The 50^th anniversary of the first biological and geological expedition to Marion and the Prince Edward Islands in 1965/66 will be celebrated with the launch of Prof. Brian Huntley's personal narrative of his 15 months on Marion Island.

Prof. Huntley, who was only 20 years old at the time, is an internationally respected conservationist with more than fifty years' experience of field research management across Southern Africa.

His book, Exploring a Sub-Antarctic Wilderness, is the first book to be published by the Antarctic Legacy of South Africa (ALSA) project,  based at Stellenbosch University (SU), as part of what is hoped will in time become a valuable series of publications about the history of South Africa's legacy "down south".

According to the publishers, the book is a personal narrative of "the challenges, frustrations and unmatched excitement of working on a remote island wilderness before the era of accurate maps, pathways, field huts, digital cameras, the internet and many other modern conveniences".

The publication launch will take place on 24 May 2016 at the Department of Botany and Zoology at SU. For more information, contact Ms Ria Olivier at riaolivier@sun.ac.za

Background

Since South Africa annexed the Prince Edward Islands in 1948, South African researchers have been undertaking regular expeditions to the Antarctic Continent, the Prince Edward Islands and Gough Island. The Antarctic Legacy of South Africa (ALSA) project is funded by the National Research Foundation (NRF) as part of the South African National Antarctic Programme. The project aims to preserve the rich human history of the expeditions conducted over the past 70 years.

Lights, camera, action! Stellenbosch University (SU) has launched a series of documentary films that showcases the personal stories of current and former Matie students and their experiences.

The series, titled Always a Matie/Altyd 'n Matie, aims to address some of the curiosities of alumni regarding their alma mater and to explore a central question of "What does being a Matie mean to you?".

Says Karen Bruns, SU's Senior Director of Development and Alumni Relations: "Stellenbosch University is synonymous with academic excellence and innovation, picturesque campuses, well-equipped buildings and vibrant student communities. But what are the lived experiences of current and former students? How have things changed and do we still deliver well-rounded graduates who are on a path to become captains of industry?

"We decided to use the medium of film to explore these questions and enlisted the help of both older and more recent alumni, as well as current students, to tell their stories," she explains.

The first short films in the Always a Matie series specifically look at six areas, namely bursaries, disability, sport, innovation, student leadership, and the arts, and give alumni and current students the opportunity to share what impact the University has had on their lives.

The films feature SU's Rector and Vice-Chancellor, Prof Wim de Villiers, together with recent graduates of the Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Wandile and Wanele Ganya; Melanie Verwoerd, a student leader during the 1980s and former MP, diplomat, and director of UNICEF Ireland and Axolile Qina, current chairperson of SU's Student Representative Council; world champion Paralympian Ilse Hayes, and artist Louise Gelderblom, to name but a few.

These films will be placed on our Alumni YouTube channel , and we'll also share them on Facebook and Twitter .  You may also request a copy of the DVD of all six films by emailing alumni@sun.ac.za.

• Each of the Maties featured in the series thus far generously shared their journey with us and we invite you to suggest other stories  that demonstrate what it means to be a Matie.
  

"For many years, I have been helping breast cancer patients with my hands," says Dr Karin Baatjes, a surgeon with the Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences (FMHS). "But this year I am going to do it with my feet!"

An avid runner, Baatjes, who recently turned 42, decided to run a full marathon (42.2km) to raise R42 000 for Reach for Recovery's Ditto Project that provides external prostheses to women who have undergone mastectomies due to breast cancer.

"I want to combine my two passions in life, surgery and running, for a good cause," says Baatjes who has also been a breast cancer surgeon at Tygerberg Hospital for 11 years. She will be running the West Coast marathon on Saturday 23 April 2016.

"The Ditto Project enables women from all backgrounds to regain their femininity after a mastectomy by providing them with silicone external prostheses – something not all women can afford."

Reach for recovery is an international breast cancer support group, run by breast cancer survivor volunteers that offer emotional and practical support to patients in both state and private health services around the country.

The project has already raised more than R20 000 from local and international donors. "It is made possible by the goodwill and kind heartedness of donors," says Baatjes.

Last year she raised R54 000 to buy rain jackets and socks for 1200 pupils at Rosendal Primary School in Delft, Cape Town.

You can follow her on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter or making a donation here.

During March 2016, Prof Billy Boshoff attended a Rilem workshop on the creep of cracked fibre reinforced concrete (FRC) in Valencia, Spain. This is an important research field for the Unit for Construction Materials (UCM) as Prof Boshoff was the first to publish about the phenomenon in tension. The workshop consisted of 20 presentations with participants from 16 different countries. Prof Boshoff's contributions were two papers about the mechanisms causing this additional creep on the single fibre level, for both steel and synthetic fibres respectively.

A Rilem Technical Committee 261-CCF named Creep behaviour in Cracked Sections of Fibre Reinforced Concrete was created two years ago and most of the participants of the workshop are also members of this committee. The aim of the committee is to create a State-of-the-Art Report and also produce some guidelines on how the creep should be included in the design of structural concrete containing fibres. To reach this goal an inter-laboratory study is currently underway where flexural and tensile creep tests are done on cracked FRC in laboratories across the world. UCM is also taking part in this study.

