28 July 2017Official weekly newsletter of NUST

Namibia University of Science and TechnologyNUST_Namibia

@NUST_Namibia

NUST BRIEF website: www.nust.na

2017 Cultural Festival: 7 - 11 August. All are welcome!

An award-winning university

CALLING ALL SECRETARIES!

The annual Secretaries Convention will be held on 25 August 2017 on campus, under the theme “Pathway to Success.” Secretaries, Personal Assistants, Office Administrators and Office Managers aspiring to reach the pinnacle of their careers, are encouraged to attend. Objectives:• Improve interpersonal skills• Intergrate sustainable practices into office operations • Enhance work performance• Gain exposure to latest trends in the profession• Embrace change and transform Cost: N$ 1 400 (early registration) N$1 600 (late registration)Deadline for registration: 10 August 2017 9 (early registration) and 20 August 2017 (late registration)Enquiries: Muriel Mouton, mmouton@nust.na, 061 207 2870 or Cornelia Janga, cjanga@nust.na, 061 207 2005

• Rated Best Higher Education Institution in Namibia (PMR, 2016)

• Rated Most Innovative Institution in Namibia (PMR, 2016)

NUST facilities impress UNESCO delegatesA delegation of about 30 participants of the recently held United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) workshop called the ‘Women on The Frontier of Science and Innovation in Africa,’ toured the NUST campus last week.

The aim of the workshop is to bring women at the forefront of, and to harness, science, technology and innovation for sustainable development. This is in line with the declaration made by African governments to develop long-term strategies for accelerated socio-economic transformation.The group consisted of UNESCO commissioners from across the continent. Some of the projects that NUST is currently working on were exhibited during the visit. These included a prototype of the Namibian Solar Electricity Utility Vehicle (NSEUV), commonly referred to a Solar Taxi. This vehicle is set to revolutionise the Namibian public transport as it uses energy from the sun. Other projects were exhibited in the Health and Applied Sciences, and Engineering laboratories. The delegates interacted with the technicians and expressed satisfaction with the University’s

efforts to foster a new generation of creative innovators. Dr Tjama Tjivikua, the NUST Vice-Chancellor, said: “NUST works towards the realisation of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) on a daily basis. However, one has to admit that, like most Namibian institutions, we lag behind with implementation of SDGs, for example on ‘Achievement of gender equality and empowerment of all women and girls.’ Tjivikua went on to say: “Nonetheless, I believe you will agree with NUST that, we are building the future of this country when we are jointly assessing and improving sustainability of our processes, resources/facilities and output to support the nation’s Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics programmes. I have no doubt that the foundation that we lay today will yield huge dividends for our country and the African continent at large.”

The initiative required the students to visit different areas in the city namely, the Hope Village, Zoo Park and ‘Herero Mall,’ to embark on a variety of projects that ranged from designing landscapes with the presence and absence of water, making urban installations, and assessing urban informal economies. At the Hope Village, students designed and built a landscape around the premises,  thus learning about theoretical and practical aspects of landscape architecture in the process. The group that visited Zoo Park, designed three interventions, which they then built and installed for one day in the public space. The installations were student-funded and had to incorporate or express the theme of ‘connectivity’ as concept. Furthermore, the students that were designated to the ‘Herero Mall’ area were tasked to map,  analyse and visualise informal  business activities in the vicinity from an economic, social and spatial angle, in

order to understand the impact on the future of the city. The Manager of Hope Village, Kingston Makoni, said: “When we were approached for this project, we were excited. We knew the space will be transformed, but never in our wild imaginations did we expect this kind of transformation. We are truly fortunate. We really want to thank the students for all their hard work and creative minds.” In turn, the students expressed their gratitude for the experience and generally being able to make a difference in the community.The workshop involved students from first to final year, and it also served as a platform for the group to engage in team-building exercises.The Bachelor of Architecture degree is a three-year programme that is awarded to students credited with a minimum of 400 credits at NQF level 7. For more information visit http://fnrss.nust.na

Architecture students make their mark in the city Seventy (70) students from the Department of Architecture embarked on a one-week workshop known as the Vertical Studio Programme. The content of the Programme, which was introduced for the first time, goes beyond the scope of the core curriculum that students need to master during their studies.

New MBA students welcomed

A cohort of 28 Master of Business Administration (MBA) students were inducted into the Harold Pupkewitz Graduate School of Business earlier this month. The two-year programme aims at developing a critical awareness and an integrated understanding of organisational management amongst students, as well as their ability to take on leadership and management. For more information on the programme visit http://hpgsb.nust.na/?q=mba

FRONT ROW, FROM LEFT, Harold Pupkewitz Graduate School of Business staff: Dr Hylton Villet, Director; Prof Samuel Mensah, Director of MBA Programme; James Van Rooi, Programmes Manager, and Dioné Izaks, Coordinator: Administrative Support, pictured with the new students.

Jonathan Muller, student (far right), giving a presentation to other students and children from the Hope Village during a site visit.

Dr Tjama Tjivikua, NUST Vice-Chancellor, pictured with participants of the UNESCO workshop on ‘Women on The Frontier of Science and Innovation in Africa.’