Phosphate mining of the seabed, known as bulk marine sediment mining, has never been done anywhere in the world and is a major concern for leading marine scientists worldwide. Yet South Africa is about to become the testing ground. Despite significant objections, the Department of Mineral Resources has granted three rights to prospect for marine [...]
This is the question addressed in a report released yesterday, titled ‘South Africa’s Technical Readiness to Support the Shale Gas Industry’, commissioned and funded by the Department of Science and Technology (DST). The report, produced by the Academy of Science of South Africa (ASSAf), with inputs from a panel of leading South African and international [...]
The first time I visited the village of Hamburg in the Eastern Cape where the Keiskamma Music Academy is based, I was told about a man who traverses the coastal dunes on foot at night, creating patterns with his footprints in the sand. I was not at all sure if he was real but the [...]
Heather Dugmore speaks to Wits alumnus Koos Bekker about communication, China and transition. Markets ebb and flow, but one constant that Naspers Chair Koos Bekker understands is that people need to connect with one another and the world. “Communication technology has transformed the globe in two short decades,” he says. “For example: of the businesses [...]
Wits alumnus and SRC President (2010/11), Mukovhe Morris Masutha, is helping hundreds of students from rural areas and townships throughout South Africa to succeed at university. Mukovhe Masutha well deserves the title of Wits Graduate – his qualities of commitment, humanity and intelligence extend far beyond himself and his achievements. In 2010, while he was [...]
Heritage. Whose heritage? Why preserve Heritage? These are major issues in contemporary South Africa and something that Wits alumnus James Ball (BA Hons 2011; MA 2012) daily explores. “Joburg is my spiritual home. I love this city. I love walking the streets, exploring the city and finding its hidden heritage secrets,” says James Ball, [...]
Michael Elions polycarbonate artwork of Sunglasses, dedicated to Nelson Mandela, at Sea Point, Cape Town. The piece controversially co-funded by Ray-Ban is considered to be in poor taste by some. Image Jayne Haywood. 21.03.15 - Rhythms of South Africa Perceptions of South Africa wildly fluctuate from hope and excitement to fear and [...]
Nic Kohler, Wits alumnus (BSc 1993) and the CEO of the Hollard Insurance Group, talks to Heather Dugmore about alpine challenges and the need for business and capitalism to change. We all know that accident and health insurance is really only tested in complex, bizarre situations, and who better to attest to this than Nic [...]
40 years of talent and revelation The year was 1976, the month was June, and as the Market Theatre prepared for its eagerly awaited opening on 19 June, the national youth uprising exploded on 16 June. It is forever branded on our minds through Sam Nzima's image of Hector Pieterson. In memory of June 1976 and in [...]
SHOULD MEAT BE ON THE MENU? In an interview by Heather Dugmore Australian agricultural journalist David Mason-Jones addresses what every farmer and environmentalist needs to know about livestock and global warming in his recently published book ‘Should meat be on the menu?’ The cattle industry in South Africa and many other parts of the world [...]