The next meeting of the Rilem technical committee will be at the Befib Conference in September 2016 in Vancouver, Canada and UCM will be represented.

​​The UCM proudly graduated three PhD students at the recent 2016 March graduation ceremony. The students are James Olawuyi, Pieter Nieuwoudt and Riaan Combrinck. James conducted work on the mechanical properties of high-performance concrete with superabsorbent polymers, while Pieter worked on the time-dependent behaviour of cracked steel fibre reinforced concrete and Riaan on the cracking of plastic concrete in slab-like elements. All three students were supervised by Prof Billy Boshoff over the past four to five years. The ceremony was made even more special with the graduation of another eight fellow PhD Civil Engineering students, setting a new record of eleven PhDs for Civil Engineering at one graduation ceremony.  

From left to right: Dr James Olawuyi, Dr Riaan Combrinck, Prof Billy Boshoff, Dr Pieter Nieuwoudt

During March 2016, Prof Billy Boshoff attended a Rilem workshop on the creep of cracked fibre reinforced concrete (FRC) in Valencia, Spain. This is an important research field for the Unit for Construction Materials (UCM) as Prof Boshoff was the first to publish about the phenomenon in tension. The workshop consisted of 20 presentations with participants from 16 different countries. Prof Boshoff's contributions were two papers about the mechanisms causing this additional creep on the single fibre level, for both steel and synthetic fibres respectively.

A Rilem Technical Committee 261-CCF named Creep behaviour in Cracked Sections of Fibre Reinforced Concrete was created two years ago and most of the participants of the workshop are also members of this committee. The aim of the committee is to create a State-of-the-Art Report and also produce some guidelines on how the creep should be included in the design of structural concrete containing fibres. To reach this goal an inter-laboratory study is currently underway where flexural and tensile creep tests are done on cracked FRC in laboratories across the world. UCM is also taking part in this study.

The next meeting of the Rilem technical committee will be at the Befib Conference in September 2016 in Vancouver, Canada and UCM will be represented.

​James Seccombe (20), Charlene Erlank (19), Jean-mari du Plessis (19) and Willem Erasmus (19), members of the Maties Judo Club, will travel to Port Elizabeth this weekend to participate in the Commonwealth Games.

James (second dan, black belt) is a BCom Management Accounting student in his third year, Jean-mari is studying BSc Life Sciences (2nd year), Charlene is also studying BCom Management Accounting (2nd year) and Willem is an Accounting student in his second year.

They are nervous but very excited to take part in the competition and hope to bring home some medals.

The Division of Physiotherapy recently launched its 50-year celebration with the theme: "Moving forward together".

"Movement is our core business and exercise medicine is an important aspect of health," said Dr Marianne Unger, a senior lecturer at the Division of Physiotherapy at Stellenbosch University's Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences (FMHS).

The head of the division, Prof Susan Hanekom, highlighted the substantial contribution the unit has made to the delivery of quality health care over the past 50 years.

"For us to move forward together, we have to look back at the past," said Hanekom, highlighting some of the unit's many achievements over the last half century. 

The Division of Physiotherapy at Stellenbosch University was established in 1966 by Moira van Oord. Since then a total of 1,425 physiotherapists have graduated from the division, and an additional 93 masters and five PhD qualifications were achieved.

Prof Jimmy Volmink, dean of the FMHS, congratulated the division on this milestone, and ascribed the unit's success over the last five decades to strong leadership.

"There is no question that the Division of Physiotherapy will continue to go forward," said Volmink.

As part of its 50 year celebration the division has launched a Legacy Fund that will give financial assistance to needy physiotherapy students. Various events have been scheduled throughout the year to raise money for the fund.

• ​​Photo: Profs Jimmy Volmink (Dean: FMHS), Susan Hanekom (Head of the Division of Physiotherapy), Usuf Chikte (Executive Head of the Department of Interdisciplinary Health Sciences) and Marietjie de Villiers (Vice Dean: Education) with an energetic group of third-year students who call themselves the Army Cats that performed at the launch.
  

The Department of Journalism at Stellenbosch University (SU) is pleased to announce that the Mandy Rossouw Bursary for 2016 has been awarded to Ms Nation Nyoka (26), a BA Honours Journalism student at the University.

The bursary, to the value of R40 000, was instituted in 2013 by friends and colleagues of the late journalist, Mandy Rossouw, and is awarded to a female BA Honours Journalism student with an interest in politics. The bursary goes towards covering class fees of the recipient.

In awarding the bursary, the selection panel said that Nation “impressed and charmed” them “from the word go”.  “We all believe you will carry the Mandy mantle with confidence and distinction.”

Nation hails from Johannesburg and completed an undergraduate degree in Media Studies at Rhodes University. “I am very humbled,” said Nation. “I hope I can live up to the journalistic integrity that Mandy Rossouw set as a precedent.” She said she hopes to leave a similar long-lasting impression on the political journalistic sphere.

