Alumnus appointed as SA head coach
Madibaz Hockey manager and men's coach Cheslyn Gie (Sports Administration and Marketing) ’98 has been appointed as head coach of the SA men's team until the end of the FIH Hockey World Cup in 2026.
Last year, he served as interim coach at the Nations Cup, where the team won gold, and reprised his role at the Hockey World Cup in India in January.
His first journey at the helm will be the upcoming Road to Paris Olympic qualifying event.
Congratulations Cheslyn Gie.
Rare honour for computing sciences professor
A Nelson Mandela University professor has been selected as one of two African mentors for an elite global mentorship programme.
Prof Brenda Scholtz (MSc ’08), a lecturer in the computing sciences department at NMU, was also invited to be among a trio of panellists selected from 44 international mentors at the MIS Quarterly Scholarly Development programme earlier this year.
The programme will be offered as intensive virtual contact sessions, hosted throughout the academic year.
The programme supports emerging academics and researchers under the umbrella of the academic journal, MIS Quarterly, which publishes articles on computer science applications, information systems, information systems and management, and management information system.
In photo: Prof Brenda Scholtz with one of her mentees, Dr Anthea van der Hoogen Read more here: University News
Gqeberha art masters shared lifetime of experience
Legendary artists Lizo Pemba and Dolla Sapeta (Dip: Fine Art ’00) have teamed up and shared the craft of their art as part of the South African Cultural Observatory (SACO) capacity building workshop series.
SACO is a project of the South African Department of Sports, Arts and Culture, hosted by the Nelson Mandela University in partnership with Rhodes, KwaZulu-Natal and Fort Hare Universities.
New Brighton is a cauldron of creativity and resistance that continues to incubate artists and academics alike. Creative stalwarts, Lizo Pemba and Mxolisi Dolla Sapeta are case in point.
In February the duo – among the most respected artists from the famous Port Elizabeth township – joined forces to reflect on their creative and artistic journey and their approach to practice.
Geophysics research poster award for honours student
Francois Swanepoel, (BSc ’22), a Geosciences honours student at Mandela University, recently won the “best research poster” at the 17th biannual South African Geophysical Association conference.
The conference connects leading geoscientists and the industry to discuss emerging advancements in the field of geophysics. Francois’s research centres around designing and building an early warning system for geological hazards using both electronic and optical sensors.
At the conference he competed against honours, masters, and PhD level students from across the country to come out on top.
Referring to the recent catastrophic events in Turkey and Syria, he explains how fibre optics can be used as instruments for the detection of earthquakes.
Geoscience student leads learners to international awards
Geosciences postgraduate student, Bamanye Takashe (BScHons ’21), was instrumental in guiding two high school learners to winning medals at the prestigious Eskom Expo International Science Fair (ISF) held recently.
This annual event offers ambitious young scientists an opportunity to exhibit their ground-breaking research projects.
The two Gqeberha learners, Olwam Sakata and Liyema Vandala from Ndzondelelo High School in Zwide, both won gold medals in the regional finals and went on to win gold and silver respectively at the ISF.
A total of 253 South African young scientists competed alongside 17 international participants from Brazil, Ghana, Kenya, Lesotho, Mexico, Mozambique, Turkey and Zimbabwe. The title sponsor, Eskom, sponsored 27 full-time bursaries for recipients to study electrical engineering at a South African university of their choice.
Master's student in Applied Languages selected to attend Global Peace Summit
Nelson Mandela University Master's student in Applied Languages Tsakani Shilowe has been selected as one of 150 participants across the world to attend the Global Peace Summit in Kenya 2023 from 9 to 12 February 2023.
Tsakani believes that the Global Peace Chain vision is similar to our University themes and her research interests and that contributed to her selection to attend.
She completed her undergraduate and honours qualifications at Mandela University and her research interests are African Language and Cultural Preservation. “My heart is for equality, Inclusion, and diversity, everyone remaining who they are regardless of the language they speak, their culture, or their social status, or even their skin tone”, Tsakani says.