Woody plant encroachment in arid and mesic South African savanna-grasslands: same picture, different story?
- Authors: Skowno, Andrew Luke
- Date: 2018
- Subjects: Savanna ecology South Africa Eastern Cape , Remote sensing , Woody plants South Africa Eastern Cape , Grasslands South Africa Eastern Cape , Plant invasions South Africa Eastern Cape
- Language: English
- Type: text , Thesis , Doctoral , PhD
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/62603 , vital:28212
- Description: Woody plant encroachment in South Africa’s savanna-grasslands has been considered a rangeland management problem since the early 1900s. This phenomenon, which has been observed globally, is particularly important in Africa given the extent of tropical grassy biomes on the continent and their importance for rural livelihoods. In this study, local and regional scale approaches were used to investigate woody cover change in South Africa across the important savanna-grassland rainfall threshold of 650 mm mean annual precipitation (MAP). The aim was to test this threshold using remote sensing and demographic surveys in order to better understand the patterns, mechanisms and drivers of encroachment. Rates of encroachment and population demographics of Vachelia karroo were compared at arid and mesic savanna sites in the Eastern Cape, using time-series analysis of historical aerial photographs in conjunction with field surveys. Changes in the extent of woodland vs. grassland were then quantified at a national scale (1990-2013) by combining optical and synthetic aperture radar remote sensing data. This produced the first map of woodland- grassland shifts for South Africa and provided the basis for a spatially explicit investigation of the key drivers of change. The local studies revealed higher rates of encroachment at mesic sites than at arid sites, with a correlation between drought and rate of encroachment at the arid site. Vachelia karroo seedlings and stunted saplings were more prevalent at mesic sites than at arid sites and the growth form of adult trees differed significantly between sites. The national remote sensing investigation showed that woodland replaced grassland in over 5% of South Africa’s savanna- grasslands between 1990 and 2014, at rates consistent with other global and regional studies. Spatially explicit models showed a pattern of incremental expansion of woodland along a ‘tree front’ and complex relationships between woodland increase and fire, rainfall, terrain ruggedness and temperature. Overall, the local and regional scale findings of this work highlight the importance of the savanna rainfall threshold (~650 mm MAP) and the presence / absence of fire in understanding savanna dynamics and woody cover change in the context of global drivers such as elevated atmospheric CO2.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2018
- Authors: Skowno, Andrew Luke
- Date: 2018
- Subjects: Savanna ecology South Africa Eastern Cape , Remote sensing , Woody plants South Africa Eastern Cape , Grasslands South Africa Eastern Cape , Plant invasions South Africa Eastern Cape
- Language: English
- Type: text , Thesis , Doctoral , PhD
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/62603 , vital:28212
- Description: Woody plant encroachment in South Africa’s savanna-grasslands has been considered a rangeland management problem since the early 1900s. This phenomenon, which has been observed globally, is particularly important in Africa given the extent of tropical grassy biomes on the continent and their importance for rural livelihoods. In this study, local and regional scale approaches were used to investigate woody cover change in South Africa across the important savanna-grassland rainfall threshold of 650 mm mean annual precipitation (MAP). The aim was to test this threshold using remote sensing and demographic surveys in order to better understand the patterns, mechanisms and drivers of encroachment. Rates of encroachment and population demographics of Vachelia karroo were compared at arid and mesic savanna sites in the Eastern Cape, using time-series analysis of historical aerial photographs in conjunction with field surveys. Changes in the extent of woodland vs. grassland were then quantified at a national scale (1990-2013) by combining optical and synthetic aperture radar remote sensing data. This produced the first map of woodland- grassland shifts for South Africa and provided the basis for a spatially explicit investigation of the key drivers of change. The local studies revealed higher rates of encroachment at mesic sites than at arid sites, with a correlation between drought and rate of encroachment at the arid site. Vachelia karroo seedlings and stunted saplings were more prevalent at mesic sites than at arid sites and the growth form of adult trees differed significantly between sites. The national remote sensing investigation showed that woodland replaced grassland in over 5% of South Africa’s savanna- grasslands between 1990 and 2014, at rates consistent with other global and regional studies. Spatially explicit models showed a pattern of incremental expansion of woodland along a ‘tree front’ and complex relationships between woodland increase and fire, rainfall, terrain ruggedness and temperature. Overall, the local and regional scale findings of this work highlight the importance of the savanna rainfall threshold (~650 mm MAP) and the presence / absence of fire in understanding savanna dynamics and woody cover change in the context of global drivers such as elevated atmospheric CO2.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2018
“Don’t forget to be awesome”: the role of social learning as a component of belonging in virtual communities: a case study of the Youtube fan community “Nerdfighteria”
- Authors: Steenkamp, Elri Colleen
- Date: 2018
- Subjects: Nerdfighteria (Online) , Social learning , Online social networks , Belonging (Social psychology) , Communities of practice , YouTube (Firm)
- Language: English
- Type: text , Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/63753 , vital:28484
- Description: The growth of the Internet has allowed fans who consume various media products, to interact and convene with other who share similar interests in online fan communities. Historically the study of fans has focused on pleasure and enjoyment as the main motivating factors why individual fans join, stay and participate in fan communities. This study, however, suggests that learning as a component of belonging has been underestimated within contemporary fan studies. Close examination of the literature of fan studies and the social practices of online fan communities reveal that these spaces may serve as fertile spaces for learning and the sharing of knowledge. Daily learning occurs within multiple spheres, including personal interests, peer culture, and academic content; all elements which can be found within fan communities. This study used the social learning theory “communities of practice” (CoP) model developed by Wenger (1998) to understand of this element of learning and knowledge sharing that seems to take places within fan communities. This study explores learning as a component of belonging to online fan communities by using the fan community of the YouTube personalities Vlogbrothers, which has named itself Nerdfighteria, as a case study. Through a qualitative research approach, which includes participation observation methods and qualitative interviews, this thesis has analysed the fan community Nerdfighteria, and used two Nerdfighter fan Facebook groups, the global NERDFIGHTEIRIA and local Nerdfighters South Africa, as case studies to evaluate whether the elements of learning taking place within these spaces serves as a motivating factor for belonging and participation. The results of this research support the idea that learning plays a role within the fan community Nerdfighteria and thus that it functions as a CoP. Fans within the global NERDFIGHTERIA Facebook group use this fan space to discuss and debate content related to their media of choice; thereby learning and acquiring knowledge as a CoP. The Nerdfighters South Africa Facebook group, despite the learning potential, fails to function as a CoP because it is no longer functionally allows for shared learning. Online fan communities, this research found, have the potential to serve as functioning communities of practice (CoP) only if they embody the characteristics and practicalities consistent with a learning space. Overall these fan groups may be categorised as communities of interests but sub-sections within these communities fit the criteria of a community of practice due to the kind of learning that is taking place. This research supports an alternative, yet promising, approach to the study of fan online communities which prioritises learning.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2018
- Authors: Steenkamp, Elri Colleen
- Date: 2018
- Subjects: Nerdfighteria (Online) , Social learning , Online social networks , Belonging (Social psychology) , Communities of practice , YouTube (Firm)
- Language: English
- Type: text , Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/63753 , vital:28484