Mandy, an alumna of the Department of Journalism, is well-known as a renowned political reporter and the first journalist who wrote about the Nkandla saga. She passed away at the age of 33 in March 2013.

The 2016 selection panel included, amongst others, Waldimar Pelser (editor-in-chief, Rapport), Adriaan Basson (editor: News24), Ferial Haffajee (editor: City Press) and Mandy’s sister, Megan Rossouw.

The previous recipient is Ms S’thembile Cele, a journalist at City Press. The bursary was not awarded in 2015.

​With three wins, A Doll's House together with the soothing voice of the Princess of Africa, the SU Woordfees celebrated this year's festival highlights during an informal event at the Stellenbosch Town Hall this past Monday evening.

WoordTROfee trophies for best production, director and supporting actor went to A Doll's House – the most mentioned production of the evening. The veteran actor Andrew Buckland won the WoordTROfee as best actor for his talented performance in Tobacco and the Harmful Effects Thereof. Yvonne Chaka Chaka, who, just as Buckland, performed at the festival for the first time this year, won the prize for best solo music performance. Kô, lat ons sing!, a tribute concert to celebrate Adam Small's eightieth birthday, was the best musical performance by a group. Adriaan Brand, Juanita Swanepoel, Zenobia Kloppers and Frazer Barry are only a few of the people who collaborated on this top production who had the audience on their feet at the Woordfees.

Together with Johann Nel, Swanepoel was aiso honoured for a Woordkuns (Word Art) production, Praat van Die Duiwel. Juju Domingo and Lucas Heinen were recognised as best young actors for their performance in The Banquet.

On the classical front the pianist Ben Schoeman (instrumental) and the Stellenbosch University Choir (vocal) were the winners. Lien Botha's exhibition Wonderboom won the award for visual art while Francois Knoetze won the prize for best upcoming artist.

The three book awards went to the top-sellers at the ATKV Book Shop that operates during the Woordfees. Kook saam Kaaps by Florrie Schrikker and Koelsoem Kamalie was the top-seller in the Lifestyle division. Hammie by Ronelda Kamfer was the most popular in the poetry section while the Woordfees essay collection, Bly, sold most copies in the prose section.

Woorde Open Wêrelde (WOW) also recognised the teacher of the year – Antonia du Toit – and best school – Strand Secondary.

The complete list of winners:

Drama, Best Actor: Andrew Buckland – Tobacco and the Harmful Effects Thereof

Drama, Best Supporting Actor: Rob van Vuuren – A Doll's House

Drama, Best Director: Christiaan Olwagen – A Doll's House

Drama, Best Production: A Doll's House

Woordkuns (Word Art): Praat van die Duiwel – Johann Nel and Juanita Swanepoel

Contemporary Music, Solo: Yvonne Chaka Chaka – The Princess of Africa

Contemporary Music, Group: Kô, lat ons sing!

Classical Music, Vocal: Stellenbosch Universitu Choir under the baton of André van der Merwe

Classical Music, Instrumental: Ben Schoeman – Schoeman in Concert

Visual Art: Lien Botha – Wonderboom

Upcoming Artist: Francois Knoetze

Deurbraak: The Banquet: The Room of Dreams – Ju-Ju Domingo and Lucas Heinen

Most popular Book, Prose: Bly – US Woordfees 2016

Most popular Book, Lifestyle: Kook saam Kaaps – Koelsoem Kamalie and Flori Schrikker

Most popular Book, Poetry: Hammie – Ronelda S. Kamfer

Woordfees Heroes: Dawid and Henk Fourie

WOW Teacher of the Year: Antonia du Toit

WOW School of the Year: Strand Secondary

https://www.facebook.com/search/top/?q=woordfees

The Military Academy has turned 66 on Friday 1 April 2015.  The unit celebrated this joyous occasion the whole day long. 

The Military Academy came into being on 1 April 1950 under the auspices of the University of Pretoria, as a branch of the SA Military College at Voortrekkerhoogte.  The Military Academy was established with the aim of elevating the training of permanent force cadets to the level of a baccalaureate, to provide the Defence Force with a competent, highly professional corps of officers.

In order to establish the Academy as a separate institution, and facilitating the participation of naval students, it was decided in 1953 that the Military Academy would be moved to Saldanha.  Here it was to resort under the trusteeship of Stellenbosch University.  The first group of students began attending classes at Stellenbosch at the beginning of 1955. 

The celebrations of the unit's birthday started with a flag hoisting parade in the morning, where the Commandant of the unit, Brigadier General Lawrence Mbatha addressed the members.  In his speech he highlighted that history is one of the most important philosophical and practical collections from which we can take a leaf of wisdom, a foundation for who and what we are today.  He also said that when one has clarity about journeys past, navigating tomorrow becomes a more calculated road map.  "If we are to succeed in positioning the Academy as a success story beyond our time, we will have to learn to put the interest of the institution first beyond our individual greed, by honoring and respecting its vision and mission."

Brig Gen Mbatha also emphasized that members need to understand as they celebrate the historical birth of this important national asset within the DOD, SANDF and the local community, that it was founded for a specific role - being to educate and empower its members in the Art of Warfare, both academically and militarily.  The main focus of the speech was on urging member to become patriots not only of the country and the DOD, but of the Military Academy in order to be true and proud ambassadors of the unit.

After the parade, the unit hosted a Unit Tea where all were present and the lovely birthday cake was cut by Brig Gen Mbatha and the Dean of the Faculty of Military Science, Prof Samuel Tshehla.  At 13:30 staff members were ready at the Military Academy's Parade ground for a Fun Walk.  Members completed a distance of 5 km and the end point was the Military Academy's Stables.  Here everyone participated in a braai and the day was well spent socializing with each other out of the offices.

​​

Article & Photos: Major Engela Meintjes

​​The documentary Black Christmas tells the painful but poignant story of how one of the perpetrators of the 1996 Christmas Eve bombing in Worcester found redemption and forgiveness in the same community he had once hated and struck at. The first public screening of the film, held at the Labia Theatre on Thursday, 14 April 2016, kicked off an equally powerful discussion on the place of forgiveness in post-apartheid South Africa.

On Christmas Eve in 1996, the then 17-year-old Stefaans Coetzee and three other members of the Afrikaner Weerstandsbeweging (AWB) detonated a bomb in the packed Shoprite shopping centre in Worcester.

A woman and three children died in the explosion. Some 67 other people were injured. The Worcester Bombers, as they became known, were all sentenced to life in prison.

For a long time after his incarceration, Coetzee clung to the 'Israel Vision' of the AWB that Afrikaners were the chosen people of God, a conviction he had picked up at the feet of the man he – legally an orphan – had become to view as his father. But at the same time he was tortured by the thoughts of, especially, the young the lives he had taken. His road to redemption started in 2006 through an unlikely source – 'Prime Evil', aka Eugene de Kock, the former commander of the notorious Vlakplaas unit of the Apartheid-era police and Coetzee's fellow inmate in Pretoria Central Correctional Centre. De Kock encouraged Coetzee to take pride in being an Afrikaner, but urged him to renounce his affiliation to the AWB.

By 2009, Coetzee started to meet some of the survivors of the 1996 attack, including Olga Macingwane, still limping from her injuries suffered in the bombing. Four years later he would meet 60 survivors and families of victims in a meeting at the Pretoria prison. In those tearful encounters, some – as Macingwane had done in their 2009 meeting – told him that they had forgiven him. Others said they never would.

In 2015, Coetzee was granted parole after the likes of Macingwane and community leader Harris Sebiko had spoken on his behalf.

Coetzee's story is told in Black Christmas, a new documentary directed by filmmaker Mark J Kaplan and produced by Stellenbosch University's (SU) Professor Pumla Gobodo-Madikizela. Gobodo-Madikizela's acclaimed 2003 book, A Human Being Died That Night: A South African story of forgiveness, also dealt with the issue of forgiveness, structured around her many interviews with De Kock.

The film also tells how Macingwane and others had chosen to forgive Coetzee, and how Worcester had sought to bridge the divide between the town's communities through initiatives like its Hope and Reconciliation Process and annual Peace Table, supported and guided by Dr Deon Snyman of the Restitution Foundation.

At a packed screening of the documentary at the Labia Theatre on Thursday, 14 April 2016, Kaplan and a panel of speakers explored the lessons to be learnt from Coetzee's and the Worcester community's story. This first public screening of the film was hosted by Stellenbosch University, the South African office of the Konrad Adenauer Stiftung, the Restitution Foundation (a small faith-led, Cape Town-based NGO), and the Institute for Justice and Reconciliation (IJR).

"The film really straddles different fault lines in this country," said Kaplan in introducing the documentary. It deals with painful subjects, some caused by systemic problems in South Africa, he added. "In spite of these things, I think the film has surprising answers, and is ultimately uplifting."

Following the screening, the three panellists  – Professor Steven Robins of the Department of Social Anthropology at SU; Mondli Makhanya, editor-in-chief at City Press; and writer and activist Sisonke Msimang – talked of the lessons offered by the film. Robins spoke of the damage done by Coetzee's family life, the generosity shown by the victims of the attack, and how forgiveness probably best comes through interventions other than structured state programmes. "But the question I want to ask is, can you have a programme of forgiveness?"

The film served as a painful reminder of what had not yet been done in South Africa, added Makhanya. "It tells us what we had not gone through as a nation," he said. "This process that the people in Worcester had gone through – they went through what South Africa should have gone through from 1994 to today."

Msimang talked of empathy, of the resilience shown by the victims (some who had to go back to work at Shoprite just days after the attack), and the other stories that could also be told – of the victims who had not forgiven, of the perpetrators who had remained unapologetic. "There is a national story of structural power, and the talking and the sorry, versus the doing and the building," she said. "That for me is the real question – the extent to which we can link forgiveness to more than a sorry at a national level, to a doing."

