Mandela Uni’s FameLab SA winner explores groundbreaking Cancer research.
In an inspiring showcase of science communication, Lutho Lange emerged as the 2025 Nelson Mandela University FameLab South Africa heat winner, impressing judges and audiences alike, with her compelling research into nanotechnology and cancer treatment.
FameLab is a competition challenging young researchers, to explain their work to the public, in just three minutes. Lutho, a final year MSc student in the Pharmacy department under the Department of Science and Innovation (DSI)-nanomedicine platform, captivated with her clear and passionate delivery, making complex science effortlessly accessible.
Lutho now heads to the FameLab SA semi-finals which will be held in Pretoria later this year. The semi-final winner will be flown to Switzerland to compete internationally.
Mandela University’s Science Oscar Finalists dominate the IT sector
For over two decades, the National Science and Technology Forum (NSTF) Awards widely known as South Africa’s’Science Oscars‘ have celebrated individuals, teams, and organisations whose work has significantly advanced science, engineering, technology, and innovation (SETI) in the country.
This year, four exceptional minds from Nelson Mandela University have been named among the finalists, highlighting the institution’s growing impact in shaping a more innovative, inclusive, and socially responsive future through research and leadership.
Prof Darelle van Greunen, Director of the Centre for Community Technologies (CCT) at Nelson Mandela University, is among the finalists and has been recognised in the Science Diplomacy for Africa Award category.
“It’s exciting, humbling, and deeply meaningful. It’s not about me. It’s about the team. And this recognition proves that our work matters not just in South Africa, but across the whole continent,”she said, emphasising the collective nature of this achievement.
Alumni Awards celebrate legacy of transformation, resilience and excellence
From rural classrooms and township rooftops to global boardrooms and international stages, the 2025 Nelson Mandela University Alumni Awards honoured 12 remarkable graduates whose stories speak not only to success – but to the enduring legacy of transformation, excellence and service that defines the institution.
Now in its 15th year, the Alumni Awards recognise outstanding personal and professional achievements of graduates who are living the values of Nelson Mandela University and its predecessor institutions – a belief in education as a liberatory tool, being in the service of society and creating impact that reaches far beyond the self.
“This year’s recipients reflect what it truly means to use education not only to rise, but to uplift others,” said Alumni Relations Director, Paul Geswindt.
“Their lives are stories of perseverance, purpose and profound care – for their communities, their professions, and for the futures they are helping to build.”
In honouring its alumni, the University also pays tribute to the rich legacy of its founding institutions – the former University of Port Elizabeth (UPE), Port Elizabeth Technikon and Vista University (PE Campus) – each of which contributed to the tapestry of transformation that is now Mandela University.
Mandela University academics appointed to PanSALB board
Humanities lecturers in the Applied Linguistics and Languages and Literatures Departments, Drs Johannes Sibeko and Paulette Coetzee, were recently appointed to the Eastern Cape Provincial Language Committee (ECPLC).
The ECPLC is one of the provincial bodies under the Pan South African Language Board (PanSALB).
PanSALB, a statutory board established to promote the development and use of all official languages, including the Khoe, Nama, and San languages, as well as South African Sign Language, operates under the mandate of the Constitution.
Its focus is on protecting language rights, advancing multilingualism, and supporting research and language development through its provincial offices and national language bodies.
Dr Sibeko (right) shared that the five-year appointment is a meaningful recognition of the role academics, particularly in the fields of language and digital humanities, can play in shaping national discourse on language equity and justice.
Weideman keen to extend golden run at USSA karate champs
Gqeberha karateka Luchay Weideman hopes to kick on from where she left off 12 months ago when she puts her body on the line at the University Sports South Africa tournament later this month.
Sisters Adré Weideman, left, and Luchay are members of the Madibaz semi-contact team who will compete at the USSA karate tournament in Durban on June 28 and 29.
The Mandela University student claimed four of her team’s 18 gold medals at the 2024 edition and is confident she can deliver a similarly impressive performance.
“My goal is to maintain that standard, both personally and for the team,” the 22-year-old said last week.
“Achieving that level of success does bring added pressure but I see it as a privilege to be in that position.”
The human movement science student is well aware that each year brings new opposition and, with it, new challenges.
“It motivates me to work harder and to find new ways to elevate my performance,” Weideman, who is currently studying towards her Master’s, explained.
From a wobble to cum laude, missing middle student triumphs thanks to a bursary
When Thabiso “Touch” Erasmus graduated with a BA degree cum laude from Nelson Mandela University, , his family were not there in person to share in the joy of his achievement. Quite simply, the nine-hour drive from their home in Matatiele in the northern part of the Eastern Cape to Gqeberha was just too costly. However, his father and younger sister made it to his media studies honours graduation this year.
His family’s absence at the previous graduation is just one way of illustrating what it means to be a “missing-middle” student in South Africa, the term for those who fall into a perilous financial gap.
Erasmus did not qualify for the government’s National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS). To qualify, requires an annual family income of less than R350 000. His mother is a high school teacher, his father is a self-employed insurance broker receive an income more than the NSFAS requirement but not enough to pay for their children’s university studies.
However, judging by his consistency in obtaining distinctions in all his subjects, Erasmus is clearly worthy of being at university. In fact, the BA degree that he obtained in 2023 was his second degree at Mandela University, his first was a BSc in Environmental Sciences, received in 2019. His family made sacrifices and paid for his studies. “They took out a series of loans and at the end my mother had to pay back a lot of money. I also had to get a job to assist her,” he says.
Erasmus’ initial passion to become a zoologist was replaced by a new one, when he met a group of friends who were studying media at Mandela University. He became hooked on to this field, helping them with their activities.