By Gofaone Motsamai

From the village of Leshobo in Taung to the corridors of leadership in the Free State’s Department of Agriculture, Ntombana Dlanga’s life story is one of effort, purpose and the impact of education.

Born and raised in a household led by a single mother who worked as a nursing assistant, Ntombana’s dreams of higher education seemed out of reach after she matriculated in 1997. “There was just no money for university,” she recalls. “So, I went into what I knew – hustling.”

As part of the flagship community engagement initiative of the North-West University (NWU), the bhive Enterprise Development Centre (EDC) at the Vanderbijlpark Campus hosted 50 members of the Vaal United Business Forum (VUBF) for a transformative lecture on entrepreneurship.

Centred around the principles of asset-based community development (ABCD), the session was both practical and empowering – designed to equip local business leaders with tools to drive growth using resources they already possess.

The North-West University (NWU) continues its commitment to inclusivity and support for students with disabilities, with the official handover of newly renovated, state-of-the-art offices to the Disability Rights Unit (DRU) on the Mahikeng Campus.

The handover ceremony, held on 21 July, homed in on the daily challenges of students living with disabilities.

Taxonomic immortality can take many forms. For Prof Louis du Preez of North-West University (NWU), it comes with a twist of humour and a splash of irony: a newly discovered parasite, Latergator louisdupreezi, now bears his name.

The Technology Transfer and Innovation Support (TTIS) office at the North-West University (NWU) recently hosted its first-ever SHAPE innovation impact events across all three campuses. These sessions occurred on 24 July in Potchefstroom, 25 July in Vanderbijlpark, and 28 July in Mahikeng.

Researchers from the faculties of Humanities, Education and Economic and Management Sciences assembled to explore ways to transform SHAPE research into high-impact projects for communities.

Generative artificial intelligence has learnt to mimic the divine. It now produces not only music, prose and images once thought uniquely human, but also digital deities: chatbots that speak in the first person as God. Christianity boasts AI Jesus, Virtual Jesus, Text with Jesus and Ask Jesus. Buddhism has Norbu AI, Islam has Brother Junaid.

Byline: Keaoleboga Motshabi

Bonolo “Miss Faith” Monaisa has transitioned from the student-run studios of NWU FM to the national platform of Motsweding FM, where she now serves as a content producer for SABC Educational Programmes.

Isaac Asimov, renowned science fiction author and professor of biochemistry, once said, “The human brain has been designed to absorb information. The computer has been designed to give it.” And now, at the North-West University (NWU) Library and Information Service (LIS), it gets a little help from three intelligent new friends — Lexi, Sebueng and Lebone.

At the North-West University (NWU), the Library and Information Service team recently took a break from books and databases to enjoy something a little more personal and playful — a series of sip-and-sketch sessions that brought together creativity and conversation.

Hosted on each of the NWU’s three campuses, the sessions started in Potchefstroom, moved on to Vanderbijlpark, and concluded in Mahikeng. Although traditional paintbrushes were nowhere to be found, participants fully embraced the moment with sketchpads, snacks and lots of laughter.

With the 2025 Varsity Football tournament set to kick off on 7 August, the men’s team from North-West University (NWU) say they are mentally and physically prepared for another competitive campaign.

Head coach of the NWU Soccer Institute, Nkululeko Malgas, says the team is entering the season with a solid foundation and the benefit of experience. “They are in the right mental space, having retained almost 70% of the players from the 2024 season. They know exactly what is at stake,” he says.