Some of that is being done in Worcester, explained Sebiko, who along with other community members had travelled to Cape Town for the screening. Desperate to make amends to the people he had so injured, Coetzee – now living in Pretoria – is involved in a project that would help community members set up a sizeable hydroponic garden on a piece of land donated to them, Sebiko recounted. It's Coetzee's way of giving back to the town, he said.

"Stefaans wants to do something for the people of Worcester."

• From left: Professor Steven Robins of the Department of Social Anthropology at SU; Mondli Makhanya, editor-in-chief at City Press; and writer and activist Sisonke Msimang; and facilitator, Prof Pumla Gobodo-Madikizela of Stellenbosch University in the panel discussion at the screening.

The Andrew Murray prize fund has announced the winners of this year's prizes for Christian and theological books.

The publication Living with Dignity - African Perspectives on Gender Equality from Sun Press  will receive the Andrew Murray Desmond Tutu prize this year. The editors are Elna Mouton and Len Hansen from the Faculty of Theology, Stellenbosch University, Getrude Kapuma from Malawi and Thomas Togom from Kenya.

This project involved more than twenty scholars from across Africa to discuss important issues of gender equality and human dignity in Africa from different perspectives.

Dr Frits Gaum, chairperson of the Andrew Murray Prize Fund, says: " The judges believe that this publication will make a major contribution to shaping African thinking about these issues and that this approach, thinking and writing together, will pave the way for future theological and academic co-operation in Africa."

Theologians Dion Forster, Nadia Marais and Rian Venter acted as judges. The prize, which will be awarded in May, consists of R20 000 and commendations.

The Andrew Murray prize for the best Christian book in Afrikaans was won by Barend Vos for his book Die ewigheid in my hart (Eternity in my heart), published by Lux Verbi. Barend Vos, alumnus of the Faculty of Theology at Stellenbosch University and author of successful Biblical novels, is known as a satirical columnist in church circles. His winning book offers meditative and contemporary descriptions of the Psalms.

The Desmond Tutu-Gerrit Brand Award for a debut work in an official South African language is named after the Nobel laureate Desmond Tutu, and the deceased young Stellenbosch theologian and book editor, Gerrit Brand. This year the winning book is Jong teoloë praat saam (young theologians in conversation) published by Bible Media, initiated and edited by Annette Potgieter and containing contributions from fifteen students of theological faculties of several universities in South Africa about contemporary religious and life questions that are important to them.

The Andrew Murray-FAK Award will be awarded for the first time this year, and goes to Chris Lambrechts for an extraordinary contribution to Christian music.

A special Andrew Murray Award will be given to church historian and Africana collector Gerdrie van der Merwe. He can rightly be called a chronicler of DRC congregations for meticulously recording the history of churches and pastors of more than fifty books . He also owns a collection of church history, theology books and other Africana, unique in its kind, and probably the largest collection in private hands.

​​​​​​​​​​​​Stellenbosch University has started the process to revise its current Language Policy. Stakeholders such as staff, students, alumni and donors received e-mail invitations on 22 March 2016 to comment on the first concept of the new proposed Language Policy until 22 April 2016. This concept was compiled by the Language Revision Workgroup and is available at http://www.sun.ac.za/language. Respondents may provide general and specific comments on the concept policy, as well as any additional suggestions. The workgroup will consider all the input for possible inclusion. However, it may not be possible to include all suggestions in the second concept of the policy. Respondents may complete an online form, or send comments to language@sun.ac.za. Please refer to http://www.sun.ac.za/language for more information about the process and the time line. 

Universities are well placed to educate students in a myriad ways about identifying and tackling rape culture, writes Dr Elisabet le Roux of the Unit for Religion and Development Research in the Faculty of Theology in an opinion piece published on The Conversation website on Thursday (14 April 2016).

• ​Read the complete article below or click here for the article as published.
  

'Rape culture' ingrained in society

​Elisabet le Roux

In the past few weeks, the terms 'Stellenbosch University' (SU) and 'rape culture' often appeared in the same headline. There seems to be shock and, in some cases, resistance to this. Staff, students, alumni and inhabitants are dismayed to see the picturesque town associated with something as revolting as rape. But what is not quite clear is what people are shocked about: the existence of rape culture, or the fact that it is present in Stellenbosch?

Maybe the best place to start this discussion is with the term 'rape culture' itself. It immediately makes people uncomfortable, which could be why some resist the label. Coined in the 1970's, rape culture refers to the pervasive ideology that supports or excuses sexual assault. Rape culture is created and enabled by patriarchy, which empowers men at the expense of women, and supports a hegemonic, idealised version of masculinity that does not easily allow for alternative expressions of being a man. This is why not only women and girls are victims of rape culture; men and boys are sometimes too.

So if we talk about rape culture, we are talking about the societal attitudes regarding sexuality and gender that normalises sexual abuse. In various ways society normalises sexually violent acts. Through jokes, song lyrics, advertising bill boards and bestselling novels, among others, we create a culture where sexual violence becomes permissible. Coercive sex, groping, indecent exposure, wolf whistling, and lewd remarks: all of these are a result of rape culture, and in turn strengthens rape culture.