- Description: The growth of the Internet has allowed fans who consume various media products, to interact and convene with other who share similar interests in online fan communities. Historically the study of fans has focused on pleasure and enjoyment as the main motivating factors why individual fans join, stay and participate in fan communities. This study, however, suggests that learning as a component of belonging has been underestimated within contemporary fan studies. Close examination of the literature of fan studies and the social practices of online fan communities reveal that these spaces may serve as fertile spaces for learning and the sharing of knowledge. Daily learning occurs within multiple spheres, including personal interests, peer culture, and academic content; all elements which can be found within fan communities. This study used the social learning theory “communities of practice” (CoP) model developed by Wenger (1998) to understand of this element of learning and knowledge sharing that seems to take places within fan communities. This study explores learning as a component of belonging to online fan communities by using the fan community of the YouTube personalities Vlogbrothers, which has named itself Nerdfighteria, as a case study. Through a qualitative research approach, which includes participation observation methods and qualitative interviews, this thesis has analysed the fan community Nerdfighteria, and used two Nerdfighter fan Facebook groups, the global NERDFIGHTEIRIA and local Nerdfighters South Africa, as case studies to evaluate whether the elements of learning taking place within these spaces serves as a motivating factor for belonging and participation. The results of this research support the idea that learning plays a role within the fan community Nerdfighteria and thus that it functions as a CoP. Fans within the global NERDFIGHTERIA Facebook group use this fan space to discuss and debate content related to their media of choice; thereby learning and acquiring knowledge as a CoP. The Nerdfighters South Africa Facebook group, despite the learning potential, fails to function as a CoP because it is no longer functionally allows for shared learning. Online fan communities, this research found, have the potential to serve as functioning communities of practice (CoP) only if they embody the characteristics and practicalities consistent with a learning space. Overall these fan groups may be categorised as communities of interests but sub-sections within these communities fit the criteria of a community of practice due to the kind of learning that is taking place. This research supports an alternative, yet promising, approach to the study of fan online communities which prioritises learning.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2018
Indigenous and traditional musics in the school classroom : a re-evaluation of the South African Indigenous African Music (IAM) curriculum
- Authors: McConnachie, Boudina
- Date: 2017
- Subjects: Ethnomusicology , Indigenous people -- Music , Music -- Instruction and study -- Africa , Music -- Instruction and study -- Curricula -- Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Doctoral , PhD
- Identifier: vital:21182 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/6806
- Description: Musical ideals set by European standards and values, entrenched through colonial oppression and promoted by the continued veneration of Western culture need to be re-evaluated. Despite the intention of the ANC government, through the Department of Basic Education's Curriculum and Assessment Policy Statement music curricula, to integrate Indigenous Knowledge and musics into the South African classroom, evidence shows that opportunities to do so are not seized. With reference to the proclaimed values of an African sensibility in the model of the South African music education curriculum, the history of its development and the current pedagogical movement towards transformation in the production of knowledge and the inclusion of Indigenous Knowledge (IK), this thesis questions why teachers in government schools in South Africa are not executing the Indigenous African Music (IAM) syllabus in the CAPS FET music curriculum. Taking the history of music education and the development of curriculum models and frameworks into account, it interrogates what strategies could improve the application of the current music curriculum in government schools in South Africa. These questions are addressed in the thesis by way of a discussion of the music curriculum and what its praxis in the classroom reveals about its efficacy, through observations and personal experiences, the observations of teachers and student teachers, a comparison with the experience in Zimbabwe, and an analysis of the music curriculum as it is currently devised and implemented. Straddling three methodological approaches, namely the ethnographic, the autoethnographic and the action research approach this study finds that the CAPS FET music curriculum does provide realistic opportunities to engage with African Indigenous and traditional music. This, however, is dependent upon the training of the teacher, facilities available in the classroom and the prior knowledge of the learner. A fundamental flaw of this curriculum is the approach to practical assessment of Indigenous and traditional African musics and the lack of assessment criteria and practical guidelines. In addition, the findings suggest that the fault regarding implementation of the curriculum lies in the training of students (who become teachers) at tertiary level, where an integrated approach to skills development regarding Indigenous African music is suggested.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2017
- Authors: McConnachie, Boudina
- Date: 2017
- Subjects: Ethnomusicology , Indigenous people -- Music , Music -- Instruction and study -- Africa , Music -- Instruction and study -- Curricula -- Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Doctoral , PhD
- Identifier: vital:21182 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/6806
- Description: Musical ideals set by European standards and values, entrenched through colonial oppression and promoted by the continued veneration of Western culture need to be re-evaluated. Despite the intention of the ANC government, through the Department of Basic Education's Curriculum and Assessment Policy Statement music curricula, to integrate Indigenous Knowledge and musics into the South African classroom, evidence shows that opportunities to do so are not seized. With reference to the proclaimed values of an African sensibility in the model of the South African music education curriculum, the history of its development and the current pedagogical movement towards transformation in the production of knowledge and the inclusion of Indigenous Knowledge (IK), this thesis questions why teachers in government schools in South Africa are not executing the Indigenous African Music (IAM) syllabus in the CAPS FET music curriculum. Taking the history of music education and the development of curriculum models and frameworks into account, it interrogates what strategies could improve the application of the current music curriculum in government schools in South Africa. These questions are addressed in the thesis by way of a discussion of the music curriculum and what its praxis in the classroom reveals about its efficacy, through observations and personal experiences, the observations of teachers and student teachers, a comparison with the experience in Zimbabwe, and an analysis of the music curriculum as it is currently devised and implemented. Straddling three methodological approaches, namely the ethnographic, the autoethnographic and the action research approach this study finds that the CAPS FET music curriculum does provide realistic opportunities to engage with African Indigenous and traditional music. This, however, is dependent upon the training of the teacher, facilities available in the classroom and the prior knowledge of the learner. A fundamental flaw of this curriculum is the approach to practical assessment of Indigenous and traditional African musics and the lack of assessment criteria and practical guidelines. In addition, the findings suggest that the fault regarding implementation of the curriculum lies in the training of students (who become teachers) at tertiary level, where an integrated approach to skills development regarding Indigenous African music is suggested.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2017
Researching the development of a programme that merges mathematics and music in Grade R
- Authors: Stevenson-Milln, Carolyn
- Date: 2018
- Subjects: Mathematics Study and teaching (Elementary) Activity programs , Music and children , Music, Influence of , Music Africa , Action research in education
- Language: English
- Type: text , Thesis , Masters , MEd
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/61928 , vital:28084
