From the world of Harry Potter, a scammer in Ethiopia, a play in the West End and some serious academic reflection in Scotland – the Abe Bailey Tour was everything I had hoped for, writes Tevarus Naicker.

But it didn't come easily. I saw the e-mail about the Abe Bailey Travel Bursary in 2016, and immediately knew it would be a once-in-a-lifetime experience. In fact, no other bursary offered the same opportunity, but I watched some of the top students at the medical faculty apply and I lacked the confidence even to try. I just felt I was not good enough. By 2017, I felt that I had grown in terms of leadership skills and that my confidence level had increased. I sent in my application, and got through to the interview stage – but no luck.

What I did learn from the interview was that my general knowledge wasn't quite what it should have been, and that my involvement as a South African citizen was somewhat lacking, despite being so involved at Stellenbosch University itself. Like many other people, I have a deep fear of rejection and now I had to face it head-on – I didn't get the Abe Bailey bursary. I decided to try once more in 2018, and was a bit more optimistic having had the experience of being interviewed the year before. I felt more ready than ever.

I still had my doubts as to my chances of success, but I felt that I should try and give the other candidates a run for their money.

I re-evaluated my role as a young person in South Africa and in the world. This saw me going places and doing things about which I was truly passionate – not just to add to my CV, but rather to be of service to the community around me. I felt that this would bring something different to the interviewing table, and I am happy to say I was right. I got the bursary! This tour has been an incredible experience on a professional, a spiritual and an emotional level.

The focus of the Abe Bailey Bursary is leadership development and the trustees wish the bursaries to be awarded to students who are academically strong and have shown exceptional qualities of leadership and service, with a good track record - not only on a campus level but also in a wider social context. It gives young university staff and students an opportunity to visit the United Kingdom, participating in educational tours according to an approved programme. The objective of the Travel Bursary is to broaden the views of young future leaders of South Africa, according to the website of the Abe Baily Trust.

This bursary allowed me to cross many barriers – barriers which we don't really need in this world. It has taught me to be confident about my opinions (even if they might be unpopular) without the fear of being judged. Simultaneously, it has taught me to be open to new ideas and opinions with which I do not necessarily agree. It has served as a platform for active listening and critical engagement while being respectful, tolerant and truthful.

It was to be the trip of a lifetime – with many highlights (and one or two 'lowlights'). The tour has allowed me to look at the world with fresh eyes. I was able to immerse myself in the history of the United Kingdom, and to dissect the influences this has had on Africa. In doing so I have been able to envision who I want to be in the realm of global citizenship.

I am passionate about being an ambassador for mental health, but I never really took time off to reflect on my own well-being. That is why The Burn (an academic retreat in Scotland) was so important – it allowed me the space to do some introspection and to think about things that have been toxic in my life. It was in the silence, during the misty morning walks and in the comfort of the fireside that I had several insights. In my final year of medicine, I feel as if a weight has been lifted off my shoulders, and that the fire I once had on my journey to becoming a doctor has once again been ignited. 

During the trip I was almost scammed in Ethiopia, I found myself in the wizarding world of Harry Potter in London, and then felt the magic of Scotland in the icy cold that nothing could prepare me for. The weak exchange rate could not spoil my trip, as my expenses were mostly covered. That enabled me to do some fun things as well: a hot chocolate at the Christmas market, going ice skating in the park, experiencing London at night-time, watching a West End play and going on some thrill rides at Winter Wonderland. I managed to tick off some wonderful experiences, thanks to the Abe Bailey Tour Bursary.

I accepted this bursary with the idea that nothing was going to ruin the experience for me – nothing did! Instead, the experience was enhanced by coming into contact with bright people whom I believe will shape our future as South Africans. Before this trip, I would never have thought I would meet such incredible people. We are spread across the country, but this does not affect the friendships and bonds formed on this tour. This opportunity allowed me to meet people whose conversations challenged me, inspired me and stimulated new ideas, thought processes and dreams far bigger than I ever imagined. If anything, it was indeed the people who made everything worth it and the camaraderie we shared was magic.

Please see below the article in the Cape Times 31 July 2019:

The ultraclean lab container at the time of loading

Research students working long shifts in the ships laboratories.

On 1 September 2019, Stellenbosch University (SU) will welcome Prof Mbulungeni Madiba as Dean of the Faculty of Education. Prof Madiba, who joins SU from the University of Cape Town (UCT), considers Stellenbosch (University) to be one of the highly ranked universities in the country and on the continent, “and it is quite an honour for me to be part of such an institution”.

Prof Madiba is currently serving as the director of the Multilingual Education Project (MEP) in the Centre for Higher Education Development (CHED) at UCT. He has been deputy dean and acting dean of the CHED a number of times, chairs UCT’s Senate Language Committee and serves on the UCT Council.

Prof Madiba is not only bringing with him over 30 years’ of teaching experience, but also a wealth of experience in leadership and management. “I am excited to join the Faculty of Education as dean and look forward to working with all staff and providing good leadership and management to enable the faculty to grow in its mission and become a leading research-intensive education faculty in the country.”

A full professor of Multilingual Education, Prof Madiba holds a DLitt et Phil (Linguistics) degree from the University of South Africa (Unisa). He has also received research fellowships and study awards from a number of higher education institutions abroad, including the universities of Cologne, London (Oppenheimer fellow), Birmingham and Harvard (Mandela fellow).

As an established researcher with a C-rating from the National Research Foundation, his main research interests are language planning and policy, with a special focus on multilingual education.

Prof Madiba’s appointment is for an initial term of five years, with the possibility of a second term. He will be taking over the reins from Prof Christa van der Walt, Vice-Dean (Research), who has been serving as Acting Dean since Prof Johan Malan retired at the end June.