The existence of rape culture cannot be determined by merely relying on statistics of reported rapes – which is in any case incredibly underreported – but by the daily lived experiences of marginalisation, objectification, stigmatisation and discrimination based on gender or sexual orientation. Rape culture is the sexual remarks a young woman hears when she walks past a group of men; rape culture is the lewd jokes told around a braai. But we also see the presence of rape culture in societal responses to rape. Victim blaming, the denying of sexual violence, and stigmatisation of victims all attest to the pervasiveness and strength of rape culture.

You do not even have to be very informed to be aware that South Africa has a rape culture. On the extreme side of the spectrum of rape culture are the sickeningly common headlines screaming about the latest atrocious rape of a four-year-old girl, or the gang rape of a 16-year-old while her mother is forced to watch. Literally not a day goes by without the media reporting on sexual violence perpetrated somewhere in South Africa. But we also see rape culture in Jacob Zuma accusing women of complaining about harassment too quickly, and stating that single women are a problem in society.

Rape culture is also revealed in the way our elected male leaders respond to their female counterparts. Remember how Helen Zille's cabinet members were said to be her "boyfriends and concubines", or how Lindiwe Mazibuko was labeled a "tea girl", and her dress and hair-style discussed and criticised in parliament? Rape culture is not only in the vicious sexual acts perpetrated; it is also in what is seen as acceptable in how men address and interact with women. The fact that our government leaders can talk about and to women in such a way shows how accepted and ingrained rape culture is.

If the existence of rape culture in South Africa is nothing new, why then did people expect Stellenbosch University to be different from the rest of the country?

In fact, university campuses are prime locations for rape culture. In 1985, Mary Koss, an expert on gender-based violence, did a seminal study on rape culture at 32 university campuses in the United States of America (USA). She found that university campuses are the perfect site for rape culture, as they are closed institutions, much like the military and prisons. People live, study, work and play in the same environment. A university campus has particular norms and practices, and living in such a closed environment means that one is constantly exposed to it. Within such settings it is very hard to counter whatever is considered as normal and acceptable.

This does not mean that SU can do nothing about the rape culture on its campus. At other universities, especially in the USA, various interventions have been launched to address rape culture. Some focus only on rape – teaching women how not be raped, and men how not to rape – but the majority aim to unmask and counter the beliefs and practices that create rape culture.

Thus there has already been some hard work done on how to address rape culture at universities, on which SU can draw. Furthermore, without denying that rape culture is difficult to challenge on campus, such an enclosed university environment arguably makes for an easier setting in which to challenge rape culture, compared to, say, South Africa at large. As it is such a closed environment, instating formal and informal practices that counter rape culture will be easier and arguably have an impact sooner. It will take considerable effort, and a long time, but SU can address rape culture, particularly through education and consistently implementing sanctions. This has not been done adequately in the past. Hopefully, it will in the future.

Looking at rape culture in South Africa, and on university campuses, has led me to conclude that, in the current debate on SU and rape culture, the issue at stake for many is not so much rape culture, but Stellenbosch. The shock and reaction is due to public attention being brought to the fact that rape culture is present at Stellenbosch. Did people think that SU is above 'all that'? Would there have been less of a reaction if it were on a predominantly black campus, say in a big city?

We should be shocked about the rape culture at SU. But in responding to it, we should be careful that our interventions are about addressing rape culture, not about restoring SU's reputation. It is good that the issue has been raised. The University's management should not delay in addressing it   comprehensively and decisively on a long-term basis. Steps have been taken in that direction. But it remains unfortunate that there is not the same outcry when we see rape culture in action in South Africa at large. Why are so many people only dismayed when we see it happening at SU?

*Dr Elisabet le Roux is Research Director at the Unit for Religion and Development Research in the Faculty of Theology at Stellenbosch University. She specialises in faith and development, with a particular focus on gender-based violence.

Photo: Flickr.com

​​The Rector and Executive Mayor's Forum has strengthened discussions on promoting Stellenbosch as the Innovation Capital of South Africa. It recently held its third meeting since the inauguration of Prof Wim de Villiers as Stellenbosch University (SU) Rector and Vice-Chancellor in 2015.

The Forum consists of De Villiers, Stellenbosch Executive Mayor Alderman Conrad Sidego and a number of academics and officials from the University and the Municipality. Areas of focus include urban development strategy, safety, as well as promoting Stellenbosch as the Innovation Capital of South Africa.

Sub-committees have been established that henceforth will meet regularly to address challenges and solutions in these focus areas. One of the goals of the Forum is that academics and officials share knowledge and best practice to take projects forward.

"Stellenbosch is the most unequal town in South Africa, if not the world. However, we have a huge human-capital resource base in our Municipality, the business sphere and at the University which can be harnessed to address many of our challenges through innovative thinking and practices," Sidego said.

