Briefs

UCT scientists featured prominently at the Medical Research Council's (MRC) recent merit award ceremony, with "the highest honour in medical research in the country" being conferred on four high-profile academics. Emeritus Professor Eric Bateman, director of the Lung Institute, received a lifetime achievement award in the form of the MRC's platinum medal. Professor Keertan Dheda, head of the Division of Pulmonology, was one of the recipients of a gold medal. Professor Kelly Chibale, drug discovery and development centre (H3-D) director, and Associate Professor Graeme Meintjes of the Department of Medicine were acknowledged with MRC Young Scientist awards (silver medals).

The work of three Centre for Educational Technology (CET) staffers has been acknowledged internationally. CET senior lecturer, Tony Carr became one of the first Africans to win the Dewey Winburne Community Service Award, which acknowledged his role in establishing e/merge Africa - a network of African educational technologists interested in applying educational technology to their work. Carr's CET colleagues, Dr Cheryl Brown and Associate Professor Cheryl Hodgkinson-Williams, won the Hybrid course category for their Advanced Research Design course offered to students undertaking the Masters in Education (ICTs in Education) in Africa.

Together with UCT and the Otto-von-Guericke University in Magdeburg, Germany, AP University Alliances Africa has launched a three-year project to develop an Enterprise Systems (ES) education platform, curriculum and community for sub-Saharan Africa, to further contribute to its skills development initiatives in Africa. Worth in excess of €3-million, the Enterprise Systems Education for Africa (ESEFA) project aims to develop curricula and establish an African university community to deliver enterprise systems and enterprise resource planning. UCT will be conducting field studies over the duration of the project to evaluate and improve the course design and teaching material.

"An exceptional group of student leaders" was how acting Vice-Chancellor Professor Thandabantu Nhlapo described the outgoing Students' Representative Council (SRC). Nhlapo was speaking at the recent farewell to the 2012/13 SRC at a function hosted with his wife, Mathokoza, at their Linkoping residence. Guests included Deputy Vice-Chancellor Professor Crain Soudien, and members of the Department of Student Affairs. Nhlapo listed several SRC flashpoints such as the candlelight vigil to highlight violence and gender-based crime; their contribution to UCT's protest march against gender violence; a panel discussion on sexuality; and the 'kNOw it's NOT OKAY' awareness campaign, which also created awareness about sexual violence.