Photo: Je’nine May, University of Cape Town.​

​​​​“Find what you love to do, love what you do … Believe what you do is great…" 

These were the words of Anita van der Merwe, emeritus professor in the department Nursing and Midwifery, at a departmental achievement awards event held recently to acknowledge the top academic and clinical achievers in all the department's post-graduate programmes as well as in the Masters in Nursing. 

Awards and prizes were awarded to postgraduate students for academic excellence and perseverance in the disciplines of midwifery, operating theatre, ICU, Nursing Education and Management, as well as Primary Care. 

In an address which focused on the theme of 'brilliance', Van der Merwe stressed the importance of small acts of kindness in the nursing profession. 

“Brilliance grows in the soil of what we do better and kinder every day," she said. 

The event was opened by Prof Portia Jordan, head of the Department of Nursing and Midwifery, and the FMHS Dean, Prof Jimmy Volmink, welcomed all guests and stakeholders. 

The prestigious Dr Pat Gorvalla award for Masters Research Implementation went to Shanaz Adams for her study entitled The Experiences of Clinical Staff about Transformational Change Management at an Emergency Centre. 

Adams' study looked at the systemic challenges faced by a primary health care facility in the Western Cape which was the subject of an investigation by the Public Protector's office in 2009 – and at the subsequent improvement strategy – based on a transformational change philosophy – which was initiated in the Emergency Centre. 

In an apt reference to the important role of kindness in the nursing profession, Van der Merwe quoted from the book The Language of Kindness by Christie Watson: “Both joy and tragedy build a nurse."

Prof Monika Esser, a Paediatric Rheumatology and Immunology Specialist and Head of the Immunology Unit of the National Health Laboratory Services (NHLS) at Tygerberg Hospital and Stellenbosch University's Faculty of Health Sciences, retired in July.

Her retirement might mean she has more time on her hands, but Esser said she would be keeping busy with numerous medical commitments, including research, freelance work and supporting a range of not-for-profit organisations.

“I feel very excited about my retirement from the NHLS because it means I will have more time to work flexibly on various things that really interest me," Esser said in an interview.

“It's a shift in direction, and will involve a far less formalized work schedule. I don't have to stick to certain hours, but will remain working in the paediatric rheumatology and immunology clinics of the Department of Paediatrics and Child Care in an honorary capacity, until we have enough trained people in those fields."

Esser took up the joint position of Head of the Immunology Unit within Medical Microbiology in the NHLS Tygerberg in March 2005.

“It's been such an interesting part of my life. I am actually a paediatric rheumatologist, but was asked to take over as head of the immunology unit, which is part of the medical microbiology department of the Department of Pathology at the hospital.

“I was asked to come on board as a scientist, even though I am not a trained scientist. I did some laboratory-related training in infectious diseases in the 80s in the US, but other than that my training was clinical. It took about three years for me to re-define the position as a clinician with an interest in Immunology but not as a scientist. It was a big challenge but definitely a worthwhile one.

Esser said her position enabled her and colleagues to develop some of the translational research, including looking at HIV-exposed but uninfected infants.

“It had become obvious in the clinics that these children were more at risk of serious infections in the first year of life. This led to collaborative research and resulted in a different way of looking at these children as being at risk and not as immune-competent as HIV- unexposed children.

“This research is ongoing – and it is very exciting work."

Esser said another highlight of her years in this position include that she managed to develop the immune-deficiency clinic further through facilitating research linking immune deficiencies to genetics. For this research, a group, PIDDGEN, was established in 2013.

“This is also ongoing a very exciting part of my work which I hope to continue to support through helping to find genetic reasons for commoner and also rarer immune-deficiencies," she said.

“Our predominant scope of interest in this area is among children and adolescents with recurrent and unusual forms of tuberculosis. The link with existing research structures for more common diseases in our country means that our work in this field has very good prospects for becoming a long-term project, with growth of scientists as well as fellowships and it has great translational potential.

A founder member in 2008 and past chairperson of the board of the African Society for Immunodeficiencies (ASID), she said she will continue to do work for the society in an honorary position as well as with the International Patient Organisation for Immunodeficiencies. “On top of this I will also carry on with our work towards a national registry for immunodeficiency which we have been running for the past fifteen years," she said.

“I will also be involved in African workshops to develop awareness and train doctors to identify immuno-deficiencies so that they can be treated."

One of the NPOs she supports – and will continue to work with – is Hope Cape Town – an HIV outreach and education project whose board Esser chairs.

“In terms of research, I am excited to look at the link between the laboratory and the clinical applications of immunology and translate some of the findings we've come up with into further research projects and into algorithms of better care in the clinic," she said.

“So I will definitely not stop working!"

Her retirement means she will also have time for fun, Esser said. “I have a very active husband, who still works as a cardiac surgeon, but we will make time for our hobbies, mountain biking, kayaking and exploring the wild. We intend doing much more of that together – as well as spending time with our three daughters and two grandchildren on wonderful holidays."

​Nelson Mandela and Ubuntu

 THE Stellenbosch University Museum, in partnership with the Nelson Mandela Museum, hosted the fourth annual Nelson Mandela Colloquium on Friday, 26 July 2019. The colloquium, themed “Nelson Mandela and Ubuntu", brought together academics, students and the general public in discussion about the concept of ubuntu and how it shaped the life of South Africa's first black president, Nelson Mandela.

 Speaking at the colloquium, retired director of the African Union Commission and board member of the Nelson Mandela Museum, Dr Botlhale Tema, said that ubuntu was a way of being that socialised people to see and recognise humanness in other people. It was not a religious phenomenon but a spiritual concept that taught people to embrace one another with kindness and empathy.