"Innovation is a two-legged issue. We need technical innovation but we also need social innovation which is imperative to address the many socio-economic challenges, including drug abuse, crime, alcohol abuse and the high level of unemployment. Innovation is about the way we think," he added.

De Villiers said that this Forum is a wonderful opportunity to access the great knowledge and technical know-how present at the University and in the town to make a difference to society.

Prof Mark Swilling, distinguished professor and Programme Director: Sustainable Development in SU's School of Public Leadership, said that academics can harness a lot of resources to assist the Municipality. Swilling also pointed out the need for a website where the Municipality and the University can share information about innovative projects inside as well as outside the town.

Dr Jerome Slamat, Executive Manager in the SU Rectorate, said that an important contribution of the University to local economic development is to uplift local people through education.

Prof Nico Koopman, acting Vice-Rector of Social impact, Transformation and Personnel, said it was important to continue the conversation on promoting a welcoming culture both on the campus and in the rest of Stellenbosch. To this Sidego responded that the Municipality has perhaps not done enough to deal effectively and efficiently with transformation.

"This Forum needs to be an alliance for which the building of social cohesion is imperative," he said.

Mr Widmark Moses, Manager: Local Economic Development at Stellenbosch Municipality, pleaded that the Forum not only looks at social development, but also addresses economic development. 

"We are like concrete," said Prof Billy Boshoff at the official launch of the Unit for Construction Materials in the Department of Civil Engineering, Stellenbosch University. "Concrete consists of different materials, some more expensive, some unpredictable, but together they make concrete. No ingredient is more important than the other one, because if you take one ingredient out, the concrete will not work." Hereafter he acknowledged all present - individuals, institutes and industry - for their important roles in the Unit.

The Unit for Construction Materials (UCM) was officially launched on 13 April 2016 at a dinner held appropriately in the new concrete laboratory. The event was well attended and numerous prominent figures in the construction industry were present, including Hanli Turner and John Sheath, the President and the CEO of the Concrete Society of Southern Africa (CSSA) respectively, and Bryan Perrie, the Managing Director of The Concrete Institute (TCI).

The UCM strives to be a centre of excellence and a top institute for construction materials in South Africa for teaching, research and consulting. Research and student training are at the core of the UCM. During his speech, Prof Boshoff highlighted the importance of industry collaboration and partnership. Special emphasis was put on the fact that research must have both academic value and relevance for the industry on the short or long term. Providing a consultation service to the industry, especially where these services at not available at commercial laboratories, is also a high priority the UCM.

The UCM is interested in all aspects of construction materials, but the four main areas of the current focus is:

* Eco-friendly construction materials

* Fibre reinforced concrete

* Fresh and young concrete

* High performance concrete

More information about the UCM can be found at www.sun.ac.za/ucm or bboshoff@sun.ac.za.

Caption: From the left: Dr Riaan Combrinck (UCM), Prof Eugene Cloete (Vice-Rector Research), Prof Billy Boshoff (Head UCM), Ms Wibke de Villiers (UCM) and Prof Hansie Knoetze (Dean: Engineering).

Prof. Paul Papka and physics students from the Solar Thermal Energy research group in the Department of Physics hope to raise awareness of solar energy by dishing out soup cooked in 50 liter cauldron, hoisted above the solar panel.

On the side-line, prof. Frank Dinter and students from the Centre for Renewable Energy Studies prepared wors on a smaller solar panel.

The cart is nine metres long, eight metres wide and six metres high. The parabolic structures, pannelled with mirrors, are concentrating 12 square metres of sunlight onto a surface area of only 30 square centimetres in order to cook the soup.

This represents the amount of energy used to boil three to four kettles. When ready, the soup will be dished out to students passing by.

Prof. Papka says it took a year of planning and another three months of buildling the cart and parabolic structure from recycled materials. 

The structure will be now be dismantled and carted to its final destination at Africa Burn later this month. There it will cook 70 litres of soup every day before it will, very appropriately, go up in flames.

For more photos and comments, go to Facebook ​or Twitter ​@scienceSUN @StellenboschUni #solarsoup

A Stellenbosch University (SU) researcher is part of a team of international scientists undertaking the largest study to date to explore the genetic causes of prostate cancer (CaP) in African men.

"In addition to gaining valuable insight into the origins of CaP in African populations, this project will also develop genetic and epidemiological capacity and resources on the continent that can be used by other African researchers," said Dr Pedro Fernandez, with the Division of Urology at SU's Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences.

The study, known as MADCaP (Men of African Descent and Carcinoma of the Prostate), is funded by the American National Cancer Institute (NCI), and is a collaborative project between researchers from America, South Africa, Ghana, Senegal, and Nigeria.  

Professor Timothy Rebbeck from the Harvard TH Chan School of Public Health and the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in the US will lead the project. Fernandez is the principal investigator and was awarded a US$3 million (approximately R45 million) grant to lead the collection and genomic analysis of biosamples for the study.  

CaP is the most common type of cancer affecting South African men and international statistics suggest that men from African descent have double the risk of developing CaP compared to men from other population groups.

