Potchefstroom Campus News

Researchers demonstrate that conservation and development can go hand in hand

While cities in Africa expand rapidly and the pressure for economic growth is increasing, the protected areas on the continent face a complex challenge: how to conserve nature and empower people.

At the North-West University (NWU) the Protected Areas Research Group, led by Prof. Reece Alberts, Prof. François Retief, Prof. Claudine Roos and Prof. Dirk Cilliers, is working to find exactly that balance.

“Conservation areas are the cornerstone of biodiversity conservation,” says Prof. Alberts. “They are essential to prevent the loss in biodiversity. Yet, we have to admit that… Read more

NWU Tawana looking for an improved 2022/2023 season

You cannot keep a good man down. Michael Seleka, football manager and head coach of the NWU Tawana at the North-West University’s (NWU) campus in Potchefstroom, sounds dejected as he gives a recap of his team’s performance in the SAFA ABC Motsepe League. The NWU Tawana ended their 2021/2022 campaign in a disappointing…

NWU mourns the passing of Prof Barry Hanyane

It is with great sadness that the North-West University (NWU) has learned about the passing of lecturer and political analyst, associate professor Barry Rhulani Hanyane.

He died on Wednesday, 11 May at the Netcare Milpark Hospital in Johannesburg after being sick for some time.

Prof Hanyane from the Faculty of Humanities’ School…

NWU Eagles Young Guns succumb to Tuks in final

Their senior counterparts may have left the Varsity Cup competition a bit prematurely, but the NWU Eagles Young Guns aimed to go all the way when they squared off against Tuks in Stellenbosch on Monday, 25 April. It was not to be. The team from Pretoria, doing what Pretoria-based teams seem to be doing in every conceivable rugby competition in…

Franco taking student life in his stride

It was love at first sight. Boy meets campus. In 2019, Franco van Dijk visited the North-West University (NWU) campus in Potchefstroom as part of a tour by his school choir.

“We saw a lot of the campus – it almost felt like an open day. I really liked what I saw and decided that this was where I wanted to go,” says Franco, who…

NWU Business School: Rises like a phoenix

Academia’s “best kept secret” is rising like a phoenix after the pandemic. The prestigious North-West University (NWU) Business School held a Brag & Brand function in Potchefstroom on Monday, 26 April that was attended by lecturers, staff and alumni.

Prof Linda du Plessis, acting vice-chancellor of the NWU, welcomed guests and said…

Student wins VC Medal with research on deep learning in space weather

Jacques Beukes of the MUST Deep Learning research group at the Faculty of Engineering is the 2021 winner of a North-West University (NWU) Vice-Chancellor’s Medal for his dissertation “Interpretability of deep neural networks for SYM-H prediction”. Eight vice-chancellor’s medals are awarded annually to the best master’s-degree students at the…

FIH Women’s Hockey Junior World Cup a huge success

Bertie Jacobs

The Netherlands won, but hockey triumphed. When the final whistle blew on Tuesday, 12 April, it was the Dutch fans who cheered and the players clad in orange who celebrated as the Netherlands beat Germany conclusively 3–1 in the final of the FIH Women’s Hockey Junior World Cup at the Astroturf of…

Visually impaired Cornelle and her guide dog Vogue graduate

Bertie Jacobs

“‘Vogue’, as in the magazine,” is how Cornelle Leach describes the name of her pitch-black Labrador bitch. Vogue, who excitedly barked at her very first tortoise in the Botanical Gardens the other day. Five-year-old Vogue who recently grabbed a small boy’s ice cream from…

NWU academic says back to basics for TB programmes

Phenyo Mokgothu

Deaths from Tuberculosis (TB) have increased globally for the first time in over a decade. This is according to the World Health Organisation’s Global TB Report that was released in October 2021. The increase in deaths is due to “reduced access to TB diagnosis and…

NWU academic walks away with SAIEE President’s Award

Mafumane Thlapi

Prof Leenta Grobler, an academic in the North-West University (NWU) Business School, was announced the recipient of the South African Institute of Electrical Engineers’ (SAIEE’s) President’s Award during the institute…