The North-West University (NWU) is showcasing its impactful research projects and programmes during its biennial Research and Innovation Week.

This year’s theme is “Research and innovation for sustainable impact”. The event is taking place from 18 to 22 September.

Research and Innovation Week is organised by the NWU’s Research Support department, in collaboration with faculties. They also use the event to conduct roadshows across campuses, taking research support services to the users.

By Menziwa Msibi

North-West University (NWU) academics Thomas Erlank (tenor) and Prof Tinus Botha (piano) represented the School of Music in a performance of one of Schubert’s great vocal masterpieces, Schwanengesang (swan song).

The performance took place on Sunday, 10 September at 13:00 at the NWU Conservatory Hall in Potchefstroom.

Coert Visser, an honours student in human resource management at the North-West University (NWU), recently won third place at the Marius Meyer South African Board for People Practises (SABPP) Excellence Awards.

This award programme underscores the importance of human resource management within organisations, and also celebrates and acknowledges the outstanding achievements of students in the field.

The goal of the North-West University (NWU) to promote diversity and inclusion among students, staff and other stakeholders now includes Gender Awareness Week as a critical component.

Gender Awareness Week took place online and it was hosted by Dr Louise Postma, senior lecturer, and Dr Annamagriet de Wet, both from the Potchefstroom Campus. The campaign ran from 7 to 11 August across all three campuses of the university. The focus of the subject this year was the gender galaxy. The beginning of the week featured guest speakers who encouraged and educated the attendees.

The IRB Rugby World Cup (RWC) kicks off on Friday, 8 September when the host nation, France, takes on three-time champions New Zealand, as these sides clash in Stade de France, Saint-Denis. As always, the world will be watching. The previous tournament – which South Africa won – was held in Japan in 2019 and was the most-watched rugby event in the history of the game, with more than 857 million people tuning in from around the globe.

and Vukosi Mathale

Skills can be learned, tactics can be taught, fitness can be drilled, but there is no substitute for “heart”. The North-West University (NWU) Eagles’ Varsity Netball team has this heart not in spades, but in enough buckets to fill a truck.

On Monday, 11 September, coach Elsunet du Plessis’s team will square off against UJ in the semi-final of the Varsity Cup competition, having finished second on the overall log after undefeated UP-Tuks.

The better-than-expected gross domestic product (GDP) growth of 0,6% in the second quarter of 2023 is welcome news, as it has extended its gains for a second consecutive time.

Prof Raymond Parsons, economist from the North-West University (NWU) Business School, says this demonstrates a noteworthy degree of resilience in the economy. This has mainly been the outcome of more moderate Eskom blackouts in June compared with April and May, together with other mitigating factors that helped to generate better growth figures.

The eight-year-old Byderhand project of the subject group Creative Writing at the North-West University has been selected to form part of an international hypertext creation exhibition that will take place in Rome soon.

“This is singular international recognition for the subject group Creative Writing, and particularly for the garden-verses arm of the Byderhand project in the Karoo Desert National Botanical Garden,” says Prof Bernard Odendaal.

Exhibition offers a glance at hypertext works of more than three decades

On 17 August, Professor Marius Smit from the Faculty of Education delivered his inaugural lecture, titled The symphony of seeds and harvest – harmonising the law, policy, and interventions to cultivate quality education.

In his lecture Prof Smit said that the harmonisation and proper robust application of the law, good policies and interventions can orchestrate an education system that will improve the quality of education in the country.

He illustrated this by highlighting the following points: