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21 September 2018
Hello friends and alumni
We hope that you enjoy reading some of the latest news coming out of the School of Agricultural, Earth and Environmental Sciences, especially about the achievements of our graduates who received their degrees at the Spring Graduation this month.
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SAEES' Wonder Woman in Science
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Dr Joyce Chitja, a lecturer in the African Centre for Food Security at UKZN, has been selected as a “Wonder Women in Science” in 2018.
To commemorate National Science Week and National Women’s Month, the College of Agriculture, Engineering and Science honoured its female scientists through a Wonder Women in Science campaign.
The women highlighted are considered to be passionate, pioneering and persistent heroines making waves in the field of science.
Chitja has excelled in the field of food security, becoming South Africa’s first woman with a PhD in Food Security.
Her grandmother had been a great inspiration and Chitja has early memories of watching her farming using techniques such as innovative intercropping, drying and preservation.
‘Watching my grandmother’s translation of basic science into real life solutions inspired me to choose a career in science, and my passion was affirmed when I recognised her methods being taught at university,’ said Chitja who completed her Bachelor of Science degree in Agriculture in Horticultural Sciences, a Master’s degree in Social Science in Community Resources and a Doctorate, all from UKZN.
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September Graduation Ceremonies
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Six JAAS UKZN Co-Supervised Students Graduate
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visits and the signing of a five-year MoU in 2014, academics at UKZN and JAAS began the supervision of nine PhD students from China in disciplines such as microbiology, biochemistry and crop science. The MoU encourages co-operation between staff and students for study and research purposes that include staff and graduate exchanges, collaborative research and exchange of information. A Steering Committee meets annually to evaluate the progress of the agreement. Plans are also in place for the implementation of a joint postdoctoral programme.
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Master’s Graduate Offers Food for Thought Through Research
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With two graduations in the bag, Cameroonian beauty queen, Ms Joan Akob, has no plans of slowing down.
With a Master’s degree in Dietetics now added to her long enviable list of accolades, she has high aspirations; now firmly setting her sights set on pursuing a PhD. She is currently doing her first-year community service, after which she plans to open her own dietetics practice either as a clinical or
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corporate dietitian. Once she has secured practical work experience, a PhD it is!
‘I intend to give back to my nation, Africa and if possible, and the wider world through the knowledge I have gained,’ she said. Akob’s Master’s study therefore focused on the contribution of caregiver-related factors to the underlying causes of malnutrition in selected children’s homes in Pietermaritzburg and Hillcrest, KwaZulu-Natal. The results revealed an absence of important food groups high in micronutrients in the selected children’s diets, including vitamin A rich fruits, organ meats and fish.
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Uganda’s First Potato Breeder Tackles Devastating Crop Disease
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Dr Prossy Namugga has graduated with her PhD in Plant Breeding through the African Centre for Crop Improvement (ACCI) after working on the development of high-yielding and early maturing potato genotypes.
Namugga, who hails from Uganda, aimed to contribute to the country’s food security by developing high yielding and early maturing potato (Solanum tuberosum L.) genotypes with resistance to Phytophthora infestans, the
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agent that causes the devastating Late Blight disease in Uganda. Late Blight is one of the most infamous diseases in agriculture, and is what caused the Irish potato famine.
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PhD Tackles Natural Resource Conservation for Sustainable Water Supply
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Dr Catherine Hughes graduated with her PhD in Hydrology after using validated hydrological modelling to demonstrate the possibility of deriving sustainable water supply from a catchment - for human and ecosystem use - if natural resource assets are conserved and rehabilitated.
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These natural resources include grasslands, wetlands and rivers, which deliver vital ecosystem services to society and are referred to as “ecological infrastructure”.
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Securing Global Energy Security Through Innovative Research
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Dr Precious Mangena has graduated with her PhD in Plant Breeding for her work in developing a superior sweet stem sorghum hybrid over a short period of time using a male gametocide so that the crop can be used in bio-fuel production and related activities.Mangena’s research was funded by the Technology Innovation Agency (TIA) and the National Research Foundation (NRF).
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In the context of global challenges such as energy crises, climate change and food insecurity, Mangena -who was a student at the African Centre for Crop Improvement (ACCI) - was interested in contributing to the effort to increase biofuel production worldwide through sweet sorghum breeding to help enable global energy security, independence from fossil fuels, reduction of greenhouse gases emissions and mitigation of adverse global climatic change.
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MSc in Plant Breeding for Nundwe
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selected for breeding for biofuel production. The research also explored genetic diversity of sweet sorghum germplasm using single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP).
This research will, says Nundwe, enable him to contribute effectively towards the development of superior cultivars that address food insecurity and nutrition issues.
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Passion for Agriculture Earns Mchunu Master’s Degree
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Mr Lindani Mchunu graduated with his Master of Science in Agriculture degree after investigating the identification and selection of Tepary bean genotypes for yield and drought tolerance in South Africa that can be
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used as parental lines of breeding as well as for large-scale production.
The South African Sugarcane Research Institute (SASRI) research intern was always drawn to the agricultural sector as a career choice; choosing to study at UKZN because of its strength in agricultural teaching and research. After financial challenges forced him to take a gap year once he had completed high school at Velangaye High School in Nkandla, Mchunu received financial support that allowed him to enrol at University.
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Breeding Groundnuts for Prosperity in Malawi
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Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT) in Malawi. He now works in his home country of Tanzania as an Agricultural Research Officer at the Tanzania Agriculture Research Institute (TARI). He co-ordinates all groundnut research activities and collaborates with researchers on other crops.
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PhD Graduate Improving Ugandan Rice Production
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Dr Mary Teddy Asio has graduated with her PhD through the African Centre for Crop Improvement (ACCI), having worked on a genetic study of upland rice varieties in Uganda to identify those that are resistant to Striga hermonthica.
Asio’s research involved a genetic analysis of
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upland rice for grain yield and some agronomic traits under Striga hermonthica infestation in Uganda. It aimed to improve production through breeding for genotypes resistant to Striga hermonthica, a species of parasitic witch weed which damages and eventually kills cereal crops by attaching to the plant’s roots and commandeering its nutrient and water supply. Invasion of this parasite can cause losses of up to 100 percent.
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Master’s Graduate Helping Meet Soybean Demand Through Breeding
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protein animal feed, she explored the soybean crop, an important source of protein in animal feed manufacture. Soybean’s nitrogen-fixing capabilities are also valuable in African rotational farming systems. The market for soybean in Zambia, a top soybean producer, is rapidly increasing. However, the increase in tonnage arises from increasing hectarage rather than yield, with Zambian yield being lower than average.
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Passion for Solving Scientific Puzzles Earns Mdluli a Master’s Degree
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‘Do what you have to do in order to do what you want to do’.
These are the words that motivate Ms Sibusiswangaye Mdluli who graduated with a Master’s degree in Plant breeding.
Her research focused on screening for drought tolerant bread wheat genotypes
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using morpho-physiological traits, drought tolerance indices as well as simple sequence repeat molecular marker technology. Since water scarcity is a harsh reality, her research could not only benefit farmers; industries such as millers also stand to profit.
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El Niño Inspired MSc Graduate to Breed Maize for Drought Tolerance
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are tackling a number of biotic, abiotic and socio-economic stresses that limit maize productivity and working to make it more adaptive.
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UKZN Representatives in Old Mutual Student Competition
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Nine students from the School of Agricultural, Earth and Environmental Sciences (SAEES) took part in the UKZN leg of a competition organised by Old Mutual and Plaas Media to identify top agricultural students at South African universities.
Deputy Vice-Chancellor and Head of the College of Agriculture, Engineering and Science (CAES), Professor Albert Modi, said the one purpose of the competition was to enthuse students and encourage knowledge sharing. He encouraged interaction between staff, students and industry representatives present at the event.
Third-year student participants were from the Disciplines of Animal Science, Agricultural Economics, Crop Science, Horticultural Sciences and Soil Science. They presented on three set topics related to beef production, land expropriation without compensation (EWC) and sustainable agriculture.
The three winners selected, one in each category, were Mr Keshveer Singh of Animal Science for his presentation on beef production, Ms Jessica Lubisi of Soil Science for her presentation on sustainable agriculture and Mr Lungani Mvelase of Agricultural Economics for a presentation on EWC.
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Masters Research Assistant Hosts Grandparents' Day at Edendale Home
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Masters candidate in Agrometeorology and research assistant in the School of Agricultural, Earth and Environmental Sciences (SAEES) Ms Mendy Ndlovu celebrated her birthday this year by hosting a grandparents’ day at a local nursing home in Edendale, treating all 60 residents to care packages and a lunch.
Under the auspices of the Mendy-Lisa Foundation she has started, Ndlovu celebrated with the residents of the Emuseni Old Age Home. She says this was made possible by her employment as a research assistant by her supervisors, Dr Alistair Clulow and Dr Tafadzwa Mabhaudhi, which has enabled her to care for her own grandparents as well.
Concerned by high poverty and crime rates in Edendale, and the attendant poor environmental conditions, Ndlovu turned her attention to Emuseni, situated in the middle of this challenging setting. After her first visit as a volunteer with little to give, Ndlovu said the conditions broke her heart, particularly the loneliness of the residents.
‘I knew I had to do something, but when I tried to organise the first grandparents’ day I was broke and was discouraged by people around me,’ said Ndlovu. ‘Not many people care about old people and that saddens me, because I believe that their last days on earth should be really peaceful and stress-free.’
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The uMngeni Resilience Project recently published a 95 page glossy booklet titled “Climate Change: A KwaZulu-Natal Agricultural Perspective” under the lead authorship of Prof Roland Schulze of the UKZN’s Centre for Water Resources Research.
Covering initial chapters on broader aspects of climate change and agriculture, and questions on vulnerabilities of small- and large-scale farmers, the publication then assesses projections of changes to key climate variables across the province from maximum and minimum temperatures to frost occurrences, heat units, potential evaporation, seasonal rainfall as well as wet and dry spells. Those chapters are followed by ones on farm sector case studies on potatoes and climate change, soybeans, sugarcane, taro (amadumbe) and bambara nuts and climate change, in each case assessing projected yield changes and addressing adaptation options. The publication concludes with a chapter on “Where to from here?” by looking at economic perspectives and asking other key questions going forward.
Contributions to the booklet also came from Stefanie Schütte, Megan McNamara, Katlego Manakana, Richard Kunz and Tafadzwa Mabhaudhi, all also associated with the University’s Centre for Water Resources Research.
View more of the handbook here.
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CWRR Seminar Investigates Good Water Governance
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At the Centre for Water Resources Research's (CWRR) third Research On Tap seminar for the year, Ms Evelyn Lukat from Osnabrueck University in Germany and her colleague Dr Elke Herrfahrdt-Pähle from the German Development Institute in Bonn presented on the topic of 'Increasing Good Governance for Achieving the Objectives of Integrated Water Resources Management (STEER).'
The seminar was attended by attendees from a wide spectrum, of disciplines and organisations, including Agricultural Economics at UKZN, Umgeni Water, the School of Built Environment and Development Studies (SOBEDS) at UKZN and more. The seminar was well-attended by students.
Herrfahrdt-Pähle gave an overview of the project aims and research framework, and Lukat discussed the uMngeni Case Study and progress therein.
'The STEER project is a consortium that combines research institutions and practical partners and expertise in our case studies,' said Herrfahrdt-Pähle.
'The main objective is to have a closer look and increase good governance of water resources by identifying and improving governance deficits that we find in the case studies for better integrated water resources management,' said Herrfahrdt-Pähle.
The STEER project deals with water resources at risk in various places due to conflicted or uncoordinated uses of those resources. Researchers on the project explore innovative forms of coordination and cooperation in order to solve conflicts of use, using a diagnostic approach to investigate typical problem situations and develop suitable solution strategies. An important aspect of the project is the systematic involvement of stakeholders, with the project researchers continuously mirroring their perceptions to stakeholders in the case study areas, enabling stakeholders to contribute to defining the potential solution strategies.
The uMngeni catchment is one of five in-depth case studies in the project, with UKZN a partner in this case study. In a first field visit in November 2017, the case study team immersed itself in the perceptions of stakeholders involved in water governance, whether formal or informal. Based on the initial perceptions from all case studies, the project team developed the theoretical framework, which builds the heart of the diagnostic approach. During this visit, data was collected to analyse a variety of variables that describe the governance system as well as the coordination and cooperation of stakeholders. The results of this analysis will be presented to and discussed with stakeholders in a variety of settings in November 2018.
Herrfahrdt-Pähle and Lukat welcomed feedback from attendees, and the seminar concluded with a 'silent discussion', during which seminar guests could add their thoughts about various aspects of the project to posters around the room. These contributions, they said, provided valuable feedback to the researchers’ framing of the governance system.
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Film Explores the Science Behind GMOs
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The Food Evolution documentary, which tackles the science and debates surrounding the topic of genetically modified organisms (GMOs) in food, was screened before more than 200 guests at the John Bews building on the Pietermaritzburg campus.
The screening was made possible by the South African Association for Food Science and Technology (SAAFoST) and co-ordinated by the College of Agriculture, Engineering and Science (CAES). The intention behind the screening was to create a forum for improved awareness and understanding of the science of GMOs and their role in food security, and to spark questions and discussions around various views on the contentious topic.
Guests included academic and support staff from UKZN, students, industry representatives and professional scientists.
The film, directed by Academy Award-nominated director, Scott Hamilton Kennedy, and narrated by pre-eminent science communicator, Neil deGrasse Tyson, explored the controversy surrounding GMOs by examining cases from Hawaiian papaya groves, banana farms in Uganda to the cornfields of Iowa in the United States. It included emotionally charged debates and expounded on science around the subject.
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New Vision for SARChI Chair in Land Use Planning and Management
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The National Research Foundation (NRF) has appointed UKZN’s Professor Onisimo Mutanga as the South African Research Chair in Land Use Planning and Management.
The South African Research Chairs Initiative (SARChI), established in 2006 by the Department of Science and Technology (DST) and the NRF, is designed to attract and retain excellence in research and innovation at South African public universities.
The work of this Chair focuses on protection and enhancement of environmental assets and natural resources through studying trends in land-use/cover patterns as well as productivity of natural systems over a large spatial extent.
Mutanga has been part of the Discipline of Geography in the School of Agricultural, Earth and Environmental Sciences (SAEES) since 2005, and served as Acting Dean and Head of SAEES. In 2017, Mutanga was named among the best scientific contributors in Africa. He holds an NRF B-rating, has more than 120 publications to his name, and has supervised more than 16 PhD and 28 master’s students.
Mutanga is an expert in ecosystem pattern and condition analysis in the face of global and land-use change using remote sensing. He integrates ecology, biodiversity conservation and remote sensing to model the impact of anthropogenic and physical factors on the environment.
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Best Poster Award for Avocado PhD Research
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Mr Sakhile Mathe, a PhD candidate in Horticultural Sciences, received the Young Minds Award for best poster at the 30th International Horticultural Congress (IHC) organised by the International Society for Horticultural Sciences (ISHS) in Istanbul, Turkey.
Mathe, whose trip was funded by the Post-Harvest Innovation Programme, presented his poster on girdling as a tool to unravel the “Hass” avocado skin colour problems. Poor skin colour change of South African “Hass” avocados is an issue that impacts export of the fruit to other countries. The concern is that the fruit does not effectively change colour from emerald green to purple to black to indicate ripeness which affects consumers’ decisions to buy the product and compromises market competitiveness.
Mathe felt the IHC had been an informative event where he was especially interested in avocado research and horticultural management studies presented. He previously presented his research at the 2016 and 2017 Combined Congresses and at another ISHS event.
Mathe has worked on this research with the Agricultural Research Council (ARC) where he is part of their Professional Development Programme (PDP). The ARC Tropical and Subtropical Crops (TSC) was commissioned by the South African Avocado Growers’ Association (SAAGA) to investigate both pre- and postharvest factors causing this conundrum.
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Exploring the Unintended Negative Consequences of Climate Change Action
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Professor Larry Swatuk of the University of Waterloo in Canada recently visited the Centre for Water Resources (CWRR) at UKZN after launching a book published by the UKZN Press entitled ‘Water in Southern Africa’.
In the book, Swatuk recommends learning to see water and the region differently in order to meet present challenges and better prepare for an uncertain, climate-changing future. He also advocates for looking at green (rainfall) water solutions for human water needs, as opposed to a simple focus on blue (ground) water solutions. The book deals with sustainable water management through good, science-informed governance.
Swatuk has extensive experience in environmental and natural resource governance and management in southern Africa, having lived and worked in the region for 14 years, primarily in Botswana at the University of Botswana and Associate Professor of Resource Governance at the Okavango Research Institute. He is currently Professor in the School of Environment, Enterprise and Development (SEED) at the University of Waterloo and Director of the Master of Development Practice (MDP) Programme.
While visiting, Swatuk delivered a seminar for the CWRR on the topic of ‘Countering the unintended negative effects of climate action in southern Africa’ and delivered classes to Honours students in Hydrology.
The seminar covered another new publication, entitled ‘Water, Climate Change and the Boomerang Effect’, which is concerned with the unintended consequences of climate change adaptation and mitigation in the water sector. The book addresses popular fears regarding the negative consequences of climate-oriented actions, and presents empirical case studies.
He explained the book as dealing with the emergence of largely unanticipated and unintended negative consequences of climate change adaptation and mitigation policies and programmes that feed back to the state, and gave an overview of case studies including the Three Gorges Dam, Guarani Aquifer, the Ilisu Dam and others. He highlighted how quick climate actions that governments pursue involve big infrastructure, and expanded on investigation of the motivation behind state action that leads to negative consequences that could have been easily foreseen. The aim of his work is to develop a decision support tool at the science-policy interface, informed by local measures, to enable balanced climate action.
Swatuk’s visit also involved exploration of possible partners and study sites in this research. This could involve scope for student involvement and exchange visits, and would be heavily capacity building oriented. Swatuk’s experience in water security programmes run in Canada and at the University of the Western Cape would contribute to upskilling students and researchers.
He visited the uMngeni School of Water Governance Research at the Institute of Natural Resources (INR) for a discussion about project concepts, with considerable focus in the session being dedicated to state interests. There was discussion about the state having people’s interests at heart and where that was evidently not the case, and where corporate interests influence decision-making. Attendees also discussed various biophysical environments and governance approaches across the globe, and the need for local actors to play a role in state dialogue on climate change adaptation.
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Bursaries and Opportunities
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The Sugar Industry Trust Fund for Education (SITFE) has bursaries available for studies at:
• University of Cape Town
• University of Witwatersrand
• University of KwaZulu-Natal
• University of Zululand
• University Stellenbosch
• University of Pretoria
• University of Johannesburg
• University of the Western Cape
• University of Fort Hare
• Rhodes University
• Durban University of Technology
• Mangosuthu University of Technology
• University of Mpumalanga
• Sol Plaatje University
• Tshwane University of Technology
• Owen Sithole College of Agriculture
• Cedara College of Agriculture
Applicants must be either:
Registered or have applied in the Faculties of Science, Engineering or Agriculture at a University, University of Technology or College of Agriculture (listed above).
or
The child of a sugarcane farm worker who is registered or has applied for any field of study at a University, University of Technology or College of Agriculture.
Disadvantaged applicants and first years from sugarcane growing areas, where mills and sugar industry administrative infrastructure are located, receive preference
Application forms are available on the South African Sugar Association website which administers the Trust Fund. Please visit their site for application forms.
For the 2019 academic year SITFE may partner with National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS). Therefore, in addition to the SITFE application forms it is compulsory to apply on the NSFAS website. Applications online.
CLOSING DATE 31 OCTOBER 2018
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Research Assistant or Research Fellow in Crop Modelling - Cranfield University
Cranfield University is looking for a Researcher with a PhD (or near completion) focused on grassland or crop management and/or the application of agricultural computer models, and proven experience of the development and use of computer crop models. You will have the ability to translate and validate an existing grass computer model into different modelling environments and be able to work with farmer and student groups to co-develop teaching and decision support tools. You must have knowledge of current grassland management systems in the UK and an understanding of how grass responds to environmental variables such as temperature, drought, and daylength. The post will require travel within the UK.
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Kind regards,
Christine Cuénod
Networking Facilitator
cuenod@ukzn.ac.za
(w) +27 33 260 6557
(c) +27 83 314 3317
on behalf of
Duncan Stewart
Committee Chairperson
duncan@lima.org.za
(c) +27 82 491 1912
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