel Oluwatobi Oluwafemi highlights

the significance of nanotechnology

in healthcare

fuzzy logic system to form a Hybrid Expert System (HES) reaping the advantages of various techniques.

It is a milestone for randomisation to be introduced at tree growth and forest creation. The local prediction accuracies on the leaves are used to select a subset of the test data for actual predictions. The ensemble combines trees and gives a better performance than the individually best performing tree.

By fusing tree-based machine learning with a random order the scientists believe that the symptoms of an ailment from a patient serve as the input vector to diagnose the ailment with the AI model. “There is an urgent need for the development of easily implemented, automatic and effective screening methods. This will help health professionals and inform individuals whether or not they should pursue a formal clinical diagnosis,” says the UJ team.

The good news for South Africa: With the knowledge and experience acquired in the above-mentioned and other recent publications, the UJ team has already started a collaborative project with Charlotte Maxeke Academic Hospital for AI based diagnosis of breast cancer of local patients. UJ is looking to expand this kind of AI work to a much wider scope by providing significant funding to address more common diseases.

The Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR) will have a greater impact on the evolution of global healthcare in the decades to come and nanotechnology would be a major contributor to this.

According to Samuel Oluwatobi Oluwafemi, a Professor in Applied Chemistry at the University of Johannesburg, biotechnologists together with nanotechnologists can discover/fabricate new generation medicine or even a robot programmed to target cancer cells.

“The ultimate goal of the research is to go beyond the laboratory experimental work, to answer questions such as appropriate dosage, delivery system and exposure times that maximise clinical effectiveness while minimising side effects, to increase the clinical acceptance of this technology,” said Prof Samuel Oluwatobi Oluwafemi when he delivered his professorial inaugural address titled ‘How small things can make a big world a better place: The significance of Nano in a Macro world’. He argued that the outcome of this research will provide renewed hope for patients diagnosed with cancer.

Prof Samuel Oluwatobi Oluwafemi


“THIS WILL ALSO IMPROVE THE RATE OF SURVIVAL OF CANCER PATIENTS, NOT FOR JUST THOSE LIVING IN SOUTH AFRICA BUT GLOBALLY AS THE OUTCOME OF THIS RESEARCH WILL LEAD TO EFFECTIVE INTERVENTION IN MEDICAL CARE CAPACITY DEVELOPMENT. Furthermore, this research will provide alternate clinical treatment for cancer to the present chemotherapy, which, when developed into clinical treatment, will advance the economy. Thus, the long-time success of this work will have greater chances of attracting international funding as well as collaborations with pharmaceutical companies,” he said.

Prof Oluwafemi highlighted that the developed superhydrophobic membrane will be used for the desalination and treatment of wastewater via membrane distillation with the aim of going beyond the laboratory experimental work, to calculate energy and cost required for the treatment of various wastewaters such as industrial effluents, home and municipal wastewater in order to increase the commercial acceptance of this technology.

“The world has gone through various industrial revolutions since the 18th century. We are now in the Fourth Industrial Revolution. According to the World Economic Forum, the Fourth Industrial Revolution belongs to “cyber-physical systems” which can merge the capabilities of both human and machine. This is the era where artificial intelligence, genome editing, renewable energy, 3D printing, autonomous vehicles, big data and the Internet of Things can combine the physical, digital and biological worlds.”

He stressed that the Fourth Industrial Revolution will have a greater impact on the evolution of global healthcare in the decades to come and nanotechnology would be a major contributor to this.

“Unlike the current therapies which attack the whole body, nanodrugs can be directed to the tumour in a patient’s body and can be activated upon reaching the target. These nanorobots or nanites carrying nanodrugs will be small enough to enter the human blood stream to perform a wide array of functions such as targeting the cells, delivering the drugs, cleaning arteries, killing viruses and potentially conducting surgery from the inside.”

Prof Oluwafemi concluded: “While previous industrial revolutions modernised the world, we must not forget that our current environmental problems such as pollution, water crisis, and

climate change are their serious consequences. Water scarcity especially has become a key challenge in developing countries like South Africa and India due to industrialisation and an increasing population. The expected gap in global water supply and demand by 2050 is 40%.

Though the Fourth Industrial Revolution could exacerbate existing threats, there is also an opportunity to harness this revolution to address these problems. Emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence combined with advanced sensors can be deployed into water bodies to analyse the quality of water and share the information. This will allow us to see where and how the waterways are contaminated, for instance if they are near to industries that discharge contaminants. Advanced nanomaterials such as quantum dot-composites which can detect the contaminant quickly will open new possibilities for smart sensors and water treatment. For example, a new polymer nanocomposite membrane, combined with AI software, can analyse data from flow and pressure sensors to determine the best water treatment. New types of graphene-based membranes and new technologies such as membrane distillation could revolutionise the desalination market, which has grown steadily over the past several years.”


Primary dysmenorrhea, or menstrual pain, refers to cyclic pain of uterine origin without pelvic pathology. Primary dysmenorrhoea affects 45%-90% of women worldwide, producing a significant negative impact on their quality of life, however only a small percentage of affected women consult a physician about their condition, and many choose to self-medicate. Dysmenorrhoea is more common in young nulliparous females with a family history of dysmenorrhoea; however, psychological stress and lifestyle factors such as cigarette smoking and poor diet also increase the risk of developing this condition. Pharmacological treatments include the oral contraceptive pill and/or non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs; however, these medications may produce numerous side effects. The use of medicinal plants as an alternative treatment for dysmenorrhoea is of growing interest among many women.

UJ researchers Dr Chantelle Nienhuis and Dr Janice Pellow from the Department of Complementary Medicine evaluated the recent evidence on the effectiveness of medicinal plants in the treatment of primary dysmenorrhoea. The findings of this systematic review, published directly

in Complementary Therapies in Medicine, included 22 RCTs published between 2008 and 2016; nine of these studies were placebo-controlled trials and 13 were comparative studies to pharmacological treatment or nutritional supplements. Studies relating to the following medicinal plants were included: ginger, fennel, fenugreek, cinnamon, peppermint, dill, damask rose, lemon balm, yarrow, valerian, thyme, rhubarb, felty germander, noni and wheat germ. Most of the evaluated medicinal plants showed evidence of efficacy in relieving menstrual pain in at least one RCT.

Some medicinal plants are reported to bring relief of menstrual symptoms through their analgesic, anti-spasmodic, prostaglandin inhibiting or anti-inflammatory actions; these may therefore potentially be a suitable alternative to conventional medicines for treating dysmenorrhoea, particularly in cases where these medicines are contraindicated or not well tolerated.

“This study provides information regarding the recent clinical evidence on the use of medicinal plants for the treatment of primary dysmenorrhoea. Promising evidence was found for the efficacy of certain medicinal

From top: Dr Chantelle Nienhuis and Dr Janice Pellow

UJ study reviews evidence on medicinal plants

as alternative treatment for menstrual pain

plants, however the results from these studies need to be interpreted with caution. This current evidence, together with their long-standing historical use, adds to the knowledge base on the use of these medicinal plants, and further large-scale studies are necessary to confirm their beneficial effects, therapeutic dosages, and long-term safety,” according to the researchers.


Being a psychiatric nurse in South African hospitals is not only extremely stressful, but many also have to deal with violence and aggression – from patients and colleagues – on a daily basis.

This has an overt psychological effect on nurses, leaving them feeling uncertain and bewildered and this often leads to absenteeism and even burnout.

Because the nurses stand between medicine, psychiatry and the law, the best actions may not be clear, and guidelines neither consistently applicable nor explicit.