- Description: This small-scale case study explores the potential for synergy between music and mathematics learning in early childhood education whereby music can be used to help enhance children’s mathematical proficiency. Informal observations of the young learners participating in an Early Number Fun programme initiated by the South African Numeracy Chair Project suggested that many children struggled to exercise executive functioning and self-regulated skills, and struggled also with fluency in basic numeracy concepts such as understanding pattern. This case study was set up to investigate the effect of the development and implementation of a programme in which African music and mathematics learning, (particularly in relation to pattern and sequencing) were blended. The study’s core aim was to contribute to strengthening learners’ executive function and self-regulated learning competencies, both of which are important to learners’ developing agency over their own learning. An Action-Research-embedded-in-Design-Research approach was employed. This allowed an iterative process in developing a new mode of learning through blending music and mathematics. The theory of enactivism provided a theoretical framework to the study. The basic assumptions of an enactive perspective are shared understanding and joint action through engagement (as exemplified through group interaction between learner and teacher, and learning through action). The programme was developed and implemented with ongoing refinements in two Grade R classrooms. Data collected through observation, interviewing, document analysis and the keeping of a reflective research journal, are qualitative in nature. Analysis of the data indicate that the use of African block notation, as a rhythmic medium was well within reach of the participating children, such that at the end of each 16 session intervention programme, learners at both research sites demonstrated their capacity to: • Focus their attention on one activity while a different activity was taking place alongside them. • Watch, listen and only then act. • Practise their numbers through play: to count out and to write up to 16 and beyond. • Notate, read and interpret rhythmic patterns through block notation and instrumentation. The findings suggest the intervention programme could be continued over a longer period for maximum benefit, possibly through following Grade R learners through to Grade 1. The findings further suggest that fun with rhythmic, number-based patterning can assist learners’ development of executive function and self-regulated learning skills.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2018
- Authors: Stevenson-Milln, Carolyn
- Date: 2018
- Subjects: Mathematics Study and teaching (Elementary) Activity programs , Music and children , Music, Influence of , Music Africa , Action research in education
- Language: English
- Type: text , Thesis , Masters , MEd
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/61928 , vital:28084
- Description: This small-scale case study explores the potential for synergy between music and mathematics learning in early childhood education whereby music can be used to help enhance children’s mathematical proficiency. Informal observations of the young learners participating in an Early Number Fun programme initiated by the South African Numeracy Chair Project suggested that many children struggled to exercise executive functioning and self-regulated skills, and struggled also with fluency in basic numeracy concepts such as understanding pattern. This case study was set up to investigate the effect of the development and implementation of a programme in which African music and mathematics learning, (particularly in relation to pattern and sequencing) were blended. The study’s core aim was to contribute to strengthening learners’ executive function and self-regulated learning competencies, both of which are important to learners’ developing agency over their own learning. An Action-Research-embedded-in-Design-Research approach was employed. This allowed an iterative process in developing a new mode of learning through blending music and mathematics. The theory of enactivism provided a theoretical framework to the study. The basic assumptions of an enactive perspective are shared understanding and joint action through engagement (as exemplified through group interaction between learner and teacher, and learning through action). The programme was developed and implemented with ongoing refinements in two Grade R classrooms. Data collected through observation, interviewing, document analysis and the keeping of a reflective research journal, are qualitative in nature. Analysis of the data indicate that the use of African block notation, as a rhythmic medium was well within reach of the participating children, such that at the end of each 16 session intervention programme, learners at both research sites demonstrated their capacity to: • Focus their attention on one activity while a different activity was taking place alongside them. • Watch, listen and only then act. • Practise their numbers through play: to count out and to write up to 16 and beyond. • Notate, read and interpret rhythmic patterns through block notation and instrumentation. The findings suggest the intervention programme could be continued over a longer period for maximum benefit, possibly through following Grade R learners through to Grade 1. The findings further suggest that fun with rhythmic, number-based patterning can assist learners’ development of executive function and self-regulated learning skills.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2018
Leadership development within a learner representative council: a Namibian primary school case study
- Authors: Tjihuro, Jaqueline
- Date: 2018
- Subjects: School management and organization Namibia , Educational leadership Namibia , Student participation in administration Namibia , Student government Namibia
- Language: English
- Type: text , Thesis , Masters , MEd
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/61558 , vital:28036
- Description: Learners in Namibian primary schools are seemingly not brave enough to stand and raise their voice on issues that concern them. This is what Shekupakela-Nelulu (2008) wrote after a study she conducted on the Learners’ Representative Council (LRC) of a school in Namibia. She refers to a time when “the involvement of students in school affairs was seen by the regime as a political act and attempts by student leaders to involve themselves in educational issues were often quashed” (ibid., p. i). This situation will be all too familiar to South African readers, where a public holiday, Youth Day, was declared to mark the apartheid regime’s brutal treatment of learner protestors on June 16, 1976. While Namibia has not experienced events of such magnitude, the notion of learner voice is equally problematic and worthy of investigation. The absence of leadership development opportunities for learners has led to this research study which seeks to answer the central research question: How can learner leadership be developed in a LRC? I used an interpretive paradigm, adopting a qualitative approach in the study. Concurrently, the study was framed and guided by the second generation of Cultural Historical Activity Theory (CHAT) as an analytical tool to achieve my research goal. The following questions guided the study in two phases. Phase one: What were the perceived causes for the nonsustainability of the learner leadership (LL) club at the school? Phase two: How is the notion of learner leadership understood in the school? How is leadership developed on the LRC? What enables and constrains leadership development of learners on the LRC? The research participants were thirty LRC members from grades 6 and 7 and15 teachers who teach the LRC members. The principal and three HOD’s were also research participants being part of the Senior Management team. One of the HOD’s also fulfils the role of the guardian teacher to the LRC. A school board chairperson also participated in the Change Laboratory Workshop. Data was generated through multiple data sources such as questionnaires, individual interviews, a focus group interview and observation. The findings from phase one of the study revealed that the learner leadership club’s intervention was a success during the 2014 academic year, but the absence of the learner leadership club as an extra-mural activity affected the sustainability of the club into the next academic year 2015. Findings from phase two revealed that leadership opportunities did exist at the school for learner leadership development. However, a few challenges emerged relating to traditional views of leadership and constraining factors that could affect learner leadership development at the school. Thus, Change Laboratory workshops were held to find solutions to the challenges, in order to promote and enhance learner leadership development, hopefully for the future of the Namibian child.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2018
Leadership development within a learner representative council: a Namibian primary school case study
- Authors: Tjihuro, Jaqueline
- Date: 2018
- Subjects: School management and organization Namibia , Educational leadership Namibia , Student participation in administration Namibia , Student government Namibia
- Language: English
- Type: text , Thesis , Masters , MEd
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/61558 , vital:28036