 Dr Tema said that Mandela's actions in sacrificing his life for the liberation of African people was a manifestation of ubuntu. Mandela's life was an example of how all humans could practise humanity and kindness. She said that part of embracing one another was opening our spaces to others.

 “We all have a sphere of influence, no matter how big or small. To what extent are we opening this sphere to include others?" she asked. “This is an opportunity for Stellenbosch University to genuinely open up," she said.

 Her views were echoed by the second speaker, Dr Mosa Phadi, who is a researcher in historical trauma and transformation at the Stellenbosch University Museum. She asserted that universities should not be divorced from the communities that they serve. Ideally, universities should be connected with the communities that they study and the communities should be able to question what is written about them.

 Dr Phadi went on to say that a large portion of the history of the liberation struggle in South Africa was not told and was not accessible to the general public. She relayed stories of South African struggle heroes, including founder of the Pan Africanist Movement, Robert Mangaliso Sobukwe, and African linguist and academic, Dr AC Jordan, whom she accessed through the Bureau of African Affairs in Accra, Ghana. Dr Phadi highlighted the commonalities in the histories of the people of South Africa and Ghana in their quest for self-actualisation and independence and condemned the exclusion of and attacks on African nationals in South Africa, saying that this showed a lack of understanding of the oneness of the histories of African people.

 “We need to reintegrate ourselves into Africa," she said.

 Stellenbosch University Museum director, Bongani Mgijima, said that the partnership between the two museums – the Stellenbosch University Museum and the Nelson Mandela Museum – “provides us with a platform that enables us to reflect on the legacy and values of Madiba."

“This unique partnership between the two institutions is an affirmation of our belief that museums can become spaces for critical dialogue aimed at addressing our present and future challenges," he said.

 The Nelson Mandela Museum CEO, Bonke Tyhulu, said that the partnership marked the coming together of two opposite sides. The contrasts lay in the location of the museums – one in a well-resourced town in the Western Cape and the other in an underprivileged town in the Eastern Cape – and in the languages used – Afrikaans and isiXhosa.

 “The beauty about being opposites is that we can learn from each other. I would like to invite the University to get out of its comfort zone and explore further than this town," Tyhulu said.

Photo left to right: Nellie Thwala (Nelson Mandela Museum), Ricky Brecht (Stellenbosch University Museum), Dr Botlhale Tema (guest speaker), Dr Mosa Phadi (guest speaker), Zintle Mbusi, Master of Ceremony and Bonke Tyulu: (CEO, Nelson Mandela Museum).

A SU Faculty of Economic and Management Sciences alumnus, whose road to success started in tragedy in a little-known country town and came to fruition at the SU Business School (USB), has won the 2019 Financial Planner of the Year award.

Hardi Swart, a certified financial planner (CFP) and the managing director of family wealth and investment advisory firm Autus Private Clients, received the award from the Financial Planning Institute of South Africa (FPI) at a gala dinner held in Sandton, Johannesburg, recently.

The award, presented annually by FPI, is the highest accolade bestowed on financial planners in South Africa.

According to FPI, Swart was awarded the accolade because of the depth of his knowledge, the immense detail of his financial plans and his exceptional personal commitment to his clients.

Swart, a farm boy from the small town of Naboomspruit, Limpopo, said his passion for financial planning started many years ago when his father was killed in a tragic car accident.

“My family was not prepared for the tough times that followed and when we eventually sold our farm and businesses we were poorly advised and ended up losing a large portion of our family wealth.

“This was a tough but extremely valuable lesson to learn at a young age. However, this was also the event that triggered my interest in multi-generation family wealth planning and why I am so passionate about helping families avoid financial pitfalls," he says.

Swart completed a BCom (Management Accountancy) at SU in 2009, and a postgraduate diploma in Financial Planning at USB in 2011. He also completed an international diploma in business consulting at Syracuse University in New York.

He says his studies at USB laid the foundation for his career as a financial planner and ultimately led to him receiving this award.

“Given the difficulties and financial uncertainty facing people in the world today, qualified financial planners are in high demand. However, it is very important to have a solid academic foundation, combined with a quality internship, where you can learn the fundamentals of financial planning.

“USB with its exceptional programme and experienced lecturers gave me that foundation. The programme enables students to successfully complete the CFP professional competency examination and to become a CFP professional and a member of the FPI."

But Swart's road to success would probably not have come full circle if it wasn't for one person - his wife Anemike who, as luck would have it, was studying for her postgraduate diploma in Financial Planning at the time their paths crossed.

“She was actually the one who persuaded me to study financial planning," he reveals.

​Swart lives with his family in Val de Vie Estate in the Paarl Winelands and has been part of the Autus team for more than 10 years.“The award is recognition that financial planning is about more than just excellent advice, but about becoming a life-long coach, mentor and friend to your clients," he says.

• Photo (supplied): Mr Hardi and Mrs Anemike Swart at the gala dinner in Sandton where he was honoured with the 2019 Financial Planner of the Year award by the Financial Planning Institute of South Africa (FPI).
  

​A group of Stellenbosch University (SU) academic and support services staff visited Leipzig University, Germany, for a second contact seminar between the two universities from 23 to 29 June, following on the first hosted at SU in November 2018.

“Strategic partnerships such as this one between Leipzig and SU need face-to-face contact between people in order to grow, particularly in today's digital world," Dr Svend Poller, the head of Leipzig University's International Office, told the SU delegation in his welcome remarks. Echoing this sentiment was Robert Kotzé, the senior director of SU International, who led the Stellenbosch delegation to Leipzig. Kotzé called the contact seminar a prime example of “knowledge diplomacy" and underlined the key role of the internationalisation of higher education in promoting understanding of other cultures and nations.

The weeklong session presented a wealth of opportunities for those attending. For instance, Dr Marina Joubert, senior science communication researcher at SU's Centre for Research on Evaluation, Science and Technology (CREST), and Prof Alexander Godulla, professor of Empirical Communication and Media Research at Leipzig, are already planning a regular teaching exchange on communication science, especially digital storytelling, starting in 2020. They further intend co-developing a research project that will explore how young scientists can better communicate with the public about their research.

As part of their visit, SU staff also attended an Erasmus+ networking and information workshop on 26 June, in which 65 subject coordinators and other key players took part. At this event, the participants reviewed the project year and exchanged views on innovations in project implementation. Thirteen new coordinators were welcomed, while ten bid a fond farewell to the Erasmus+ community. SU is one of more than 100 Erasmus+ partners worldwide.

Picture: Swen Reichhold

​Insects are important in the function of ecosystems as they are critical in pollination, nutrient cycling and pest control. These are the creatures that run our world

The future of our planet and the conservation of species and systems are in the hands of our youth. Research, education and engagement are just some of the tools that we use to aid our cause

​Life on earth depends on the complex interactions between microbes such as fungi and other kingdoms, living or dead

Using quantum dots as a tool to trace the pollen of the long-tubed iris, Lapeirousia anceps, evolutionary ecologists from Stellenbosch University have succeeded in capturing a snapshot of a plant in the process of speciation.

Professor Bruce Anderson, an evolutionary ecologist in the Department of Botany and Zoology at SU, says this is only the third time in his research career where he has found a contact zone where speciation appears to be happening right in front of our eyes.

“Contact zones of entities in the process of diverging may actually be quite common, but they are hard to find because you really need to know what to look for," he postulates.

For the past 15 years Anderson and his associates have been visiting a patch of West Coast sand-plain fynbos just outside the small town of Mamre on South Africa's West Coast, a 45 minute drive from Cape Time along the N7 highway.

This is one of the prime spots where the long-tubed iris, Lapeirousia anceps can be found, as well as its pollinator, the long-tongue fly, Moegistorhynchus longirostris.

“Think of the famous example of the Madagascar star orchid with its 30cm nectar tube and Darwin's moth with an almost equally long tongue," Anderson explains, “where the orchid and moth have coevolved in an escalating race scenario."

The same evolutionary mechanism behind matching of pollinator tongues and floral tubes is true for Lapeirousia.

Click here for a youtube video on this interaction.

In 2009 a fellow researcher, Professor Anton Pauw, found that Lapeirousia has tube lengths which have coevolved with the tongue lengths of its fly pollinator, Moegistorhynchus longirostris, where tongues and tubes can vary from 43-86mm, depending on the study site. In other words, the tube-lengths of the plants match perfectly with the tongue-length of the pollinators, depending on the geographical location of the different populations.

But in 2003 Anderson stumbled upon a strange population of Lapeirousia anceps in the Mamre area: “Some plants had short floral tubes and others had long tubes, and very few plants had tubes of intermediate length. Yet this population of plants was visited by only a single species of the long-tongued fly, Moegistorhynchus longirostris."

For the next 15 years, Anderson and his colleagues studied this population and found that there was little gene flow between the two plants forms, which explained why they had remained as two separate entities for so long.

“In other countries with fewer plant species, biologists would have been sorely tempted to call these forms different species, but we have so many species already that we can afford to be a little more circumspect!" he laughs.

Anderson was much more interested in finding the mechanisms that prevented the two forms from mixing in the first place.

On one of the many photographs from his field work, he noticed a long-tongued fly from that area with pollen on the top of its head and then another clump of pollen halfway down its tongue. But because these plants are so recently diverged, they couldn't tell the pollen apart.

“I was sure that the pollen on the head was from the long-tubed flowers and the other pollen from the short-tubed flowers, but I had no way of showing this."

Quantum physics to the rescue

When Corneile Minnaar joined the group as a PhD student in 2015, he decided to try and find a reliable method to label and track pollen in order to answer this question. By the end of his first year, he succeeded in using quantum dots to label pollen grains, thereby breaking new ground in a field of research that has been hampered by the lack of a universal method to track pollen for over a century.

During November 2015 and 2016, the team set off to Mamre to test the newly-designed method in the field, and, more importantly, to test Anderson's hypothesis.

In the case of Lapeirousia and the long-tongued fly, Minnaar and Anderson were now able to show conclusively that long- and short-tubed flowers place and receive pollen on different parts of the fly's long tongue: short tubed flowers mostly midway and long-tubed flowers on or near the head.

Consequently, pollen seldom moves between long and short tubed individuals, indicating a barrier to the flow of genes.

Professor Andersons says it looks as if they have captured these plants in the very act of speciation: “This is quite unusual, because normally when you see plants they have diverged long ago and it is very difficult to tell the processes by which they diverged. This is different. We've managed to capture these plants in the act of speciation and we were able to identify the process and mechanisms by which it is taking place."

He says it is hard to predict whether these two forms of Lapeirousia will remain separate forever or eventually unify. But what he does know is that this patch of land needs to be protected.

“It is severely threatened, heavily grazed and invaded by acacias and grasses," he warns. “There is a very real possibility for this unique patch of sand-plain fynbos to disappear in the not too distant future."

The article “Intraspecific divergence in floral-tube length promotes asymmetric pollen movement and reproductive isolation" was published in the journal New Phytologist this month, with authors Dr Corneille Minnaar, Dr Marinus de Jager and Professor Bruce Anderson.

Media enquiries

Prof Bruce Anderson
Department of Botany and Zoology, University of Stellenbosch
Tel: (021) 808 3586
Cell:  072 113 6948

E-mail: banderso.bruce@gmail.com
http://www.biointeractionslab.com/prof.-bruce-anderson.html

Captions

With a tongue up to 7 cm in length, the long-tongue fly Moegistorhynchus longirostris often battle to fly, especially in the wind. The fly must fully insert its proboscis into the flower to obtain a tiny droplet of nectar at the bottom of the tube, and in the process pollen is placed on or removed from its head by the long-tubed iris, Lapeirousia anceps. Photo: Bruce Anderson

After having matriculated with good grades from the Montebello High School in Durban, applying for medical school seemed like a no-brainer to Dr Sengeziwe Sibeko. All her school friends with good grades opted for life sciences.

But the 18-year old who grew up in the Umlazi township and had boarded at Montebello High, could never have imagined that by age 44 she would be an obstetrician and gynaecologist, an epidemiologist and a mucosal immunologist, with a PhD to boot. All this was achieved in her quest to help find a way to prevent HIV transmission to women.

“Back then, I had no vision of my own. I never dreamed that I could end up in the field of medicine, let alone become a scientist!"

After having specialised in obstetrics and gynaecology at the University of KwaZulu-Natal (UKZN), Sibeko successfully completed the Fogarty Global Health Training Programme at the National Institutes of Health in Washington DC in 2007. She went on to pursue even loftier goals, and in 2009 she was awarded another fellowship to complete an MSc in epidemiology at Columbia University's Mailman School of Public Health in New York. In 2011 she was awarded the prestigious Oxford Nuffield Medical Fellowship to study towards her PhD at Oxford University, from which she graduated in 2017.

However, these are only a few of the highlights that illuminate Sibeko's career path.

Throughout her research career of 12 years she has immersed herself in various projects, all with a common theme: HIV-1 prevention in women. This interest was sparked during her registrar training under UKZN's Prof Jack Moodley, when she became involved in community health rotations and discussions about maternal morbidity and mortality.

“I became aware of the extent to which HIV/Aids was changing how it presented itself clinically and in altered disease manifestations, and the natural progression of the disease," she recalls. This was the catalyst that sparked her interest in research after five year of specialisation. She joined the Centre for the Aids Programme of Research in South Africa (CAPRISA) at UKZN as a research gynaecologist, where she worked until moving to the United Kingdom for her PhD. Upon her return she was scooped up by the Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology at Stellenbosch University's Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, where she currently works as a senior researcher.

She says sub-Saharan Africa is a region where women uniquely bear the brunt of the HIV epidemic. “My research interests are thus aimed towards improving women's health, with a particular focus on the HIV/Aids epidemic."

To this end she has been involved in HIV-1 prevention and pathogenesis research programmes, looking at the female genital tract (FGT) from all angles: clinically, epidemiologically and in laboratory sciences. “Following my involvement in the multi-award-winning CAPRISA 004 tenofovir gel clinical trial, I wanted to conduct research aimed at understanding biological mechanisms responsible for increased HIV acquisition risk in women."

The CAPRISA 004 trial was the first trial undertaken at an international level to demonstrate that tenofovir gel, a microbicide applied intra-vaginally, reduces HIV risk by 39%. “However, it also showed that this reduction in HIV risk was much smaller in women with evidence of pre-existing or underlying inflammation and immune activation in the FGT." This was the motivation for her current research, aiming to provide more insight into mucosal immunity and the correlates of protection or vulnerability to HIV. The ultimate purpose is to develop an effective HIV preventative strategy for women in the form of either a microbicide or a vaccine, says Sibeko.

“My specialty within mucosal immunology is at the interface between the epithelium (the inner lining of the womb) and the virus, focussing on the cervix (mouth of the womb)." She explains that studies on monkeys provided most of the insight into the transmission of HIV-1. “My research is with human models, looking at early transmission events, and hence bridging the gap between humans and monkeys."

Sibeko's passion for public health has not come without a personal cost. She says her worst trait is living to work, resulting in an unbalanced life. “But I am working towards finding more balance by pushing myself to do other things."

If she could leave behind a legacy, she would like it to be as someone who was part of finding a solution for this century's women's health problems.

IT'S NOT ALWAYS EASY…

Dr Sibeko encourages staff and students to persevere and take advantage of every opportunity to improve themselves, even if it proves difficult.

The greatest challenges in her career arose due to a lack of support, often with no one to cheer her on. But she is proud of having achieved what she has in the face of adversity.

“For instance, when I went to Columbia University, I had no laptop. While everyone in the class took notes and did their assignments on their laptops, I had to learn how to use the computers in the computer lab, while also typing out assignments on statistics. It meant having to be in the lab seven days a week, often only going home at three in the morning.

“In the end I got really good grades and even received an award for one of my classes."

During her PhD studies at Oxford she also experienced a scarcity of support and mentorship. “Somebody told me that they wait for you to drown and pack your bags to go home. Every moment was difficult. There were things that took me months to figure out. With enough guidance, it could have taken a few weeks."

She decided to stick to her mantra: “If somebody else can do it, so can I". And, against the odds, she completed  her PhD, sustaining herself with sourced funding and sheer determination.

“When I'm 60 years old, I would like to look back and  say I have fought the good fight, finished the race, and have no regrets."

Photo credit: Stefan Els

The African Union's animal production wing, Interafrican Bureau for Animal Resources (AU-IBAR) honoured top African animal geneticists for their contribution to a number of Pan-African initiatives and projects across the continent. Among them was Stellenbosch University's own Prof Kennedy Dzama, Faculty of AgriSciences Deputy dean: Research, Innovation and Postgraduate studies. Professor Dzama was recognized for his outstanding contribution to the development of the Animal Genetic Resources Characterization, Inventory and Monitoring (AnGR-CIM) tool for Africa, contributing to the new book on Status and Trends of Animal Genetic Resources in Africa. He serves on the Panel of Experts that advises AU-IBAR on matters relating to animal genetic resources. He has authored many technical reports and policy briefs for AU-IBAR. Professor Dzama is a leading authority on animal genetics in Southern Africa via the SADC Food, Agriculture and Natural Resources and CCARDESA. He is currently involved in the development of the regional strategic plan for sustainable utilization of animal genetic resources which is aligned to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.