Psychiatric nurses, in particular, run a high risk of being exposed to aggression. They experience aggression from patients as well as colleagues, leaving them open to noticeable negative psychological effects

In a new study, researchers from the Department of Nursing Sciences within the Faculty of Health Sciences at the University of Johannesburg (UJ), found that in a working environment with dysfunctional nurse-to-nurse relationships, stress and aggression in the work environment compromise factors such as low productivity owing to conflicts, recruitment and retention

Prof Marie Poggenpoel: High risk of violence and aggression among health professionals

THE PSYCHIATRIC NURSES REPORTED THAT DIFFERENT TYPES OF AGGRESSION WERE PRESENT IN THEIR WORK ENVIRONMENT, NAMELY VERBAL AND NON-VERBAL AGGRESSION.

challenges, burnout, absenteeism, litigation and rapid staff turnover.

The study was published in the Journal of interdisciplinary Health Sciences.

To assess the extent of this contextual study, the population for this research consisted of psychiatric nursing staff registered with the South African Nursing Council who were employed in an academic psychiatric hospital in Johannesburg.

The researchers used purposive sampling, which is a non-probability sample that is selected based on characteristics of a population and the objective of the study.

The criteria for sampling were as follows: Participants were

professional nurses who were working in an academic psychiatric hospital where the research was conducted and who had been working there uninterruptedly for a minimum period of 24 months.

The psychiatric nurses needed experience in an academic psychiatric hospital to give a valid account of their experiences and to be familiar with the environment in which they work. They had to be able to speak English or Afrikaans.

The UJ team found that the psychiatric nurses experienced aggression as subtle, passive and harmful in a verbal and non- verbal manner.

The psychiatric nurses reported that different types of aggression were present in their work

Prof Marie Poggenpoel


Prof Marie Poggenpoel: High risk of violence and aggression among health professionals

environment, namely verbal and non-verbal aggression.

Verbal aggression was visible in the forms of gossiping, backbiting, snide remarks made to each other, the abuse of language barriers and cultural differences.

The nurses denied direct or physical aggression in their work environment. However, they reported that in selective cases they had had the urge to react at a physical level.

All the psychiatric nurses emphasised the experience of non-verbal aggression in the work environment. Non-verbal aggression manifested in the psychiatric nurses’ reports of feeling ignored and judged by their colleagues.

Prof Marie Poggenpoel and her co-authors observed that education and socialisation at different levels exhibited different values and perceptions of professional identity. This had been observed to create conflict among nurses when they entered the workforce. In multicultural teams, increased levels of relationship conflict were found.

The diversity was related to both process and delegation conflict and affected the communication outcomes, said the researchers.

The importance and effect of violence and aggression in day-

to-day living should not be underestimated. It is assumed that it could have severely harmful psychological consequences in the long term and that it can affect the psychiatric nurses’ self-esteem, social status and happiness.

The importance of nursing staff’s roles and attitudes in the interaction with the psychiatric environment should ultimately strive to create a therapeutic milieu. This implied that the psychiatric nurse’s interpersonal skills play an extremely important role in the creation of such an ideal milieu in the work environment.

There was evidence that the work pertaining to nursing was often stressful and that stress had been identified as one of the reasons for nurses failing to function at an optimum level of effectiveness.

Stress and work environment conflict had a significant effect on the nurses. As a result, nurses might experience physiological, psychological and social challenges that could affect the individual nurse’s self-esteem and self-confidence and which could lead to burnout, said the researchers.

In general, hospital settings, aggression was commonly assumed to be most prevalent in emergency departments, where dealing with aggression is a significant concern.

But the incident reports indicated that events were numerically more common on medical, geriatric and psychiatric wards.

“It is clear that attention should be given to create opportunities for psychiatric nurses to master the management of experienced aggression from colleagues,” said Poggenpoel.

Prof Marie Poggenpoel has been a tenured professor in Psychiatric Nursing Science at the University of Johannesburg since 1989 and is an expert regarding qualitative as well as quantitative research methodologies.

She has published more than 185 articles in international and national journals. She was the supervisor/co-supervisor of more than 142 doctorates and 182 master’s candidates.

In South Africa, she is rated as an established researcher by the National Research Foundation (NRF).

She has received several awards for excellence in research, the most recent awards being the International Nurse Researcher Hall of Fame awarded by Sigma Theta Tau International in July 2013 in Prague and the Women in Science Award in May 2014 in South Africa.


The South African Department of Science and Innovation and the Chinese Ministry of Science and Technology have got together to form a Joint Research Centre (JRC).

The launch event took place on 23 August 2019 at the University of Johannesburg (UJ) Auckland Park Library.

The JRC – Chemical and Environmental Engineering – is co-hosted by the State Key Laboratory of Materials-Oriented Chemical Engineering at NanjingTech, UJ’s Process, Energy and Environmental Technology Station, and the Faculty of Engineering and the Built Environment (FEBE) at UJ.

There are a number of JRCs in the pipeline.

This JRC will focus on the water-energy research-innovation nexus with projects advancing fundamental science, engineering and technology for impact. A key example being the use of membrane technology – a key strength of both universities – for water treatment.

Given UJ’s strategic contextualisation within the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR), the approach is shaped in this way.

This important engagement was facilitated by the University of Johannesburg Confucius Institute and the UJ Interna- tional Office.

Prof Tshilidzi Marwala unveiling the Joint Research Centre with the Chinese Ministry of Science and Technology delegation

SA-China Joint Research Centre on Chemical and Environmental Engineering

THE CENTRE IS FUNDED THROUGH THE TECHNOLOGY INNOVATION AGENCY (TIA) AND WILL FACILITATE COLLABORATION INTERNALLY BETWEEN THE FACULTY OF SCIENCE AND THE FACULTY OF ENGINEERING AND THE BUILT ENVIRONMENT.


UJ researchers receive top honours at 2019 NRF Awards

From top: Prof Thad Metz, Prof Phillip Hallinger, Prof John Maina

Four academics from the University of Johannesburg (UJ) were among the recipients of this year’s National Research Foundation (NRF) top awards in the science and research field.

The NRF hosted its annual awards ceremony in the Western Cape on 12 September 2019, celebrating South African academic and research excellence.

Three academics from UJ were acknowledged for either being A-rated for the first time, or for retaining their A-rating for a further term. They are:

1. Prof Thaddeus Metz from the Department of Philosophy (retained his A-rating for a further term and improve his rating from A2 to A1).

2. Prof Philip Hallinger from the Department of Education Leadership and Management (newly rated, received an A1-rating for the first time).

3. Prof John Maina from the Department of Zoology (retained his A2-rating for a further term).

A-ratings are awarded to researchers who are acknowledged unequivocally by their peers as leading international scholars in their respective fields for the high quality and impact of their recent research outputs.

Additionally, the Research Excellence Award for Next Generation Researchers was awarded to Geaneth Pertunia Mashile from UJ’s Department of Chemical Sciences, for outstanding academic performance by a final-year doctoral student.

Said Prof Saurabh Sinha, UJ’s Deputy Vice-Chancellor: Research and Internationalisation: “Through Professors Metz, Maina and Hallinger, UJ’s work inspires the world in philosophy, respiration and leadership development, respectively. Research is one of the cornerstones of our University and we are fortunate to be associated with such highly skilled individuals who advance South Africa’s growth in a knowledge-based world, for generations to come.’’