- Description: Learners in Namibian primary schools are seemingly not brave enough to stand and raise their voice on issues that concern them. This is what Shekupakela-Nelulu (2008) wrote after a study she conducted on the Learners’ Representative Council (LRC) of a school in Namibia. She refers to a time when “the involvement of students in school affairs was seen by the regime as a political act and attempts by student leaders to involve themselves in educational issues were often quashed” (ibid., p. i). This situation will be all too familiar to South African readers, where a public holiday, Youth Day, was declared to mark the apartheid regime’s brutal treatment of learner protestors on June 16, 1976. While Namibia has not experienced events of such magnitude, the notion of learner voice is equally problematic and worthy of investigation. The absence of leadership development opportunities for learners has led to this research study which seeks to answer the central research question: How can learner leadership be developed in a LRC? I used an interpretive paradigm, adopting a qualitative approach in the study. Concurrently, the study was framed and guided by the second generation of Cultural Historical Activity Theory (CHAT) as an analytical tool to achieve my research goal. The following questions guided the study in two phases. Phase one: What were the perceived causes for the nonsustainability of the learner leadership (LL) club at the school? Phase two: How is the notion of learner leadership understood in the school? How is leadership developed on the LRC? What enables and constrains leadership development of learners on the LRC? The research participants were thirty LRC members from grades 6 and 7 and15 teachers who teach the LRC members. The principal and three HOD’s were also research participants being part of the Senior Management team. One of the HOD’s also fulfils the role of the guardian teacher to the LRC. A school board chairperson also participated in the Change Laboratory Workshop. Data was generated through multiple data sources such as questionnaires, individual interviews, a focus group interview and observation. The findings from phase one of the study revealed that the learner leadership club’s intervention was a success during the 2014 academic year, but the absence of the learner leadership club as an extra-mural activity affected the sustainability of the club into the next academic year 2015. Findings from phase two revealed that leadership opportunities did exist at the school for learner leadership development. However, a few challenges emerged relating to traditional views of leadership and constraining factors that could affect learner leadership development at the school. Thus, Change Laboratory workshops were held to find solutions to the challenges, in order to promote and enhance learner leadership development, hopefully for the future of the Namibian child.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2018
Transformation through engagement: developing Grade 9 leadership opportunities through activity system using change laboratory intervention in a secondary school in Omusati region of Namibia
- Authors: Vaino, Loide Mwasheka
- Date: 2018
- Subjects: School management and organization Namibia Omusati , Student participation in administration Namibia Omusati , Educational leadership Namibia Omusati , Student government Namibia Omusati
- Language: English
- Type: text , Thesis , Masters , MEd
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/61569 , vital:28038
- Description: The evolution of traditional educational leadership theory to contemporary leadership theory came as a response to an increased demand for better services in schools by creating platforms for learner leadership such as distributed leadership where learner leadership is located. This study of learner leadership is conducted in a secondary school in Omusati region of Namibia. Drawing on distributed leadership theory, the study sought to promote the distribution of leadership opportunities amongst all educational stakeholders, including learners, as provided for by policy and projected by educational leadership theory. The motivation of this study was the need to understand the problems associated with learner leadership as identified by past research. In addition, this study hoped to address the gap in the literature by exploring learner leadership development opportunities developing agency in learners through a Change Laboratory (CL) intervention. This study was as a transformative case study, how the grade 9s in the case study school were involved in leadership, the constraining factors that hindered the involvement of grade 9 learners in leadership, the enhancement of learner leadership at school, the positive contributions of CL workshops to participants and the leadership growth brought about by an intervention. This study generated data through observation, questionnaires, semi-structured interviews, focus group interviews, and Change Laboratory Workshops. The findings revealed that the grade 9 learners were marginally involved in leadership at the school. The most substantial challenge relates to traditional and outdated views of leadership on the part of teachers and educational managers. Additionally, the findings from the Change Laboratory workshops revealed that despite grade 9 learners being the youngest at school, they have the potential to be learner leaders. Hence in addition to several practical recommendations, the study recommends a change of mindset towards learner leadership so that opportunities are provided to contribute to the growth and development of learners. Finally, these research study findings will help my professional colleagues and policy makers in education to better understand the significance role of learner leadership involvements in schools.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2018
- Authors: Vaino, Loide Mwasheka
- Date: 2018
- Subjects: School management and organization Namibia Omusati , Student participation in administration Namibia Omusati , Educational leadership Namibia Omusati , Student government Namibia Omusati
- Language: English
- Type: text , Thesis , Masters , MEd
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/61569 , vital:28038
- Description: The evolution of traditional educational leadership theory to contemporary leadership theory came as a response to an increased demand for better services in schools by creating platforms for learner leadership such as distributed leadership where learner leadership is located. This study of learner leadership is conducted in a secondary school in Omusati region of Namibia. Drawing on distributed leadership theory, the study sought to promote the distribution of leadership opportunities amongst all educational stakeholders, including learners, as provided for by policy and projected by educational leadership theory. The motivation of this study was the need to understand the problems associated with learner leadership as identified by past research. In addition, this study hoped to address the gap in the literature by exploring learner leadership development opportunities developing agency in learners through a Change Laboratory (CL) intervention. This study was as a transformative case study, how the grade 9s in the case study school were involved in leadership, the constraining factors that hindered the involvement of grade 9 learners in leadership, the enhancement of learner leadership at school, the positive contributions of CL workshops to participants and the leadership growth brought about by an intervention. This study generated data through observation, questionnaires, semi-structured interviews, focus group interviews, and Change Laboratory Workshops. The findings revealed that the grade 9 learners were marginally involved in leadership at the school. The most substantial challenge relates to traditional and outdated views of leadership on the part of teachers and educational managers. Additionally, the findings from the Change Laboratory workshops revealed that despite grade 9 learners being the youngest at school, they have the potential to be learner leaders. Hence in addition to several practical recommendations, the study recommends a change of mindset towards learner leadership so that opportunities are provided to contribute to the growth and development of learners. Finally, these research study findings will help my professional colleagues and policy makers in education to better understand the significance role of learner leadership involvements in schools.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2018
Performing the township: pantsula for life
- Van Niekerk, Heather Elizabeth
- Authors: Van Niekerk, Heather Elizabeth
- Date: 2018
- Subjects: Pantsula (Dance) South Africa Johannesburg , Pantsula (Dance) South Africa Makhanda , Dance Social aspects South Africa , Sophiatown (Johannesburg, South Africa)
- Language: English
- Type: text , Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/57874 , vital:26998
- Description: Pantsula dance is a performing art born from the townships of Johannesburg. It is a dance form performed across South Africa, in a variety of contexts; in theatres, music videos and competitions in community halls, on national and international stages and on television, and in the streets of townships, cities and suburbs across South Africa and abroad. Its performance is widespread, but it has its beginnings as a dance form born in areas created to marginalise and oppress. There is a scarcity of academic scholarship related to pantsula dance. This thesis aims to be a contribution to that pre-existing body of knowledge in the hope that there can be further engagement on this important, and increasingly mainstream, art form. I have focused my thesis on analysing pantsula dance as a performance of 'the township'. This has been attempted through an ethnographic engagement with pantsula dancers based in different township areas of Johannesburg and Graha mstown: various members of Impilo Mapantsula, Via Katlehong, Intellectuals Pantsula, Via Kasi Movers, Dlala Majimboz and the cast of Via Katlehong's Via Sophiatown. The research was conducted between 2013 and 2016 and serves to represent various moments within the ethnographic research process, while coming to understand various aspects of pantsula dance. An engagement with notions of 'the township', the clothing choices of the pantsula 'uniform', the core moves, inherent hybridity in the form itself, and the dedication to the dance form as a representation of the isipantsula 'way of life', are addressed throughout the thesis. As well as engaging with the memory and representation of Sophiatown as an important component to pantsula dance. Pantsula dance, an intrinsically South African dance form, provides a celebratory conception of 'the township' space and allows people from different backgrounds to engage in an important part of South Africa's past, present and future.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2018
- Authors: Van Niekerk, Heather Elizabeth
- Date: 2018
- Subjects: Pantsula (Dance) South Africa Johannesburg , Pantsula (Dance) South Africa Makhanda , Dance Social aspects South Africa , Sophiatown (Johannesburg, South Africa)
- Language: English
- Type: text , Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/57874 , vital:26998
- Description: Pantsula dance is a performing art born from the townships of Johannesburg. It is a dance form performed across South Africa, in a variety of contexts; in theatres, music videos and competitions in community halls, on national and international stages and on television, and in the streets of townships, cities and suburbs across South Africa and abroad. Its performance is widespread, but it has its beginnings as a dance form born in areas created to marginalise and oppress. There is a scarcity of academic scholarship related to pantsula dance. This thesis aims to be a contribution to that pre-existing body of knowledge in the hope that there can be further engagement on this important, and increasingly mainstream, art form. I have focused my thesis on analysing pantsula dance as a performance of 'the township'. This has been attempted through an ethnographic engagement with pantsula dancers based in different township areas of Johannesburg and Graha mstown: various members of Impilo Mapantsula, Via Katlehong, Intellectuals Pantsula, Via Kasi Movers, Dlala Majimboz and the cast of Via Katlehong's Via Sophiatown. The research was conducted between 2013 and 2016 and serves to represent various moments within the ethnographic research process, while coming to understand various aspects of pantsula dance. An engagement with notions of 'the township', the clothing choices of the pantsula 'uniform', the core moves, inherent hybridity in the form itself, and the dedication to the dance form as a representation of the isipantsula 'way of life', are addressed throughout the thesis. As well as engaging with the memory and representation of Sophiatown as an important component to pantsula dance. Pantsula dance, an intrinsically South African dance form, provides a celebratory conception of 'the township' space and allows people from different backgrounds to engage in an important part of South Africa's past, present and future.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2018
Graphite: origin, deposits and economics : an exploration study of the Orom Graphite project
- Van den Berg, Jacobus Petrus
- Authors: Van den Berg, Jacobus Petrus
- Date: 2018
- Subjects: Graphite , Ore deposits , Geophysics , Graphite mines and mining Economic aspects Africa, East , Trenches , Project management
- Language: English
- Type: text , Thesis , Masters , MSc
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/63786 , vital:28489
- Description: Developing exploration projects successfully requires that the Reasonable Prospects for Eventual Economic Extraction (RPEEE) be confirmed and based on the global market perception and trend. The exploration methods applied in the attempt to establish this RPEEE must be based on a key management framework that assures the results, and eventually the conclusion, are obtained with best practical and technical approaches whilst managing the risks and capitalizing on each result. The Orom Graphite project is located within the East African Orogenic belt, a suture zone between the Congo craton and the SLAMIN shield, formed during the formation of Gondwana during the late Proterozoic to early-Phanerozoic era. The closing of the Mozambique ocean, and the eventual collision between the craton and shield, occurred along the paleo-earths equator and migrated towards lower latitudes. This, along with the period’s biodiversity boom, provided the perfect deposition environment for carbonaceous sediments which were later metamorphosed to amphibolite and granulites grade metamorphism, resulting in the carbonization and the eventual graphitization of these carbonaceous sediments. The project is located within a poorly developed part of Uganda with the closest port situated some 1 500 km to the east in Kenya. The poorly developed infrastructure along with probable high logistical cost assigns a low competitivity index if compared to the economic costs of peer projects. However, the potential resources of the Orom Graphite project suggest that the Life of Mine (LOM) can rival the largest resource currently reported within the market. The current market conditions suggest that a possible oversupply of graphite concentrate will dominate the market within the next 4 to 10 years. This suggests that new graphite projects such as the Orom Graphite project are likely to develop into the production phase once the global supply and demand stabilize. This requires the Orom Graphite project to develop from its current scoping study level to a project development study level associated with a definitive feasibility study. To date, the project developed through mapping, reconnaissance drilling, geophysical survey and trenching programs increasing the Net Present Value (NPV) considerably based upon a Cost-Based Valuation approach using Prospectivity Enhancement Multiplier (PEM). The metallurgical studies could however not produce a graphite concentrate product within industrial grade standards. The risk associated with developing the project further into the Mineral Resource Estimation (MRE) phase was quantified and risk was evaluated by implementing a point decision tree and calculating the Expected Monetary Value (EMV). Due to the unfavourable metallurgical results obtained to date, the risk associated with undertaking an additional metallurgical test is considerable with a slight chance of producing a negative project value estimated at 65%. JP van den Berg Rhodes University Overall, the Orom Graphite project contains favourable geological formations with a potential large resource. Market trends indicate that a considerable resource is currently being developed and can supply the global market for the next 4 to 10 years. The project’s location within a landlocked country decreases its economic competitiveness with peer project and the unfavourable, but not conclusive, metallurgical results obtained during the scoping phase do not instil confidence that the project will develop into a productive mine soon. Managing the project development with future graphite demand in mind is the key to determining whether the project still has future value.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2018
- Authors: Van den Berg, Jacobus Petrus
- Date: 2018
- Subjects: Graphite , Ore deposits , Geophysics , Graphite mines and mining Economic aspects Africa, East , Trenches , Project management
- Language: English
- Type: text , Thesis , Masters , MSc
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/63786 , vital:28489
- Description: Developing exploration projects successfully requires that the Reasonable Prospects for Eventual Economic Extraction (RPEEE) be confirmed and based on the global market perception and trend. The exploration methods applied in the attempt to establish this RPEEE must be based on a key management framework that assures the results, and eventually the conclusion, are obtained with best practical and technical approaches whilst managing the risks and capitalizing on each result. The Orom Graphite project is located within the East African Orogenic belt, a suture zone between the Congo craton and the SLAMIN shield, formed during the formation of Gondwana during the late Proterozoic to early-Phanerozoic era. The closing of the Mozambique ocean, and the eventual collision between the craton and shield, occurred along the paleo-earths equator and migrated towards lower latitudes. This, along with the period’s biodiversity boom, provided the perfect deposition environment for carbonaceous sediments which were later metamorphosed to amphibolite and granulites grade metamorphism, resulting in the carbonization and the eventual graphitization of these carbonaceous sediments. The project is located within a poorly developed part of Uganda with the closest port situated some 1 500 km to the east in Kenya. The poorly developed infrastructure along with probable high logistical cost assigns a low competitivity index if compared to the economic costs of peer projects. However, the potential resources of the Orom Graphite project suggest that the Life of Mine (LOM) can rival the largest resource currently reported within the market. The current market conditions suggest that a possible oversupply of graphite concentrate will dominate the market within the next 4 to 10 years. This suggests that new graphite projects such as the Orom Graphite project are likely to develop into the production phase once the global supply and demand stabilize. This requires the Orom Graphite project to develop from its current scoping study level to a project development study level associated with a definitive feasibility study. To date, the project developed through mapping, reconnaissance drilling, geophysical survey and trenching programs increasing the Net Present Value (NPV) considerably based upon a Cost-Based Valuation approach using Prospectivity Enhancement Multiplier (PEM). The metallurgical studies could however not produce a graphite concentrate product within industrial grade standards. The risk associated with developing the project further into the Mineral Resource Estimation (MRE) phase was quantified and risk was evaluated by implementing a point decision tree and calculating the Expected Monetary Value (EMV). Due to the unfavourable metallurgical results obtained to date, the risk associated with undertaking an additional metallurgical test is considerable with a slight chance of producing a negative project value estimated at 65%. JP van den Berg Rhodes University Overall, the Orom Graphite project contains favourable geological formations with a potential large resource. Market trends indicate that a considerable resource is currently being developed and can supply the global market for the next 4 to 10 years. The project’s location within a landlocked country decreases its economic competitiveness with peer project and the unfavourable, but not conclusive, metallurgical results obtained during the scoping phase do not instil confidence that the project will develop into a productive mine soon. Managing the project development with future graphite demand in mind is the key to determining whether the project still has future value.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2018
A review of Climate-Smart system innovations in two Agricultural Colleges in the North West Province of South Africa
- Authors: Van Staden, Wilma
- Date: 2018
- Subjects: Crops and climate South Africa North-West , Sustainable agriculture South Africa North-West , Agriculture Environmental aspects South Africa North-West , Agricultural colleges Curricula South Africa , Agricultural innovations , Agricultural ecology South Africa North-West
- Language: English
- Type: text , Thesis , Doctoral , PhD
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/63426 , vital:28410
- Description: This study was centred on the Agricultural Innovation System in the North West Province, South Africa as a response to climate change. The study developed during a time when Climate-Smart Agriculture emerged in policy and was developed as a strategic agricultural innovation process in response to changes in climate that increased food insecurity. The Agricultural Colleges embedded in the agricultural system realised that they were teaching students without a clear provision for climate change and therefore needed to initiate climate responsive innovations to comply with the Climate-Smart strategy that had been proposed by the provincial authorities. This provided the context for the study to track and support the innovation process of transitioning towards Climate-Smart responsive curriculum and learning practices within the system. A theoretical framework for the study was developed using a Cultural Historical Activity Theory perspective. This allowed the researcher to approach the research process as two case studies of innovation within the Agricultural Innovation System of the North West Province. The study developed as an iterative process of innovation support and tracking. At the early stages of the research process, data were generated through document analysis and a survey completed by the research participants at the preliminary consultative workshop. The contextual data allowed the researcher to begin to develop a clear contextual profile for both case studies. The consultative workshops were held to orientate the research around the central problems and challenges related to curriculum alignment with provincial Climate-Smart Agricultural policies. The methodology thereafter was developed as an iterative process of successive intervention-innovation workshops where the participating staff in each college reviewed their curriculum with the support of a Climate-Smart Innovation Tool. This tool was developed as a mediating resource for participants to undertake intervention work towards curriculum innovation in their context. The historical analysis from the two consultative workshops and the data derived from the initial use of the Climate-Smart Innovation Tool was used to model the activity systems in the respective colleges and the provincial system. This analysis enabled the researcher to scope how the system was currently functioning and how it had changed over time. During the workshops, curriculum innovations were reviewed and a fuller picture of the challenges of system innovation emerged, especially from a curriculum innovation vantage point. This system analysis was used to analyse emergent tensions and contradictions within the system and to build a picture of the complexities of participating staff initiating innovations towards Climate-Smart responsiveness in the colleges and within the Agricultural Innovation System. During the review and tracking of the supported innovation process the Climate-Smart Innovation Tool was developed into online sub-tools where either Departments or individual lecturers could review and track their own Climate-Smart responsiveness. The tool was shown to be a useful tool for surfacing contradictions, and identifying absences, and thus for charting out the start of reflexive learning and change processes needed for introducing climate responsive knowledge into the system. The study reveals that catalysing of curriculum and learning system innovation aligned with wider innovations in the agricultural innovation system requires specific tools, time and the understanding of the importance of micro-level innovation. The innovations within the system revealed the significance of allowing for time and processes that facilitate ‘ascending’ from the abstract concept of Climate-Smart Agriculture into more concrete curriculum processes. The curriculum review tool developed for this study served as an important double stimulation tool, along with activity system mapping, and ongoing refinement and clarification of the object of Climate-Smart Agriculture and associated contradictions and action plans for climate smart responsiveness in the college context. The tools and processes that were developed during this study, assisting in the emergence of micro-level innovation of the curriculum and learning system. The barriers and processes hampering curriculum and learning innovation within the system were identified. The study concludes with the recommendations on how a Climate-Smart innovation process might best be supported with reflexive tools within a curriculum and learning system during a time of institutional flux.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2018
- Authors: Van Staden, Wilma
- Date: 2018
- Subjects: Crops and climate South Africa North-West , Sustainable agriculture South Africa North-West , Agriculture Environmental aspects South Africa North-West , Agricultural colleges Curricula South Africa , Agricultural innovations , Agricultural ecology South Africa North-West
- Language: English
- Type: text , Thesis , Doctoral , PhD
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/63426 , vital:28410
- Description: This study was centred on the Agricultural Innovation System in the North West Province, South Africa as a response to climate change. The study developed during a time when Climate-Smart Agriculture emerged in policy and was developed as a strategic agricultural innovation process in response to changes in climate that increased food insecurity. The Agricultural Colleges embedded in the agricultural system realised that they were teaching students without a clear provision for climate change and therefore needed to initiate climate responsive innovations to comply with the Climate-Smart strategy that had been proposed by the provincial authorities. This provided the context for the study to track and support the innovation process of transitioning towards Climate-Smart responsive curriculum and learning practices within the system. A theoretical framework for the study was developed using a Cultural Historical Activity Theory perspective. This allowed the researcher to approach the research process as two case studies of innovation within the Agricultural Innovation System of the North West Province. The study developed as an iterative process of innovation support and tracking. At the early stages of the research process, data were generated through document analysis and a survey completed by the research participants at the preliminary consultative workshop. The contextual data allowed the researcher to begin to develop a clear contextual profile for both case studies. The consultative workshops were held to orientate the research around the central problems and challenges related to curriculum alignment with provincial Climate-Smart Agricultural policies. The methodology thereafter was developed as an iterative process of successive intervention-innovation workshops where the participating staff in each college reviewed their curriculum with the support of a Climate-Smart Innovation Tool. This tool was developed as a mediating resource for participants to undertake intervention work towards curriculum innovation in their context. The historical analysis from the two consultative workshops and the data derived from the initial use of the Climate-Smart Innovation Tool was used to model the activity systems in the respective colleges and the provincial system. This analysis enabled the researcher to scope how the system was currently functioning and how it had changed over time. During the workshops, curriculum innovations were reviewed and a fuller picture of the challenges of system innovation emerged, especially from a curriculum innovation vantage point. This system analysis was used to analyse emergent tensions and contradictions within the system and to build a picture of the complexities of participating staff initiating innovations towards Climate-Smart responsiveness in the colleges and within the Agricultural Innovation System. During the review and tracking of the supported innovation process the Climate-Smart Innovation Tool was developed into online sub-tools where either Departments or individual lecturers could review and track their own Climate-Smart responsiveness. The tool was shown to be a useful tool for surfacing contradictions, and identifying absences, and thus for charting out the start of reflexive learning and change processes needed for introducing climate responsive knowledge into the system. The study reveals that catalysing of curriculum and learning system innovation aligned with wider innovations in the agricultural innovation system requires specific tools, time and the understanding of the importance of micro-level innovation. The innovations within the system revealed the significance of allowing for time and processes that facilitate ‘ascending’ from the abstract concept of Climate-Smart Agriculture into more concrete curriculum processes. The curriculum review tool developed for this study served as an important double stimulation tool, along with activity system mapping, and ongoing refinement and clarification of the object of Climate-Smart Agriculture and associated contradictions and action plans for climate smart responsiveness in the college context. The tools and processes that were developed during this study, assisting in the emergence of micro-level innovation of the curriculum and learning system. The barriers and processes hampering curriculum and learning innovation within the system were identified. The study concludes with the recommendations on how a Climate-Smart innovation process might best be supported with reflexive tools within a curriculum and learning system during a time of institutional flux.