The Head of AU-IBAR's Animal Genetic Resources Project, Dr Edward Nengomasha, in his remarks during the awards ceremony outlined Prof Dzama's untiring efforts in his work in support of the various projects in this domain in Southern Africa in particular and on the African continent in general. Doctor Nengomasha emphasized the new approach championed by Prof Dzama where livelihoods, food security and innovation took center stage in African Animal Genetic Resources arena.

The presentation of the awards coincided with the launch of the Official State of Farm Animal Genetic Resources in Africa, at a gala dinner. Guest speakers at the gala dinner were the African Union's Commissioner of Rural Economy and Agriculture, H.E. Josefa Leonel Correia Sacko, and the Kenyan Minister of Agriculture, Livestock, Fisheries and Irrigation, Mr Mwangi Kiunjuri. The event was also graced by ministers of Agriculture and Livestock from several AU member states.

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A research project at the Department of Forest and Wood Science on alternative management regimes for South Africa's saw-log trees recently received a huge boost from a successful THRIP funding application to the government's Department of Trade and Industry. The project will receive  R8.1 million over 3 years with industry and government each contributing about half of the cost. Three PhD and eight MSc students are supported in this project which will range from basic research activities on tree physiology to the development of decision support models for managing saw-log plantations. The main commercial partners are represented by the industry organisation Forestry South Africa (FSA) with the Hans Merensky Foundation also providing funding.

According to dr. Brand Wessels, adjustments in the management regimes of South African grown saw-log resources as well as genetic tree improvement resulted in profound changes in the wood properties of pine and eucalypt trees in South Africa. Many forestry companies growing pine saw logs decreased the plantation rotation age from close to 30 years to less than 23 years over the last two decades. One of the consequences of lower rotation ages is lower stiffness of lumber products which is problematic for structural lumber producers. It is possible to improve the stiffness of lumber of most of our pines by applying higher planting densities. In fact, wood and lumber properties could be manipulated through a number of interventions including genetic selection, rotation ages, and silvicultural management options such as planting density and thinning. Each of these interventions has cost and value influences that can be complex to analyse. For instance, increased planting density increase the stiffness and value of lumber end products, but it will also increase the planting cost, harvesting cost, and result in lower diameter trees. The primary objective of this project is to create a decision support framework, using software tools, for saw-log growers and processors which will assist them to maximize the financial returns over the full saw-log value chain. The focus will be on finding optimal solutions in terms of rotation age, planting density, and thinning ages and intensity while providing wood material with acceptable properties. 

​The Department of Forest and Wood Science has formed a strategic and fully funded partnership with SAPPI, Mondi and York through the formation of a specialised Forestry Operations Research Unit (FOR). It is headed by Simon Ackerman, former research scientist at the Institute for Commercial Forestry Research. Ackerman is a widely respected researcher and brings an extensive research network to FOR and the industry which will be to the benefit of all the industry partners. FOR became an entity as from the beginning of July last year and will be part of the Forest Engineering/Operations discipline in the Department of Forest and Wood Science.

FOR will concentrate on high level research and will complement SU's long-standing collaboration with the Forestry Industry. It will take advantage of new disruptive technologies and analytical methodologies, in the form of “Big Data analytics," to aid decision making within the forestry supply chain.

FOR's main objectives include research on compartment characterisation and the effect on end of rotation processes and the forestry value chain; fulfilling the role as South African co-ordinator at the EU 2020 Tech4Effect initiative and maintaining the partnership with NIBIO through the project, and continuing to contribute to the management and execution of the productivity improvement initiative developed by SU in 2015. FOR will also serve as a resource base for testing trending technology and techniques, and will address shorter-term research questions from industry partners.

Wood has been essential to mankind for thousands of years for building, as fuel, for making tools, and for a myriad of other purposes. In recent times, its usefulness has changed. It is also used for things like the production of purified cellulose and its derivatives, such as cellophane. But how do trees form wood? More specifically, how do Eucalyptus or gum trees form their wood as they grow and mature under different circumstances and conditions? Such questions will be answered through research to be conducted through the newly established Hans Merensky Research Chair in Advanced Modelling of Eucalyptus Wood Formation (or EucXylo). Based in the Department of Wood and Forestry Sciences at Stellenbosch University, EucXylo is funded by the Hans Merensky Foundation.

The contract formalising the ten year-initiative was signed in May 2019 by Dr Khotso Mokhele, president of the board of trustees of the Hans Merensky Foundation, and Prof Eugene Cloete, vice-rector: research, innovation and postgraduate studies at Stellenbosch University.

The lead researcher is Dr David Drew, Senior Lecturer in the SU Department of Forest and Wood Science (DFWS). He will collaborate closely with scientists in the Faculties of Agrisciences and Science at SU, along with a number of leading international researchers.

The initiative provides co-funding for new laboratory facilities and research equipment in the Department of Forest and Wood Science, and allows for the appointment of a new technical staff member. The first group of postdoctoral students and postdoctoral fellows to be supported through the Chair is expected to commence their work in 2020. In the first five-year phase, six postgraduate students (M.Sc. and PhD) will be funded along with at least two postdoctoral fellows.

Xylogenesis, or the formation of wood

According to Dr Drew, the process by which trees form wood is of global significance and cannot be under-estimated.

“Wood formation, technically known as xylogenesis, is fundamental to the fixing of carbon dioxide into the stable, valuable and beautiful material we call wood, and to the production of our planet's increasingly important renewable timber resources," he explains.

According to Dr Drew, xylogenetic studies are a niche field of research pursued by only a relatively small number of scientists internationally. Most of them work in the northern hemisphere on poplar, softwood species and small “model" plant species.

He says there are very good reasons why the research chair focuses on eucalypts in particular: “Eucalyptus or gum trees are arguably the world's most widely planted hardwood forest species. Its wood is used for a wide variety of purposes, ranging from pulp to solid wood for construction.

Dr Drew says that great progress has been made in South Africa by colleagues at the University of Pretoria on the molecular genetics of wood formation in eucalypts.

“In our program, however, we will focus on understanding and modelling the processes of wood formation of Eucalyptus in the context of the physiology of the whole plant," he notes.

He adds that the research chair is in keeping with the inspiring legacy of geologist and agricultural pioneer Dr Hans Merensky. After successfully locating many large mineral deposits across South Africa (including diamonds, platinum and gold), he successfully established commercial plantations of Eucalyptus in especially the northern parts of the country.

Research outputs

Work done through the EucXylo Chair will aim to develop an evolving, inter-connected set of models of how Eucalyptus wood forms. Studies into the factors that influence wood formation will, among other foci, explore how trees respond to periodic cycles of drought.

“This will be done through a range of projects by postgraduate students, postdoctoral fellows and academics that will employ cutting edge, high precision measurement techniques, combined with intensive sampling and laboratory analyses," explains Dr Drew. “These insights will be the basis by which researchers in the project continually build and improve predictive models at multiple scales."

He says the models will be incorporated into a software-based simulation framework, which is envisaged to become a platform for scientific collaboration and the generation of new hypotheses and ideas within South Africa and around the world.

Background about Dr David Drew:

• Dr David Drew is an alumnus of the Department of Forest and Wood Sciences at Stellenbosch University, having received the degree BSc (Forest Science) in 1999.
• While working for the Council for Science and Industrial Research (CSIR) Dr Drew completed his MSc (Biology) at the (then) University of Natal.  It was in this research that his passion was sparked for wood formation.
• He received a PhD from Monash University in Australia in 2009 for research that described and predicted variations in temporal growth and wood properties in Eucalyptus trees.
• He joined the staff of Stellenbosch University to lecture forest management in 2015, after working for several years as a research scientist in Hobart (Tasmania) at CSIRO, Australia's national science agency.

​Further information:

• The Hans Merensky Foundation was set up in 1949 by geologist and agriculturalist Dr Hans Merensky to realise his charitable objectives. For more information: www.hmfoundation.co.za.
• The Department of Forest and Wood Sciences at Stellenbosch University is the only university in South Africa offering a comprehensive four-year BSc degree programme in both Forest Science and Wood Product Science, thus covering the entire forestry value chain. It is also the only tertiary institution in South Africa providing an educational offering at BSc, MSc and PhD levels in both Forest and Natural Resource and Wood Products Science. The Department strives to produce versatile managers and researchers for the wood processing and timber growing industries with the skills to manage and understand all the intricacies of technology transfer. 
  

​Front row: Yenealem Wubishet, Martina Meincken, Tenele Dlamini, Andreas Krause

Back row: James Acheampong, Goran Schmidt, Tefera Endalamaw, Amsalu Mossissa, Bright Asante, Marco de Angelis

The project aims to produce building materials for affordable housing.

The target materials are wood plastic composites and wood-cement composites, utilising only waste materials (recycled plastic, fly ash from coal power plants) and wood from invasive trees.

These materials can be used for insulation, flooring, cupboards, as well as structural components.

​​From South Africa's indigenous Southern Cape forests to Tanzania, from the Miombo woodland in Zambia to North Ethiopia and West Africa – that's where their research has taken six new graduates of the Department of Forest and Wood Science at Stellenbosch University (SU). They are Dr Philip Crafford and Dr GP Scheepers of South Africa, Dr Francis Munalula of Zambia, Dr Amani Jackson of Tanzania, Dr Haile Wale of Ethiopia, and Dr Abiodun Alawode of Nigeria.

The six PhD graduates have all successfully pursued their individual dreams of completing their doctorates during the 2018 academic year – a new record for the Department. Collectively, they symbolize something more – the pursuit to expand and strengthen the knowledge base of researchers and managers working in the forest and wood sector in Africa.

“Over the past decade, the SU Department of Forest and Wood Science has committed itself to increasing both its teaching and research outputs. It is therefore very satisfying to see students graduating, and in record numbers at that," says Dr Brand Wessels, chair of the Department of Forest and Wood Science.

Stellenbosch University is the only university in South Africa offering a comprehensive four-year BSc degree programme in both Forest Science and Wood Product Science, thus covering the entire forestry value chain. It is also the only tertiary institution in South Africa providing an educational offering at BSc, MSc and PhD levels in both Forest and Natural Resource and Wood Products Science. 

There are currently 135 undergraduate students and 35 postgraduate students in the Department of Forest and Wood Science, of whom 12 are working towards completing their PhDs.

“Our emphasis is on producing versatile managers and researchers for the wood processing and timber growing industries with the skills to manage and understand all the intricacies of technology transfer," says Dr Wessels. “This provides our graduates with fantastic career opportunities and allows them to diversify in other related industries."

Climate change studies

“We serve a sector that is of critical importance to one of the greatest challenges of our time – climate change," notes Dr Wessels. “As a Department we'd like to ensure that more research is done about the effects and mitigation of climate change in the forestry sector, and that we are able to train experts that can play a role in this regard."