The mandate of the NRF is to promote and support research through funding, human resource development

and the provision of the necessary research facilities to enable the creation of knowledge, innovation and development in all fields of science and technology, including indigenous knowledge, thereby contributing to the improvement of the quality of life of all South Africans.

Professor Thaddeus Metz

Prof Metz is originally from the United States, where he received his PhD from Cornell University in 1997. In 2009, he became Professor (Research Focus) at the University of Johannesburg. Recent awards for Prof Metz’s research include: an A1 rating from the South African National Research Foundation (2019-2024); a Special Essay Competition Prize from the Association for the Philosophy of Judaism (2019); a Distinguished Professorship from UJ (2015-2019); and the 4th Distinguished Lecture in African Philosophy at the University of Calabar, Nigeria (2017).

Professor Philip Hallinger

Philip Hallinger is Professor of Educational Management at Chulalongkorn University (Bangkok, Thailand) and Distinguished Visiting Professor at the Faculty of Education in the University of Johannesburg. His scholarly articles, which have achieved more than 16 000 citations, are the most highly cited articles in four different education journals. Prof Hallinger is Chief Co-Editor of the Journal of Educational Administration.

Professor John Maina

Having received his early education in Nairobi and Liverpool, Prof Maina was awarded a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine (DVSc) in 1999, for a thesis entitled Comparative Respiratory Morphology: Functional Design of the Gas Exchangers. A veterinarian by profession, he joined UJ’s Department of Zoology in 2009. Prof Maina’s research interest and activity is in the area of Comparative Functional Respiratory Morphology.

Other A-rated acdemics at UJ, who are still within their rating term are: Prof Jan Kramers, Prof Qingguo Wang, Prof Anthony Onwuegbuzie, Prof Michael Henning and Prof Nic Beukes.


Honorary doctoral degree for activist Kumi Naidoo

Honorary Doctorates

“In Africa this is a moment for us to dream big. As graduates of the finest University, you can in whatever profession you practise play a pivotal role in reshaping the future into one in which hunger, extreme poverty and racism should be distant memories. A future in which every person can fulfil their dreams and contribute to society on an equal basis. I want to challenge you to be that solution; to take responsibility for safeguarding the human rights that we must cherish. We are waiting for you.”

These were the sentiments shared by Dr Kumi Naidoo on Tuesday 23 April 2019 upon receiving an honorary doctoral degree in Humanities as recognition for his contribution to social justice in South Africa.

Says Prof Chris Landsberg, UJ

SARChI Chair: African Diplomacy and Foreign Policy, “UJ cherishes the values of equality and social justice. We are convinced that Kumi Naidoo’s tireless work and fearless activism, and his sacrifices for solidarity, democracy, equitable and sustainable development, and social justice resemble and exemplify UJ’s values. That is why we are proud to award Kumi Naidoo the degree Doctor Honoris Causa in Humanities, and can boldly claim him as an alumnus of the University of critical Pan-African inquiry that seeks to propel Africa into the Fourth Industrial Revolution.”

The celebrated activist is best known for his participation in fighting apartheid in South Africa in the 1970s and 1980s through the Helping Hands Youth Organisation, in which he led global campaigns to end poverty and protect human

rights. In August 2018, Naidoo joined Amnesty International as its ninth Secretary General.

Naidoo has held multiple international leadership roles, and was the first African to head Greenpeace, the international environmental group. Naidoo saw his role as that of an alliance builder and an agent of change. Importantly, he saw the intricate connections between environmental justice, gender equality and human rights.

Dr Naidoo concluded: “This world presents you with vast opportunities and of course also some challenges and responsibilities. These are difficult times for justice and human rights, with battles over natural resources, climate change, rising inequality, increasing movement of people within and across borders, ongoing


crises and armed conflicts and unlawful actions by governments in the name of presenting public order and national security. Africa can be better, South Africa can be better, let’s not settle for anything less than excellence.”

From 1998 to 2008, Kumi Naidoo was Secretary General of Civicus, an international alliance for citizen participation. Recently, he has led the Global Call for Climate

Action, which brings together

environmental, aid, religious and

human rights groups, labour unions,

scientists and others and has

organised mass demonstrations

around climate negotiations.

He was a Visiting Fellow at the

Carnegie UK Trust in 2009; an

Advisory Counsel for the Women’s

Learning Partnership; a Director of

Food and Trees for Africa; Director

of Earth Rights for Africa; and Chairperson of the Partnership for Transparency Fund.

His contribution to civil society has included the advocacy of both local and international issues pertaining to human rights for increased ambitions from governments to cap emissions and vigorously move towards an energy sector based on renewables meant to help humanity avoid catastrophic climate change.

“AFRICA CAN BE BETTER, SOUTH AFRICA CAN BE BETTER, LET’S NOT SETTLE FOR ANYTHING LESS THAN EXCELLENCE.”

Kumi Naido


South Africa and Africa in general are lucky to have you as graduates. Our continent has an acute shortage of scientists. It is said that Africa will need more than one million scientists and engineers in the next decade. The skills and knowledge you have acquired in the various fields of engineering, including mining engineering, chemical engineering and industrial engineering are in critical need.

These were the sentiments shared by Prof Romain Murenzi on Wednesday 24 April 2019 upon receiving an honorary doctoral degree in Engineering as recognition for his achievements and contributions to society.

Said Prof Daniel Mashao, Executive Dean: Faculty of Engineering and the Built Environment (FEBE), UJ, “Prof Murenzi has contributed to the engineering field and in particular his work on Cauchy

wavelets. He is an author of several scientific journals including co-authoring a textbook on two-dimensional wavelets. He has served society in various portfolios and has proved his true passion for the value of education and in transforming lives for the benefit of society.’’

“Drawing attention to his role as Government Minister of Education, Science, Technology and Scientific Research in Rwanda, this is impressive when one considers the progress that the country of Rwanda has made in a very short space of time”, added Prof Mashao.

Said Prof Murenzi, “There’s no doubt that if we could create a million new scientists for Africa in the next decade, or even two decades, that could have a very positive impact. Not only do these PhD scientists do research, but they teach and serve as mentors.

They establish businesses, they provide advice to government or enter public service. They become important links in regional and international networks.”

Prof Murenzi is currently the Executive Director of TWAS (The World Academy of Sciences). He is also active on the Advisory Board of Scientists without Borders, and also on the Scientific Board of UNESCO International Basic Science Programme.

In the citation read on stage during his conferment, Prof Murenzi noted that education, the inclusion of women, changes in policy, the establishment of academies, the development of technology and international cooperation must work in concert to build a robust new generation of problem-solving PhD scientists.

UJ honours RENOWNED PHYSICIST and former Rwandan Science Minister Prof Romain Murenzi

Prof Romain Murenzi


Education is an asset, a tool and a weapon to be used to transform the world for the better. It is the passport to the future: Tomorrow belongs to those who prepare for it today.

These pearls of wisdom came from Prof Philip Leroy Clay, the former Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) Chancellor and Professor of Urban Planning, who – with a standing commendation – accepted an honorary doctoral degree from the University of Johannesburg (UJ) on Tuesday, 21 May 2019.

Said Prof Daniel Mashao, UJ Executive Dean, Faculty of Engineering and the Built Environment: “UJ focuses on the promotion of reflective and critical thinking, novel ways of problem-solving and believes in environmentally sustainable solutions. Prof Clay is widely known for his work in the US housing policy and community-based development and has been involved in several studies that received national attention.