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2018
Barriers and drivers to the implementation of renewable energy technologies in South Africa’s aquaculture industry
- Authors: Van Wyk, Nicholas Kelly
- Date: 2018
- Subjects: Renewable energy sources South Africa , Aquaculture Environmental aspects South Africa , Sustainable aquaculture Economic aspects South Africa , Renewable energy sources Economic aspects South Africa , Renewable energy sources Environmental aspects South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: text , Thesis , Masters , MBA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/61969 , vital:28090
- Description: South Africa is plagued by socio-economic issues of poverty, inequality and high rates of unemployment. The government of South Africa has as such launched an ambitious plan known as operation PHAKISA which will complement the National Development Plan in addressing the countries aforementioned shortcomings. In the operations first phase, the focus is on growing South Africa’s ocean economy. Within the ocean economy, the growth of aquaculture has been identified as an industry with the potential to create jobs and aid in economic growth of South Africa. Aquaculture, the farming of any aquatic organisms, has been the fastest growing food production sector for the past 50 years. While natural capture fisheries have stagnated in production capacity, aquaculture has grown exponentially in order to feed a global population which is fast approaching nine billion people. However, South Africa’s aquaculture production lags significantly behind other third world countries. The sustainability of aquaculture has frequently been called into question due to the possibility of various detrimental environmental effects it may cause. To further complicate the matter, Climate Change is today an overarching threat to life as we know it, and must be taken into account if we plan to keep growing our populations and economies. As such, if South Africa wants to grow its aquaculture sector, it must be done so in a sustainable manner. This research thus sought to investigate one aspect which may increase the sustainability of aquaculture in South Africa, that being the implementation of renewable energy in the sector. Renewable energy has been identified by the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change as key to mitigating the effects of climate change. In order to aid Renewable Energy (RE) implementation in South Africa’s aquaculture sector, this research aimed to identify the barriers and the drivers to implementing renewable energy within aquaculture. To do this, a literature review was conducted to identify possible barriers and drivers to renewable energy implementation. These were then drafted into an online questionnaire and sent via Email to all the aquaculture organisations in South Africa that could be contacted (n = 195). Respondents were asked to rank the proposed barriers and drivers to renewable energy according to their perceived importance on a Likert Scale. A total of 18 responses could be analysed with descriptive statistics. Further, three structured interviews were conducted with members of South African aquaculture organisations who had implemented some form of Renewable Energy Technology (RET). These interviews provided in-depth insights into the importance of the various proposed barriers and drivers. The results revealed the most important barriers to RE implementation were: High Initial investments, Utility monopoly of production, Lack of RE experts on a governmental level, Lack of incentives/subsidies from government, Lack of legal framework for Independent Power Producers and Power Purchase Agreements, and Diseconomy of scale respectively. The most important drivers to RE implementation were ranked as: Long term cost benefits, Reduction in cost of RETs, Innovation / advancement of RETS, Incentives or subsidies to implement renewable energy, Adequate legal framework and legislation for Power Purchase Agreement and Preference for environmentally-friendly electricity generation. Importantly, it was found that barriers and drivers are dependent on the type of RE being implemented. A Photo Voltaic (Solar Power) system will not necessarily experience the same barriers or drivers that a Wave Energy Converter system would. In order to drive investment in RE and remove the barriers that may be preventing its implementation in aquaculture, policy will have to be adapted. Particularly in terms of legislation around Power Purchase Agreements. Further, by providing subsidies for RE implementation, it is possible to sustainably grow South Africa’s aquaculture industry.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2018
- Authors: Van Wyk, Nicholas Kelly
- Date: 2018
- Subjects: Renewable energy sources South Africa , Aquaculture Environmental aspects South Africa , Sustainable aquaculture Economic aspects South Africa , Renewable energy sources Economic aspects South Africa , Renewable energy sources Environmental aspects South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: text , Thesis , Masters , MBA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/61969 , vital:28090
- Description: South Africa is plagued by socio-economic issues of poverty, inequality and high rates of unemployment. The government of South Africa has as such launched an ambitious plan known as operation PHAKISA which will complement the National Development Plan in addressing the countries aforementioned shortcomings. In the operations first phase, the focus is on growing South Africa’s ocean economy. Within the ocean economy, the growth of aquaculture has been identified as an industry with the potential to create jobs and aid in economic growth of South Africa. Aquaculture, the farming of any aquatic organisms, has been the fastest growing food production sector for the past 50 years. While natural capture fisheries have stagnated in production capacity, aquaculture has grown exponentially in order to feed a global population which is fast approaching nine billion people. However, South Africa’s aquaculture production lags significantly behind other third world countries. The sustainability of aquaculture has frequently been called into question due to the possibility of various detrimental environmental effects it may cause. To further complicate the matter, Climate Change is today an overarching threat to life as we know it, and must be taken into account if we plan to keep growing our populations and economies. As such, if South Africa wants to grow its aquaculture sector, it must be done so in a sustainable manner. This research thus sought to investigate one aspect which may increase the sustainability of aquaculture in South Africa, that being the implementation of renewable energy in the sector. Renewable energy has been identified by the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change as key to mitigating the effects of climate change. In order to aid Renewable Energy (RE) implementation in South Africa’s aquaculture sector, this research aimed to identify the barriers and the drivers to implementing renewable energy within aquaculture. To do this, a literature review was conducted to identify possible barriers and drivers to renewable energy implementation. These were then drafted into an online questionnaire and sent via Email to all the aquaculture organisations in South Africa that could be contacted (n = 195). Respondents were asked to rank the proposed barriers and drivers to renewable energy according to their perceived importance on a Likert Scale. A total of 18 responses could be analysed with descriptive statistics. Further, three structured interviews were conducted with members of South African aquaculture organisations who had implemented some form of Renewable Energy Technology (RET). These interviews provided in-depth insights into the importance of the various proposed barriers and drivers. The results revealed the most important barriers to RE implementation were: High Initial investments, Utility monopoly of production, Lack of RE experts on a governmental level, Lack of incentives/subsidies from government, Lack of legal framework for Independent Power Producers and Power Purchase Agreements, and Diseconomy of scale respectively. The most important drivers to RE implementation were ranked as: Long term cost benefits, Reduction in cost of RETs, Innovation / advancement of RETS, Incentives or subsidies to implement renewable energy, Adequate legal framework and legislation for Power Purchase Agreement and Preference for environmentally-friendly electricity generation. Importantly, it was found that barriers and drivers are dependent on the type of RE being implemented. A Photo Voltaic (Solar Power) system will not necessarily experience the same barriers or drivers that a Wave Energy Converter system would. In order to drive investment in RE and remove the barriers that may be preventing its implementation in aquaculture, policy will have to be adapted. Particularly in terms of legislation around Power Purchase Agreements. Further, by providing subsidies for RE implementation, it is possible to sustainably grow South Africa’s aquaculture industry.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2018
