Exhibition draws line under colonial histories of Gqeberha
A new exhibition at the Bird Street Gallery, on Nelson Mandela University’s Bird Street Campus is drawing a line under the colonial histories of Makhanda and Gqeberha over the National Arts Festival.
Nelson Mandela University’s department of visual arts, in the faculty of humanities, presents land/lines, curated by visual arts lecturer Jonathan van der Walt and University of Pretoria Museum curator Uthando Baduza.
Their cross-gallery exhibition, now on at the Bird Street Gallery and simultaneously in the Atherstone Gallery in the 1820 Settlers Monument in Makhanda, emphasises the historical, geographical, cultural and spiritual significance of the Eastern Cape.
The innovative exhibitions feature 42 artworks, with two works by each artist or collective, one in each of the two colonial sites turned galleries, as part of the National Art Festival’s 2024 main curated programme.
Media include painting, photography, textile art, video and sculpture from 26 contributors.
Read full article here: Nelson Mandela University News
Architecture PhD student presents research on architecture and heritage conservation in China
Doctoral student in Architecture, Kawthar Jeewa, was invited to present her research at an international conference in China, based on her topic and methodology, rooted in the decolonisation of the discipline of architecture and community participation.
She was also selected from hundreds of applicants to participate in a two-day early-career scholars’ workshop.
The conference entitled “Towards Sustainable Rural-Urban Development of Human Settlement -The Asian-African Collaborative Network” was organised by the College of Architecture and Urban Planning at Tongji University in Shanghai, China. It was followed by an Urban Methodology Workshop.
Read full article here: Nelson Mandela University News
Looking at Cannabis Use Disorders in Africa
_1.jpg)
Amid the push for cannabis legalisation globally and the escalating drug use crisis in Africa, second year PhD student in the Department of Human Physiology at Nelson Mandela University, Musa Aminu, is pursuing critical research and awareness-raising about cannabis use disorders (CUD).
He was selected to participate in the prestigious Shango Fellowship which nurtures emerging thought leaders from Africa and focuses on decolonising African research and medicine development. Musa’s participation contributes to continent-wide discussions surrounding cannabis legalisation and cannabis-associated psychological, sociological and neurological disorders.
“I am looking at the cellular and molecular processes of cannabis use, especially in people who suffer from depression and anxiety or have a history of mental illness as they are more susceptible to coming down with CUD,” Aminu explains. The aim is to understand how these disorders impact each other and to delineate the pathways of the condition in the brain, then to use the knowledge to come up with treatments.”
Read full article here: Nelson Mandela University News
International exchange for Mandela University student entrepreneurs
Student Women Economic Empowerment Programme (SWEEP) chairpersons, Nelisiwe Sishange and Phuthego Nthoke, have been nominated to represent Nelson Mandela University on a UK residential knowledge exchange study from 25 May to 1 June.
Supported by Entrepreneurship Development in Higher Education (EDHE) and the British Council, the programme raises awareness of entrepreneurship among female students and graduates.
It also connects women with mentors from the UK and South Africa, to guide them on their entrepreneurial journey.
As a response to the realities of women’s under-representation in entrepreneurship and gender-based violence, the SWEEP programme aims to equip female students and graduates across public universities in SA for entrepreneurial activities.
Read full article here: Nelson Mandela University News
Master’s degree research focuses on Muslim consumers’ financial planning needs
Nelson Mandela University Financial Planning lecturer Raaiq Pandie's master’s degree study combined principles of Islamic finance and financial planning by assessing the Zakat literacy levels among South African Certified Financial Planner (CFP®) professionals. Raaiq recently graduated from the University with his master’s degree in business management (cum laude).
Raaiq Pandie (centre) together with his supervisors Dr Jasmine Kinsman (left) and Mukhtar Raban.
The South African Muslim community, historically marginalised from the formal economy, has sought financial solutions aligned with their religious beliefs.
Exclusion during apartheid hindered their access to mainstream financial services, resulting in a lack of products and services catering to Islamic principles.
This led to the introduction of Islamic finance in South Africa.
The foundation of Islamic finance is based on an eco-system that strives to balance social equality and finance by incorporating ethics and moral standards into all economic activities.
Read full article here: Nelson Mandela University News
Professor Rossouw von Solms honoured as #1 scholar in Information Security
ScholarGPS, the world’s most comprehensive and dynamic scholarly site, has ranked Emeritus Professor Rossouw von Solms from Nelson Mandela University as #1 scholar in the field of Information Security over his career (lifetime).
ScholarGPS applies various data science techniques to its massive database of over 200 million publications and 3 billion citations to rank over 30 million scholars and 55 000 institutions worldwide, Prof Rossouw says.
Highly Ranked Scholars, the top 0.05% in particular fields, disciplines and specialties, are the most productive (number of publications) authors, whose works are of profound impact (citations) and of utmost quality (h-index).