PROF PHILIP CLAY (LEFT) CONGRATULATED ON HIS HONORARY DOCTORATE BY UJ’S VICE-CHANCELLOR AND PRINCIPAL, PROF TSHILIDZI MARWALA

UJ bestows Honorary Doctorate on former MIT Chancellor,

“In a 1987, study commissioned by the Neighbourhood Reinvestment Corp, he identified the market and institutional conditions contributing to the erosion of low-income rental housing and documented the need for a national preservation policy. He later served on the national commission that recommended the policy that became part of the Housing Act of 1990.That is why we are proud to award Philip Clay the degree Doctor Honoris Causa in Engineering.”

The celebrated urbanist served as the Chancellor of MIT for 10 years from 2001. He became the highest-ranking African American official at MIT in the Institute’s 156-year history.

Under Prof Clay’s leadership, MIT saw the number of applications for undergraduate admission double and attracted students of increasing quality, diversity and breadth of achievement.

A driving force behind the Campaign for Students, Clay has helped raise more than $500-million to support future generations of MIT students. Clay also played an important

part in the development of MIT’s international initiatives and global education programmes, including the Cambridge-MIT exchange and the MIT-Portugal Programme.

Prof Clay emphasised to UJ’s new graduates that they have to be grounded and ethical in sustaining a bright future in Africa.

“The road to success is not easy to navigate, you will be tempted to take easy routes but you have to take bold, steady steps to face risks and challenges because we should be remembered for the things we do. The things we do are the most important things of all. They are more important than what we say or what we look like. The things we do outlast our mortality.”

Prof Clay’s interests include organisational capacity in community-based non-profits, as well as the role of anchor institutions. Based on his work on MIT international strategies, he is interested in the increasing role higher education can play in national development planning in less-developed and emerging nations. His work now focuses on higher education in Africa.

Prof Philip L Clay

Prof Philip L Clay


The Centre for Psychological Services and Career Development (PsyCaD) at the University of Johannesburg offers a broad spectrum of psychological and educational services to the wider community.SERVICES OFFERED:Ú Scholastic AssessmentsÚ School Readiness AssessmentsÚ Career Choice AssessmentsÚ Subject Choice AssessmentsÚ Emotional Assessments Ú Psycho-Educational AssessmentsÚ Therapy (Individual – Couples – Family – Group – Play)Ú Psychological Workshops for Schools

and Corporates Available on Request

CONTACT US:011 559 4441 | [email protected]

Major Medical Aids Accepted. Tariff List Available on Request.

www.uj.ac.za/PsyCaDPsyCaD

The Centre for Psychological Services and Career Development (PsyCaD) at the University of Johannesburg offers a broad spectrum of psychological and educational services to the wider community.SERVICES OFFERED:Ú Scholastic AssessmentsÚ School Readiness AssessmentsÚ Career Choice AssessmentsÚ Subject Choice AssessmentsÚ Emotional Assessments Ú Psycho-Educational AssessmentsÚ Therapy (Individual – Couples – Family – Group – Play)Ú Psychological Workshops for Schools

and Corporates Available on Request

CONTACT US:011 559 4441 | [email protected]

Major Medical Aids Accepted. Tariff List Available on Request.

www.uj.ac.za/PsyCaDPsyCaD

The Senior Director of the University of Johannesburg (UJ) Sport, Nomsa Mahlangu, is the new President of the Federation of Africa University Sports (Fasu) – the first woman to hold the position.

She will lead the new Executive Committee of Fasu with the assistance of Uganda’s Peninah Kabenge as the General Secretary and Mercy Lakisa as a Student Representative. In her career, Mahlangu played a pivotal role in various leadership positions such as board member of the FIFA World Cup 2010, Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) 2013, and Championnat Afrique de Nations (CHAN), as well as the South African Football Association National Executive Committee Member and the Chairperson of the OC African Woman’s Championship (AWC) 2010, among other roles.

“This is an exciting time for women across the continent. It’s actually testimony that hard work yields results. I hope this opportunity propels other women to believe in their dreams and ensure that they become a reality,” says Mahlangu.

Prior to joining UJ, Mahlangu was Head of Department of Sport Administration at the Durban University of Technology and Sport Manager at University of the Free State. She holds a BA Honours in Human Movement Science and Bachelor of Leisure Sciences: Event and Facility Management from the University of the Free State.

She has completed various courses and certificates in Sport from the National Sport Council; the

Sport

UJ Sport Senior Director Nomsa Mahlangu the first woman to be elected President of the Federation of Africa University Sports

Free State Sports Academy; the Fluminense Academy in Brazil and Pretoria Technikon.

She served as the Head of Delegation for Team SA Universiade Kazan 2013, a team that won the most medals in the history of South African Student sport, 14 medals to be exact, and has represented South African students in the Federation

Internationale Du Sport congress in Italy in 1997, and in Sweden in 1998. In 2009, Mahlangu was the first woman to be elected in the SAFA executive committee, which led to more women being elected in the next election. She is the recipient of the 2011 CEO Magazine MIW Award Winner and the 2011 Nominee Administrator of the Year SA Sport Award.

“THIS IS AN EXCITING TIME FOR WOMEN ACROSS THE CONTINENT. IT’S ACTUALLY TESTIMONY THAT HARD WORK YIELDS RESULTS. I HOPE THIS OPPORTUNITY PROPELS OTHER WOMEN TO BELIEVE IN THEIR DREAMS AND ENSURE THAT THEY BECOME A REALITY,”

Nomsa Mahlangu


UJ won the Varsity Sevens with 20-0 on 5 October 2019. Even with an early yellow card, resulting with one less player on the field, the Orange team did not flinch and relentlessly kept their opponents at bay.

UJ captain Johan Esterhuizen was ecstatic after the final whistle blew. “To be honest, it still feels a bit unreal and I am lost for words at the final result,” said Esterhuizen after the game.

“Last year we came second to Tuks so we really wanted to rectify that outcome. I am so proud of the guys for the way they stuck to the task during the final and the whole tournament. We fought hard to bring it home, so I must say a big thank you to the whole squad,” said Esterhuizen.

He complimented their opponents, who never gave up trying despite not being able to get on the scoreboard.

“I want to thank the Maties team for their efforts – it was a very tough game in the final.”

Although the Orange Army suffered a big disadvantage with the yellow card early in the game, the UJ defence proved relentless as they kept their opponents at bay.

Despite playing with just six players, it was UJ who were first on the board when Musawenkosi Tshabalala broke through from close to his own 22-metre line and beat several defenders to put them 5-0 ahead.

That was followed by a decisive moment when UJ crossed for a second try during a power play,

which resulted in them taking a 15-0 lead into halftime.

With time running out and the score in UJ’s favour, Odwa Nkunjana settled the matter when he side-stepped three Maties’ players in one of the best tries of the tournament to take the score to 20-0.

Fittingly, Nkunjana was named FNB Player of the Tournament, which he described as a ‘great feeling’. “I am very thankful at receiving this award and we are very excited to have won the tournament,” he said.

On a personal level, he said he had aspirations of playing at the highest level.

“I want to make playing top-quality sevens rugby my goal and my aim. I will just keep working hard all the time,” said Nkunjana.

UJ men’s rugby team wins 2019 Varsity Sevens


had presented under coach George Makena.

The title was a dream come true for UJ star Lance Chikore, who was voted the tournament’s Most Valuable Player.

“I’m so happy because we have been working towards this the whole year and I am very proud of my teammates and what they have put into their games.

“Last year was a tough season for us and this Varsity Basketball has been a hard challenge, but we are just grateful to have come through in the end,” said Chikore.

Chikore said he had urged the team to stay focused until the end.