"The majority of cases in Sub-Saharan Africa are diagnosed with aggressive disease, often at late, incurable stages. In both Sub-Saharan Africa and African American men, this pattern may be due to a combination of tumour aggressiveness and late detection," the MADCaP research team said in a statement.

"Thus there may be common features of CaP aetiology in men of African descent that may explain the observed mortality patterns. Knowledge gained from studies of prostate cancer in Sub-Saharan African may improve the understanding of aggressive prostate cancer in men of African descent around the world."

While numerous prostate carcinoma genome-wide association studies (GWAS) have been reported, only one has been reported in an African population, and most of the GWAS-identified loci have not been replicated in men of African descent. "There is a pressing need to identify African-specific alleles and thereby to elucidate the aetiology of prostate carcinoma with regards to risk and disease aggressiveness," the research team said.

The NCI-funded MADCaP project aims to address this current knowledge disparity by conducting a GWAS with samples collected in South Africa, Senegal, Nigeria and Ghana and the entire project will run over a five-year period.

"The project as a whole will be open to engagement with the SSA scientific community, with a particular emphasis on boosting cancer research capacity in Africa. Owing to the sample volume to be processed in the study, cancer researchers will benefit from having access to an African-centric cancer genotyping array application. This will facilitate the design and execution of small-to-medium size pilot studies which may in turn lead to further large-scale GWAS studies in African populations," the MADCaP team concluded.

Caption:

The South African MADCaP project members. Back row from left: Dr Chantal Babb (National Cancer Registry at the National Health Laboratory Services), Mr Hassan Kimmie (Centre for Proteomic and Genomic Research), Prof Andre van der Merwe (Stellenbosch University). Front row from left: Dr Lindsay Petersen (Centre for Proteomic and Genomic Research), Dr Pedro Fernandez (Stellenbosch University), Mr Jacques Davids (Stellenbosch University) 

Stellenbosch University (SU) celebrated its collaboration with partner universities from around the world hosting the 14^th annual Stellenbosch International Academic Networks (SIAN) meeting. Participants from 27 institutions, representing 14 countries, attended the meeting hosted by the Postgraduate & International Office (PGIO) from 5-9 April 2016.

Welcoming guests to SU, Prof Wim de Villiers, Rector and Vice-Chancellor, said the meeting helped strengthen ties ― crucial for international collaboration in joint research and student mobility. He highlighted SU's internationalisation efforts telling delegates that the institution attracts students and staff from across the world.  "The international students that we accommodate here at Stellenbosch University comes from 117 different countries. Last year, approximately 15% of our students were international. This was double the national average."

Prof de Villiers underlined SU's role in the international arena, telling delegates that SU is a leading academic institution, ranked among the best. According to him this position will be further strengthened with the appointment of a Vice-Rector for Strategic Initiatives and Internationalisation in the next few months. 

In a week focussing on internationalisation, SIAN delegates also held discussions on how to align qualifications to encourage mobility. Giving an African focus to the weeklong activities, SIAN participants took part in a workshop focussing on the 2014 Addis Convention– the Revised Convention on the Recognition of Studies, Certificates, Diplomas, Degrees and Other Academic Qualifications in Higher Education in African States.

Mr Joe Samuels, Chief Executive Officer of the South African Qualifications Authority (SAQA), gave background to the convention, its potential role in internationalisation and how South Africa has aligned itself with the principles of the convention. He told delegates that structures are in place to encourage cross-border collaborations, linkages between countries on the continent and critical exchange of ideas.

Mr André Muller, Assistant Director: Academic Planning and Quality Assurance (SU) gave a thought-provoking presentation on the Harmonisation and Tuning project which he has been involved in which seeks to bring expertise together around specific disciplines in an effort to harmonise understanding of expectations and competencies attached to qualifications in Africa. The challenges to collaborative efforts and the warnings to be careful with "one-size-fits-all" approaches was further reinforced by Mr Christopher Muller, Coordinator: Africa Academic Networks at the PGIO, in his presentation on the practical experience of mobility of staff and students via African projects.

​Speakers from Australia and Sweden provided perspectives in turn from their countries, referring to the Bologna process and sharing their experience of efforts to align within Europe and from outside. The lessons that emerged from the day's proceedings come down to allowing for differences and being willing to adjust practices with due consideration for contexts. Additionally, delegates from Japan and the Czech Republic shared country updates in respect of their higher education structures as well as providing more information about their own institutions.

There was also an opportunity for students to get involved in the SIAN meeting. SU students engaged with representatives from our international partners at an International Student Mobility Fair – getting information about partner institutions and study opportunities abroad. Many students also attend the popular International Food Evening, which forms part of SIAN celebrations.

Attending the 2016 SIAN meeting were, from left: Dorothy Stevens, Deputy Director: PGIO; Joe Samuels, Chief Executive Officer of the South African Qualifications Authority (SAQA);  André Muller, Assistant Director: Academic Planning and Quality Assurance; and  Robert Kotzé, Senior Director: PGIO.

Photo: Hennie Rudman

Click here for photos from the event.