To this end, the PhD in Wood Product Science completed by Dr Francis Munalula is of interest. He assessed whether changing climatic conditions and extreme events, such as droughts, have any influence on how three hardwood species commonly found in the Zambian Miombo woodlands grow.

The studied species were the Msasa or zebrawood tree (Brachystegia spiciformis), the wild syringa (Burkea Africana) and the Mupopa or Mutobo tree (Isoberlinia angolensis).

All were found to be resilient enough to withstand the effects of reduced rainfall and increased temperature. However, significant differences were found in the anatomical properties of wood from drier sites and in wood formed during very dry years.

“This will have a noticeable effect on the quality of wood, explains Dr Munalula.

As part of his study, he developed a model to predict how the anatomical properties of these tree species will change, given the variations in the climate that can be expected over the next fifty years.

Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and forest degradation, plus the sustainable management of forests and the conservation and enhancement of forest carbon stocks (REDD+), is an essential part of the global efforts to mitigate climate change, which is supported by the United Nations.

As part of his PhD in Forest Science, Dr Amani Jackson studied the perceptions of community members in the Kilosa District in Tanzania about whether participatory land use plans support the effective manage and conservation of local village land forest reserves.

His results once again underline how important it to use participatory processes when creating awareness and striving for community engagement when implementing such large-scale plans such as REDD+.

“This will ultimately enhance forest management and conservation," he notes. “To ensure community buy-in, it is important that the REDD+ initiative provides other benefits too, and not only carbon financing."

Closer look at forests

Dr GP Scheepers investigated factors that influence the reaction of semi-mature pines planted in the Tsitsikamma region of the Southern Cape to the use of fertilizer. He completed his studies in Forest Science by monitoring eight experimental stands of Pinus elliottii and Pinus elliotii x caribaea. Among others he took note of the influence of climatic conditions, the characteristics of the soil and the availability of water, nitrogen and phosphorus in the soil.

He found that soil with a too high/too low pH level lost its natural ability to mineralise nitrogen – an aspect needed so that plants can optimally take up fertilisers. The volume of water in the soil did not limit the growth of trees.

Dr Scheepers says indicators such as the levels of soil nitrogen, anaerobically incubated nitrogen and aerobically incubated phosphorus should be considered when planning silviculture activities.

“I hope findings help forest managers in the Tsitsikamma region to greatly improve the effectiveness of their fertilizer regimes," he notes.

For his PhD, Dr Haile Wale used analytical tools to gauge the ecological status of three Afromontane forests in north-western Ethiopia that have not yet been studied in detail. The forests are Alem Saga, Gelawudiwos and Tara Gedam.

He collected plant species from 150 plots and noted how the soil conditions, altitude and slope differed in each of these areas. He collected information on the species that occur together, and environmental factors, such as the availability of light and litter that play a role in how well they grow.

“The study provided basic ecological information on the species growing in the area and can guide better sustainable resource management and the conservation of these forests," Dr Wale believes.

Timber and adhesives

Formaldehyde-based adhesives made from non-renewable petrochemical sources are widely used in the production of wood composite products, because of their superior performance properties. However, it is known to hold serious health risks, and therefore it is important for the industry to consider alternative wood adhesives.

To this end, Dr Abiodun Alawode of Nigeria tested whether the seed kernels of two species of African or wild mango, Irvingia gabonensis and Irvingia wombolu could be used as an eco-friendly wood adhesive.

“The results indicate that Irvingia-based wood adhesives have comparable performance properties with formaldehyde-based wood adhesives and could be considered as an eco-friendly raw material from which to make wood adhesive," explains Dr Alawode, who obtained a PhD in Wood Product Science.  

For further information about the Department, visit http://www.sun.ac.za/english/faculty/agri/forestry or contact Dr Brand Wessels at cbw@sun.ac.za

Main photo caption: At the April graduation ceremony of Stellenbosch University, Dr Philip Crafford, Dr Abiodun Alawode, Dr Francis Munalula and Dr Haile Wale received doctorates.

Dr Amani Jackson

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Prof Danie Brink, dean of the Faculty of AgriSciences at Stellenbosch University, congratulated Dr GP Scheepers.

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A team of six senior Department of Forest and Wood Science students once again represented Stellenbosch University at the 2018 International Wood Supply Game. Despite tough competition from very experienced teams across the world, the Maties managed a very credible third place out of seven teams.  In fact, they only missed the second spot by two points out of roughly 500.

The Game was created in 2000 to simulate the operations in the forest product supply chain.  In the forest industry, the value creation cycle from forest to end customer is long and complex. Each enterprise in the value creation network is an independent decision making unit and this can result in a lack of synchronization of operations. Information is an important tool when managing the value creation network. Incomplete and incorrect information causes delivery problems and customer dissatisfaction. The Game simulates operations in the forest product supply chain in order to demonstrate the dynamics at work in the value creation network and shows the importance of information sharing.

Each game is played with a maximum of seven people, each responsible for the management of one enterprise in the network. Each round in the game represents one week and each game is between 25 and 50 weeks long. The supply chain is represented by different downstream business units of the end customer and the divergent nature of the forest products industry supply chain is simulated in the game with players trying to minimize inventory and backorder costs.

Universities represented at this year's game were Sweden Agricultural University, University of Laval (x2), Stellenbosch University, the University of Helsinki and the University of Zayed, UAE.  Thanks to Prof. Ackerman and the organizing committee for the opportunity, as well as Jacques Malan for being instrumental in developing the team strategy.

Image: All Eyes on the Screen - The Maties Team: (FLTR) Zimbili Sibiya, Ashlee Prins, Jacques Malan (captain), Marius Terblanche, Hugo Lambrecht, Prof. Pierre Ackerman and Mr Simon Ackerman. Missing: Trevor van Groeningen and Ben van Heerden