“I believe everything is about hard work and being strong in the mind. Although they were up, I told my

teammates [we must] just keep our heads up and focus on closing the gap basket by basket,” said Chikore.

Captain Trystan Speck, who described the game as being a tense final, summed up the team’s emotions when he said the result was “just overwhelming”.

“I really have no words for what I’m feeling at the moment,” he said in the post-match interview. “The team has worked really hard throughout the year and this second week of Varsity Basketball was tough, but we managed to come through.

“Congratulations to UP-Tuks for making it a final to remember and I also want to thank all our fans for their fantastic support this year,” said Speck.

No one could stop the Orange Team’s march to victory against the UP-Tuks’ basketball team, whom they defeated 64-57 in the Varsity Basketball final at Wits in Johannesburg on Sunday, 13 October 2019.

The Orange Team of the University of Johannesburg (UJ) were relentless. They showed great determination and surged ahead of their rivals in the last quarter. Trailing 55-50 with just five minutes left, UJ made use of their power play to seize the advantage, staying ahead until the final whistle blew.

And, having won the University Sport South Africa (USSA) title earlier this year, this memorable victory confirmed the Orange Team’s dominant status in basketball.

Coach and UJ mentor, Mandla Ngema, was both delighted and relieved when the match ended.

“It is always difficult to play as favourites because there is a lot of pressure on us and we also put pressure on ourselves. But for the guys to pull it through in the end when we were behind for most of the match is a great feeling.”

Ngema acknowledged the tough challenge which UP-Tuks

UJ crowned 2019 Varsity Basketball

Champions


Pieter du Preez with his young son Pietman. To be a role model for Pietman and a good husband for his wife is what motivates him and pushes him forward.

Pieter du Preez The first quadriplegic to complete the Ironman Triathlon

All his dreams were still there, just slightly changed. He would just have to approach them differently from that day on.

“People all looked at what was taken away from me and what I didn’t have anymore, whereas I really looked at what I still had – all the new things and new opportunities and challenges that I would pursue,” says UJ alumnus Pieter du Preez, C6 quadriplegic and professional para-athlete.

Even as he was lying motionless on the tar after a car knocked him off his bicycle, he was extremely calm and somehow knew that everything was going to be fine.

In 2003, when he was a 23-year old postgraduate student working towards his Honour’s degree in Investment Management at the then RAU, the accident that brought his life to a temporary standstill left him with a broken neck, femur and knee.

“It is a strange thing to explain, but a lot of things happened to me before the accident and it was almost as if I was prepared for what happened on that day. As a Christian, I knew everything was going to be fine as long as I held on to my faith and as long as I kept believing in myself.”

He was always that guy who believed in big dreams, who believed he could get to the top and be the best in the world. There was never any doubt in his mind that as a quadriplegic he could compete in sport as competitively as he did before the accident.

UJ ALUMNUS PIETER DU PREEZ TALKS ABOUT HOW HE OVERCAME THE DEVASTATING INJURIES AFTER BEING KNOCKED OFF HIS BICYCLE BY A CAR TO BECOME A WORLD-RENOWNED PARA-ATHLETE.


Pieter du Preez para-cycling his way into the record books.

Not that there was anything easy about the road ahead. Pieter spent 42 days in intensive care, unable to move. Over the next two years, he regained the use of his wrists, biceps and shoulders and today has 15% of the functionality of an able-bodied person.

As a C6 quadriplegic he doesn’t have triceps, he can’t move his fingers or hands and is completely paralysed from the chest down.

Huge stumbling blocks were waiting to be overcome, but the biggest of these was not physical. It was to convince the people around him, those who were there to help and assist him adapt to his new life, that he could!

“I do need help and I do need people, then as I do now, but in the beginning, I desperately needed them to believe in the possible, as I did. I needed to get them on the journey with me. Instead, it often seemed that my talk about, for instance, how I was going to have to adjust the hand bikes made for paraplegics to work for me, rather inspired those around me to help me out of my ‘denial’ and have a reality check.”

Pieter says once he got others to believe or even just managed to persuade them to join him on his journey a little bit, things started

moving forward a lot faster.

The physical stumbling blocks entailed learning to understand how his body worked.

“People don’t always realise that as a quadriplegic I get spasms, I don’t sweat, I can’t get my blood pressure up. I learned how to catheterise and getting my stomach to work. Once my appendix burst, but because I don’t have normal feeling, for two days I thought I had a nasty stomach bug. Suddenly, I was back in hospital for two months and almost had to restart and regain all my strength from scratch. All these things were the very real stumbling blocks I had to learn about and deal with, not only as a sportsman, but just life in general.”

Through it all, Pieter achieved incredible heights in his private life as well as sport career. He is, however, most proud of the fact that he is, as a C6 quadriplegic, completely independent.

“I can dress myself in my chair and not just on the bed, I can get in and out of the bath, doing my own ablutions such as a visit to the toilet. Small tasks that people tend to take for granted, but that I, as a quadriplegic, am immensely proud of.”

It needs a mention that most people with Pieter’s level of functioning find these tasks almost insurmountable and most cannot achieve that level of independence.

As far as sport goes, that day he became the first quadriplegic to complete a full Ironman triathlon, will forever stand out as his biggest achievement.

“It was all about being the first guy breaking that barrier. To achieve that was incredibly special,” he says.

A secondary achievement closely linked to the Ironman highlight was that other quadriplegics suddenly started looking at possibilities they never thought feasible. Seeing Pieter leading an independent life, they wanted to know how he managed to do it.

“People contacted me to discuss how I dress myself, how I transfer, how I get in and out of a bath. The ripple effect made me feel that I was making a significant impact, not only for me, but for others, too.”

For now, Pieter is looking forward to the Paralympics in Tokyo next year. “Something as crazy or as stupid as becoming the first quadriplegic to swim the English Channel is also not out of the question,” he adds.


Bongiwe Msomi, international netball player and captain of the national team, is the new head coach of the University of Johannesburg’s netball club.

With a track record of more than 100 appearances for the senior netball team, nicknamed the Spar Proteas, and having represented South Africa at the highest level, Msomi brings a wealth of experience to guide UJ’s fortunes in this sporting code. She has been capped 104 times for the senior national team, played in three league seasons in England and one in Australia.

Born and raised in the township of Hammarsdale near Durban, KwaZulu-Natal, Msomi completed her matric at Luthayi High School in 2005.

It was by chance that the young Msomi got into the sport. She went to watch a netball practice and when they realised they were a player short, they called

Proteas’ captain Bongiwe Msomi is the new head coach of UJ Netball

do for others through the sport. I am really excited for what lies ahead,” says Msomi.

Msomi believes that passion, leadership skills, valuable knowledge and experience, confidence, fairness, and time management make a good coach. She plans to use her experience as a netball player to improve the UJ Netball squad’s performances.

“I have quite a fair experience that can help the UJ Netball team to do even better than it does now. Being the Spar Proteas captain and having been coached by Norma Plummer – and with all the international experiences – I believe that I have a lot to offer and win trophies with the Orange Team. This will be an exciting step not only for me, but also for the ladies I will be working with and for the University of Johannesburg,” Msomi says.

She has worked with the UJ Team at a few training sessions and the women show great potential to give a competitive edge against other universities.

“The ladies are keen to learn, we already have two teams that take part in the USSA [University Sport South Africa] competitions; that for me is a great sign. Additionally, the internal residence league and other netball events can help us identify our strength and quality players. We have exciting plans in place to ensure competitiveness and an ongoing development for UJ netball.

“We will definitely not be a university netball team adding numbers to the various competitions; we are going to be a competitive university and a well-respected brand in the netball code. Our culture and how we do things have to ooze excellence. We, like all the other universities, are capable of being the best and we will be,” says Msomi.

on Msomi to fill in. After some initial hesitation about her ability, Msomi soon adopted netball as her new passion.

That was the start of a career that would take her around the world representing her country while also securing contracts to play professionally in both England and Australia.

She played for Wasps Netball in the Vitality Netball Superleague in Australia this year, finishing second. She was captain of the Spar Proteas

team that finished in fourth position in this year’s World Netball Cup in Liverpool.

She completed a national diploma in Sport Management in 2012 at the Durban University of Technology (DUT). Over the years, she has worked as an ambassador for the Girls’ Only Project, an initiative that empowers women and girls through sport. She also founded the Bongi Msomi Netball Project (BMNetball), which aims to create a more equal sporting landscape for women within South Africa and across the African continent by focusing on research, workshops and advocacy for women and girls in sport.

Msomi made the transition from a player to coach effortlessly.

“I have always been a netball player and a coach for as long as I can remember. I breathe and live sport; netball is a platform for me to exude my God-given talent. Now I have an awesome opportunity as the UJ netball coach to showcase what I can

Bongiwe Msomi


TEDx and UJ - Reimagining the future

Going into the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR) should not be a scary concept. Instead, the convergence of humans and machines is important and should be embraced.

So said Prof Tshilidzi Marwala, UJ’s Vice-Chancellor and Principal. He was speaking at the inaugural TEDx Talk in August 2019, at the Auckland Park Kingsway Campus Library and Information Centre, at which experts across different disciplines shared insights on opportunities and challenges for this and future generations.

The aim was to stimulate thinking on entrepreneurship, enrolling in multidisciplinary courses and

inspiring new ideas on innovation in the 4IR era.

TEDx is an offshoot of the hugely popular Technology, Entertainment and Design (TED) Talks, an international movement to engender a deeper understanding of our world. It’s about sparking conversations that change attitudes, lives, and our world.

UJ’s library partnered with TEDx to organise high-octane, community-driven TED Talks to showcase the most fascinating thinkers and leaders. Going forward, this platform will bring together experts from various sectors for an exciting day of presentations and discussions that will inspire new ideas and opportunities across

all disciplines. The first UJ TEDx Talk was themed “Reimagining our present and redefining the future”.

Other speakers included Prof Maria Frahm-Arp (Executive Director: UJ Library), Dr Demilade Fayemiwo (engineer and water conservation consultant), Boniswa Madikizela (chartered accountant and senior lecturer, Department of Accountancy, UJ), Ebenhaezer Dibakwane (two-time Savannah Comic’s Choice Award-winning comedian and a South African Film and Television Awards-nominated writer), and Thabo Molefe – popularly known as Tbo Touch (radio host and entrepreneur).

Speaking on the benefits of 4IR, Marwala said that rational decision

“THE CONVERGENCE OF HUMANS AND MACHINES IS IMPORTANT. SO, LET US NOT BE AFRAID OF TECHNOLOGY, WE NEED TO EMBRACE IT,” SAID PROF MARWALA, ADDING THAT PEOPLE NEEDED TO STUDY SUBJECTS THEY ARE PASSIONATE ABOUT.


making in machines is crucial for the benefit of human beings. Although 4IR will make some jobs obsolete, it is also going to change the nature of jobs people know now and different new jobs will emerge.

To be fit for future jobs, present and upcoming graduates needed to take courses that are multidisciplinary to skill themselves in different fields, Marwala said.

“The convergence of humans and machines is important. So, let us not be afraid of technology, we need to embrace it,” he said, adding that people needed to study subjects they are passionate about.

Frahm-Arp also shared insights on how the use of technology in the university’s library had helped staff improve their customer care service when dealing with students.

“Our staff can now shelve books faster and better and help students find books at a touch of a button. We see this 4IR as an ‘information revolution’ – this means that with the information accessible via our digital devices, we are able to solve problems by being creative and choosing our own pathways to learn,” said Frahm-Arp.

Fayemiwo highlighted the impor-tance of empowering women in career fields that are male dominated. There are only 29.1% of

female scientists in fulltime and part-time jobs.

“Institutions that don’t train their female professionals perpetuate the narrative that women occupy executive positions because of affirmative action. Also, institutions have to confront a culture of harassment in their spaces. A woman can be a successful scientist whether she is married or not,” said Fayemiwo, citing her difficult journey as a postgraduate student in the sciences.

Madikizela, a qualified chartered accountant, said that education is important for changing people’s livelihoods and families. She said that although the 4IR was important, “it is not about the technological tools it offers to people, it is the belief systems that people have to employ to drive them to achieve their goals”, she said.

Dibakwane cited the social and class differences among South Africans, saying that the inequalities that exist prohibited certain race groups from fair economic participation.

Tbo Touch spoke about the challenges that South African entrepreneurs endure because of not owning and controlling the value chain.

“With the buying power black people have, we still can’t control the economic power. Our economy is run from the back end. The celebrities that are seen as owning brands in South Africa benefit less from the value chain because they do not own the means of production,” he said.

“If South Africans were to emerge out of the economic problems, leaders should not use the word ‘transformation’ loosely. We should confront the policies; we cannot afford to have one sector deciding what happens to us,” he said.

Prof Tshilidzi Marwala


Every year the Mail & Guardian publishes a list of 200 exceptional and notable young people under the age of 35 in its “200 Young South Africans” list. This year, the University of Johannesburg (UJ) is proud to have 17 of its graduates featured on this list. The names were announced at a gala event on Thursday, 27 May 2019, in Sandton.

To be featured on the list is a great feat, as many of those who appeared previously have gone on to achieve great things and become influencers in various fields, on the national and global stage. UJ Vice-Chancellor and Principal Prof Tshilidzi Marwala is one of those, having featured in the 2005 inaugural awards. There is also his former doctoral student, Msizi Khoza, Director of Corporate and Investment Banking at Absa and also now on the Executive Committee of the UJ Convocation, and Fulufhelo Nelwamondo, Executive Director of Modelling and Digital Science at the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research.

This year, the list was published in partnership with Nedbank and eNCA.

The following UJ graduates

featured in the Top 200 list:

• Moletsi Taiwe

• Dr Melissa Card

• Dr Kapil Moothi

• Dr Tebogo Mashifana

• Dr Mpho Tshivhase

• Engel-Angel Nefuri

• Dr Phumulani Msomi

• D Philiswa Nomngongo

• Humna Malik

• Sizwe Mkwanazi

• Bhaso Ndzendze

• Mpho Raborife

• Maanda Tshifularo

• Sibusiso Bakana

• Rendani Mbuvha

• Gugulethu Mfuphi

• Kanyisani Nkosi

• Zama Khanyile

• Nipho Msibi

• Vusisiwe Ngcobo

• Dr Aurelia Alvina Williams

• Yanga Chicco Tekane

• Keith Tinashe Katyora

• Sorena Shifa

• Palesa “Deejay” Paulina Sebodu Manaleng

Strong representation of

UJ Alumni in the

2019 Mail & Guardian 200 Young South Africans

Mail Guardian&AFRICA’S BEST READ


UJ takes action against

violenceTHE STATISTICS LIST 36 731 SEXUAL OFFENCES, INCLUDING RAPE AND ASSAULT, AND THE MURDER OF 2 639 WOMEN.


Women and girls are not merely human chattels to be used, abused and even killed. But too often in South Africa that’s exactly what happens.

