Newsroom - Potchefstroom Campus

NWU researchers help map the way forward for hydrogen in South Africa

The Earth is in trouble. It is suffocating under clouds of carbon dioxide emissions from the use of coal and other environmentally damaging resources to generate energy. These emissions are the primary cause of global warming, and if humanity wants to avoid the worst consequences of global warming*, we have to find alternatives for our energy needs.

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Anja sets her sights on early detection of kidney disease in young South Africans

The earlier kidney disease is detected, the more effectively it can be treated. Anja Degenaar, a master’s student in physiology at the North-West University (NWU), has set out to identify the biomarkers which will indicate deteriorating kidney function in young South Africans, ensuring early detection and treatment.

“The global prevalence of chronic kidney disease (CKD) is becoming an increasing concern, especially since CKD is expected to be the fifth leading cause of mortality by the year 2040,” she says.

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Historical collection sheds light on life in German internment camp

Willie du Plessis

Taken prisoner, isolated from loved ones and incarcerated with thousands of others in lice-infested camps.

This was the reality for many German men living in South Africa and South West Africa during the Second World War, when the government of former Prime Minister Jan Smuts held them in internment camps.

A new donation to the North-West University’s (NWU’s) Library Services focuses on what life was like for these men during their incarceration.

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NWU to host Hockey World Cup in April at last

Bertie Jacobs

It is no joke. From 1 April, the North-West University (NWU) will host the 2022 Women's FIH Hockey Junior World Cup at the Astroturf fields in Potchefstroom.

This is the ninth time the event has been presented, and it would have taken place in December, but the Omicron variant of the Covid-19 virus put paid to those plans.

Now, 16 teams comprising the best under-21 hockey players on the planet will come together next to the Mooi River from 1 to 12 April.

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Economic growth is a welcome rebound

South Africa’s economic growth of 1,2% in the fourth quarter of 2021 has yielded an overall positive gross domestic product (GDP) growth of 4,9% in 2021, which is a welcome rebound in the economy after the devastating -6,4% growth in 2020.

According to Prof Raymond Parsons, economist from the Business School of the North-West University (NWU), half the sectors in the economy, especially mining and agriculture, made positive contributions to the economic recovery in the final quarter of the year.

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NWU hosts SASCOC indaba

The North-West University (NWU) hosted the SASCOC High Performance Indaba at the Sports Village between 9 and 11 February 2022. SASCOC used this strategic planning session to review the performance of the Olympic and other elite teams over the past five years, and finalise a strategic plan for the next few Olympic cycles.

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