The University of Johannesburg (UJ) is gravely concerned about the spate of GBV in the country, which seems to be escalating at an alarming rate. And that’s just the reported cases – what about the thousands of others who do not have a voice?

Recent horrific cases include Uyinene Mrwetyana, Leighandre Jegels and Janika Mallo.

Mrwetyana, a 19-year old University of Cape Town student, was raped and killed by a 42-year-old Post Office worker. Boxing champ Jegels – affectionately called Baby Lee

– was killed by her policeman ex-boyfriend against whom she had got a protective order. Fourteen-year old Mallo was raped and her body was found with her head bashed in in her grandmother’s yard.

Police recorded 177 520 crimes against women in the 2017/18 financial year that ended in March. The statistics list 36 731 sexual offences, including rape and assault, and the murder of 2 639 women.

UJ condemned the prevalent attacks on women and girls, saying such violence robbed women and girls of their futures and harmed families, communities, societies and institutions across generations.

The University said this was unacceptable, and indeed abhorrent, that women were scared of simply walking in the streets.

It said that even though the government had taken measures to develop laws, policies and programmes to respond to GBV, it remained one of the most prevalent human-rights violations in the country.

“We believe that effective prosecution of perpetrators is an important deterrent that must be

reinforced. GBV creates a climate of fear by victimising instead of empowering women and girls.”

Unfortunately, it is not just GBV that is rife in South Africa. The country came under the harsh glare of the international community recently for the flare-up of violence and looting in Gauteng and other parts of the country.

In the latest incident people were assaulted and their businesses looted in the Johannesburg CBD and surrounding suburbs, striking fear among residents and businesspeople alike.

UJ described xenophobia as shameful. “The looting and assaults of people just because they were not born in South Africa can never be justified and amount to hate crime. Xenophobic violence undermines the rule of law and must be condemned in the strongest terms possible.”

The University added its voice to the national call to stop all acts of violence, intolerance and xenophobia.

“In South Africa, where foreigners are easy targets, we need to exercise caution and act with restraint, even amid the social and economic problems we face. It

GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE (GBV) IS AN EVER-RECURRING SCOURGE IN THE COUNTRY. GIRLS CAN’T PLAY OUTSIDE. WOMEN NO LONGER FEEL SAFE.


cannot be that whenever people are faced with challenges they find it convenient to target migrants for attacks.”

UJ called on ordinary people and leaders to desist from making inflammatory statements that incite violence by blaming local economic conditions on migrants.

Prof Adekeye Adebajo, Director of the UJ’s Institute for Pan-African Thought and Conversation, was in Nigeria when the most recent xenophobic attacks took place.

In an opinion piece published in Business Day, he said he had a sense of déjà vu when he watched South African mobs on television looting and attacking shops owned by Nigerians and other Africans. “We have been here before. In March 2017, South African vigilantes burned and looted scores of homes and businesses belonging to Nigerians in Rosettenville, Mamelodi, and Atteridgeville, which they alleged were drug dens and brothels. The flames of these xenophobic attacks had been fanned, he said, by prejudiced politicians, whose demonisation and dehumanisation of migrants made it easier for mobs to attack them.

Adebajo said xenophobia was widespread in South African society from politics to business to academia. These frequent attacks on fellow Africans in South Africa − including maiming and burning people alive − seem to represent an area of South African “exceptionalism” on the continent.

The attacks in Tembisa, Alexandra, Hillbrow, Cleveland, Jeppestown, Malvern, Germiston, and the Johannesburg and Tshwane central business districts, resulted in eight deaths, scores injured, and hundreds of foreign-owned shops burned and looted, he said.

“AT UJ, WE RECOGNISE THE INTELLECTUAL AND CULTURAL CONTRIBUTION THAT STUDENTS AND SCHOLARS FROM ABROAD MAKE TO OUR UNIVERSITY AND SOCIETY AT LARGE, AND WE REMAIN STEADFAST IN PROVIDING A SAFE ENVIRONMENT FOR ALL OUR STAFF AND STUDENTS. LET US EXERCISE THE SPIRIT OF UBUNTU.”

On 16 September during Diversity Week, UJ held a series of protest walks on each of the four campuses to show solidarity with the rest of the country and heed the call to end all forms of violence.

The aim of the walks was to symbolise how the institution was moving progressively towards the fight against discrimination, xenophobia, CBV and other forms of violence.

• If you wish to report any incident, please contact Protection Services on 011 559 2555 / 7609

• You may also download the free Namola safety app: https://www.namola.com/download

• Additionally, our Centre for Psychological Services and Career Development offers assistance primarily to students (and to staff in times of crises). Its 24-hour Crisis Line is 082 054 1137.


The University of Johannesburg (UJ) is leading the way by producing the highest number of successful African chartered accountants (CAs).

This was reaffirmed by the 92.3% overall pass rate in the June 2019 Initial Test of Competence (ITC) of the South African Institute of Chartered Accountants (Saica). The results were released on Friday, 16 August 2019, reaffirming UJ as a leader in accounting education in South Africa.

The ITC is the first of two professional examinations which candidate CAs are required to pass to register with Saica. The result tables compare the performance of all universities offering Saica-accredited degrees. The ITC is written in January and again in June to give prospective CAs the opportunity to pass the first of Saica’s qualifying examinations.

Following the June results, UJ now has an overall pass rate of 92.3% for the 2019 ITC cohort and once again produced the highest number of successful African candidates of all residential universities nationwide. The results confirm UJ’s leadership position in transforming the accounting profession in South Africa with 155 African candidates passing the Saica ITC exams in 2019. Saica has acknowledged the significant role that UJ has played in the Thuthuka ITC Repeat programme offered to African and coloured candidates at all universities, with a pass rate of 66% compared with the national pass rate of 38%.

UJ continues to contribute towards the growth of the accounting profession with a total number of 278 students passing the Saica ITC exams in 2019. This represents the second-largest number of successful candidates of all residential universities.

“In an ever-changing, dynamic environment, our Accountancy @UJ team is always looking for innovative ways to teach and learn. Our programmes are distinctly focused on the development

UJ continues to lead South African universities in transforming the CA profession

of well-rounded individuals by preparing graduates to be ethical and critical thinkers and innovative enablers in the Fourth Industrial Revolution,” says Prof Ben Marx, Head of the Department of Accountancy at UJ.

“UJ celebrates the success of its candidates in the 2019 Saica ITC. The results are testimony to the success of the UJ accountancy programme and the hard work put in by both the lecturing team and the students. The department prides itself as being at the forefront of the transformation of accounting education in South Africa. Accordingly, we are extremely proud to have, over the years, consistently been producing the highest number of African students of residential universities in the annual Saica ITC exams. As we contribute to the growth of the accounting profession, our key focus areas tie in with the national imperatives of addressing skills shortage and nation building.”

FOLLOWING THE JUNE RESULTS, UJ NOW HAS AN OVERALL PASS RATE OF 92.3% FOR THE 2019 ITC COHORT AND ONCE AGAIN PRODUCED THE HIGHEST NUMBER OF SUCCESSFUL AFRICAN CANDIDATES OF ALL RESIDENTIAL UNIVERSITIES NATIONWIDE.

Prof Ben Marx, Head of the Department of Accountancy at UJ


There is an underinvestment in the African evidence ecosystem in the relationship and collaboration-based organisations and initiatives. The complexity of these challenges and the great potential for meaningful change highlight the need for greater awareness of related activities and of opportunities for collaboration. This calls for better coordinated advocacy for evidence and development of relevant capacities,” she said.

As the only continental evidence network, spanning 40 countries and more than 20 African

governments, AEN is thus a leader internationally.

“As a continent-wide network spanning the major stakeholder groups in evidence-informed decision-making, the AEN has the potential to bring key players together and to provide a neutral space where norms and practices can be jointly discussed and set as a community. It is encouraging to see the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation investing in the University. This investment will translate our advances into socioeconomic gains for the country and the region,” Prof Stewart said.

UJ receives million dollar cash boost

TOWARDS POVERTY and inequality reduction in Africa

The University of Johannesburg (UJ) is $1-million richer. The University’s Africa Evidence Network (AEN) received the windfall from the Hewlett Foundation. The money was allocated to UJ as part of AEN’s efforts to reduce poverty and inequality in Africa.

Said Prof Ruth Stewart, chairperson of UJ’s AEN: “Poverty and inequality are complex and profound challenges in Africa for which shared and collaborative solutions, using high-quality evidence, are required. This groundbreaking deal will enable the AEN to support evidence-informed decision-making, increasing the effectiveness of policies and their implementation. It will help reduce waste and increase accountability and transparency.”

Prof Stewart recognises that thousands of individuals and hundreds of organisations are working to develop the use of evidence in decision making across the continent but that obstacles, such as isolation, a lack of understanding of what works, and a limited coherence across the evidence ecosystem, all hamper the needed results.

“The need for stronger relationships and greater collaboration on a system level are not prioritised.

THE COMPLEXITY OF THESE CHALLENGES AND THE GREAT POTENTIAL FOR MEANINGFUL CHANGE HIGHLIGHT THE NEED FOR GREATER AWARENESS OF RELATED ACTIVITIES AND OF OPPORTUNITIES FOR COLLABORATION.

Picture credit: Lauren Graham, Centre for Social Development in Africa

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7 Advanced Diploma in People Performance Management

BDegree HRM BCom Industrial Psychology

6 Extended Diploma in Human Resource Management

Diploma Human Resource Management

IPPM STUDIES TO PUT YOU ON THE ROAD TO SUCCESSWe live and work in challenging times, which requires people professionals who are outstanding leaders, both professionally and organisationally. The mission of the Department of Industrial Psychology and People Management, University of Johannesburg, is to develop outstanding people professionals who are fully equipped to rise and meet these challenges. The Department off ers studies in three programmes: Industrial Psychology, Human Resource Management and Leadership, all designed to prepare students for a radically diff erent future.Our trail-blazing postgraduate education and research is focused, nationally and internationally relevant, and at the cutting edge of people management, ensuring you emerge with everything you need to become a leader in your fi eld.

CONTINUING EDUCATION PROGRAMMES: ACADEMY@WORKLeadership Development Academy Professional Development

AcademyHuman Resource

Management AcademyVocational Development

Academy

Integrated Leadership Development Programmes (Emerging, Junior, Senior and Executive)

Practical Programme in Psychometry

Best Practice Programme for HR Professionals

Diploma in HRD

Just-in-Time Senior Leadership Capacity Building

Human Resources Business Partner Programme

Higher Certifi cate in HRD

Organisational Eff ectiveness Professional Development Programme

Trade Union Learning Practitioners

Talent Management Professional Development Programme

If you are interested in any of these qualifi cations, please contact any of the following administrative co-ordinators:• Undergraduate studies (Industrial Psychology and HRM):

Akwande Masondo, email: [email protected]• Extended Diploma and Diploma in HRM: Grace Nkwanyana,

email: [email protected] • Honours qualifi cations (Industrial Psychology and HRM):

Stephan Ferreira, email: [email protected]• Masters and PhD in Industrial Psychology: Elmarie Stapelberg,

email: [email protected]• Masters and PhD in HRM; HRD; Leadership Performance and Change;

Leadership in Emerging Economies; Personal and Professional Leadership; Leadership Coaching: Amanda Ferreira, email: [email protected]

• Continuing Education Programmes: Agnes Maluka, email: [email protected]

Application closing date: before 30 September each year

www.uj.ac.za/studyatUJ/Pages


NQF level

Programme in Human Resource Management

Programme in Industrial Psychology

Programme in Leadership

ONLINE OFFERING

7 Advanced Diploma in People Performance Management BDegree in HRM

CURRICULAR OFFERING (CONTACT)

Doctoral Programmes

10 PhD HRM/HRD/ Employment Relations

PhD Strategic Human Resource Management

PhD Industrial Psychology PhD Leadership

Masters Programmes

9 Masters in HRM/HRD/ Employment Relations

Masters in Strategic HRM Masters in Industrial Psychology

Masters in Personal and Professional Leadership

Masters Leadership in Emerging Economies

Masters in Leadership Coaching

Honours Programmes

8 BA/BCom Honours Human Resource Management BA/BCom Honours Industrial Psychology

Undergraduate Programmes

7 Advanced Diploma in People Performance Management

BDegree HRM BCom Industrial Psychology

6 Extended Diploma in Human Resource Management

Diploma Human Resource Management

IPPM STUDIES TO PUT YOU ON THE ROAD TO SUCCESSWe live and work in challenging times, which requires people professionals who are outstanding leaders, both professionally and organisationally. The mission of the Department of Industrial Psychology and People Management, University of Johannesburg, is to develop outstanding people professionals who are fully equipped to rise and meet these challenges. The Department off ers studies in three programmes: Industrial Psychology, Human Resource Management and Leadership, all designed to prepare students for a radically diff erent future.Our trail-blazing postgraduate education and research is focused, nationally and internationally relevant, and at the cutting edge of people management, ensuring you emerge with everything you need to become a leader in your fi eld.

CONTINUING EDUCATION PROGRAMMES: ACADEMY@WORKLeadership Development Academy Professional Development

AcademyHuman Resource

Management AcademyVocational Development

Academy

Integrated Leadership Development Programmes (Emerging, Junior, Senior and Executive)

Practical Programme in Psychometry

Best Practice Programme for HR Professionals

Diploma in HRD

Just-in-Time Senior Leadership Capacity Building

Human Resources Business Partner Programme

Higher Certifi cate in HRD

Organisational Eff ectiveness Professional Development Programme

Trade Union Learning Practitioners

Talent Management Professional Development Programme

If you are interested in any of these qualifi cations, please contact any of the following administrative co-ordinators:• Undergraduate studies (Industrial Psychology and HRM):

Akwande Masondo, email: [email protected]• Extended Diploma and Diploma in HRM: Grace Nkwanyana,

email: [email protected] • Honours qualifi cations (Industrial Psychology and HRM):

Stephan Ferreira, email: [email protected]• Masters and PhD in Industrial Psychology: Elmarie Stapelberg,

email: [email protected]• Masters and PhD in HRM; HRD; Leadership Performance and Change;

Leadership in Emerging Economies; Personal and Professional Leadership; Leadership Coaching: Amanda Ferreira, email: [email protected]

• Continuing Education Programmes: Agnes Maluka, email: [email protected]

Application closing date: before 30 September each year

www.uj.ac.za/studyatUJ/Pages

UJALUMNICONNECTAlumni Connect allows you to re-connect with UJ graduatesand use the trusted UJ community to find a mentor or to offermentorship.

Re-connectFind fellow graduates and stay in touch.

Expand your networkAdvance your career through alumni working in industry.

MentorshipsOffer to act as a mentor or look for a mentor.

www.uj.ac.za/alumni


school of tourism and hospitality marks 50th anniversary: 1969 - … · 2020. 2. 5. · 2019...

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