An exploratory study of barriers and enablers of strategy execution in the Eastern Cape Department of Education in South Africa
- Authors: Vena, Nomava Vinolia
- Date: 2018
- Subjects: Strategic planning South Africa Eastern Cape , Business planning South Africa Eastern Cape , Public administration South Africa Eastern Cape , Corporate governance South Africa Eastern Cape , Government accountability South Africa Eastern Cape , South Africa. Department of Education
- Language: English
- Type: text , Thesis , Masters , MBA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/63649 , vital:28465
- Description: Effective strategy execution is very important for the achievement of an organisation’s goals. Because it is a difficult task to translate a strategy into action, itis imperative for leadership to prioritize its strategic plan to ensure its success. The purpose of this study is to identify barriers and enablers of strategy execution in Basic Education in the Eastern Cape; its focus is on strategic goal number six: “Efficient administration ensured through good corporate governance and management”. The effectiveness of the Eastern Cape Department of Education (ECDoE) is measured by its service delivery, how strategy is executed in providing quality education. These are guided by the norms and standards like the National Education Policy Act: Norms and Standards for educators, as set by the National Department of Basic Education and the Treasury Acts. The motivation for the study was the Department’s poor performance as reported by the Auditor General (AG) in his 2015 audit report, that there has been a lack of good governance and accountability in the ECDoE. The study is qualitative: a sample of twenty-five (25) ECDoE senior managers were interviewed as the custodians of the execution of the strategic plan. Purposive sampling method selected the twenty-five from a total of forty-five (45) senior managers, some of whom were in Head Office and some in the twenty-three (23) districts. Data was collected through questionnaires and interviews and responses were captured on Excel Spreadsheet, and analysed with the Thematic Analysis. Major findings relating to barriers were on Human Resource Management, Poor Leadership, Resourcing (Tools of Trade), Improper Budgeting Systems, Poor Communication, and Organisational Structure. Some variables were interchangeably identified both as barriers and enablers, such as budgeting and resourcing. There were many recommendations, but for this study one, the Finance Section, will suffice: and that is that the Finance Section should analyse each directorate’s spending for each year before the new budget is allocated.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2018
- Authors: Vena, Nomava Vinolia
- Date: 2018
- Subjects: Strategic planning South Africa Eastern Cape , Business planning South Africa Eastern Cape , Public administration South Africa Eastern Cape , Corporate governance South Africa Eastern Cape , Government accountability South Africa Eastern Cape , South Africa. Department of Education
- Language: English
- Type: text , Thesis , Masters , MBA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/63649 , vital:28465
- Description: Effective strategy execution is very important for the achievement of an organisation’s goals. Because it is a difficult task to translate a strategy into action, itis imperative for leadership to prioritize its strategic plan to ensure its success. The purpose of this study is to identify barriers and enablers of strategy execution in Basic Education in the Eastern Cape; its focus is on strategic goal number six: “Efficient administration ensured through good corporate governance and management”. The effectiveness of the Eastern Cape Department of Education (ECDoE) is measured by its service delivery, how strategy is executed in providing quality education. These are guided by the norms and standards like the National Education Policy Act: Norms and Standards for educators, as set by the National Department of Basic Education and the Treasury Acts. The motivation for the study was the Department’s poor performance as reported by the Auditor General (AG) in his 2015 audit report, that there has been a lack of good governance and accountability in the ECDoE. The study is qualitative: a sample of twenty-five (25) ECDoE senior managers were interviewed as the custodians of the execution of the strategic plan. Purposive sampling method selected the twenty-five from a total of forty-five (45) senior managers, some of whom were in Head Office and some in the twenty-three (23) districts. Data was collected through questionnaires and interviews and responses were captured on Excel Spreadsheet, and analysed with the Thematic Analysis. Major findings relating to barriers were on Human Resource Management, Poor Leadership, Resourcing (Tools of Trade), Improper Budgeting Systems, Poor Communication, and Organisational Structure. Some variables were interchangeably identified both as barriers and enablers, such as budgeting and resourcing. There were many recommendations, but for this study one, the Finance Section, will suffice: and that is that the Finance Section should analyse each directorate’s spending for each year before the new budget is allocated.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2018
The ecological risk of acid mine drainage in a salinising landscape
- Authors: Vellemu, Emmanuel Captain
- Date: 2018
- Subjects: Acid mine drainage Environmental aspects South Africa Mpumalanga , Salinization South Africa Mpumalanga , Water salinization South Africa Mpumalanga , Water quality South Africa Mpumalanga , Aquatic animals Effect of water quality on South Africa Mpumalanga , Freshwater ecology South Africa Mpumalanga
- Language: English
- Type: text , Thesis , Doctoral , PhD
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/60563 , vital:27797
- Description: Acid mine drainage (AMD) and increasing salinity of freshwater ecosystems pose serious threats to water quality in water-stressed South Africa. These threats are exacerbated by mining activities, mainly gold and coal from both active and abandoned mines that continue to release acidic water that is rich in toxic metals and high sulphate concentrations. Therefore, the overarching hypothesis for this study was that “the combination of AMD and sulphate salts confers high ecological risk to the aquatic biota”. The study employed both laboratory and field investigations to test this hypothesis and provide appropriate tools to protect freshwater ecosystems from increasing anthropogenic impacts. Firstly, a laboratory investigation was carried out to develop risk-based water quality guidelines (WQGs) for sulphates and treated AMD (TAMD) using the species sensitivity distributions (SSDs) technique. Five South African freshwater species belonging to five different taxonomic groupings, including Adenophlebia auriculata (insect), Burnupia stenochorias (mollusc), Caridina nilotica (crustacea), Pseudokirchneriella subcapitata (algae) and Oreochromis mossambicus (fish) were exposed to varying concentrations of sodium sulphate (Na2SO4), magnesium sulphate (MgSO4) and calcium sulphate (CaSO4), as well as TAMD in separate ecotoxicological experiments, applying short-term (96 h) non-renewal and long-term (240 h) renewal exposure test methods. Secondly, a novel trait-based approach (TBA) was also used to predict the vulnerability of taxa to treated acid mine drainage (TAMD). The TBA used a combination of carefully selected traits of organisms that are mechanistically linked to TAMD for their potential vulnerability predictions. Leptoceridae (caddisflies) and Leptophlebiidae (mayflies) were selected taxa for evaluation of the trait-based vulnerability predictions to TAMD for laboratory toxicity exposures. This was followed by a field investigation to assess macroinvertebrates assemblage responses, abundance and richness to a TAMD-impacted stream using the South African Scoring System version 5 (SASS5) protocol. Outcomes form the above three sources were combined in a multi-criteria analysis (MCA) to develop an appropriate water quality management strategy in a form of a trait-based decision-making support tool. Results of the risk-based WQGs revealed that Na2SO4 was the most toxic of the tested salts. A concentration of 0.020 g/L Na2SO4, 0.055 g/L CaSO4, and 0.108 g/L MgSO4 or a combined sulphate salts limit of 0.067 g/L were derived as long-term WQGs to protect over 95% of the population species in a natural environment considered as relatively pristine. This means that the generic 0.25 g/L sulphate compliance limit for South African freshwater systems is under-protective. Burnupia stenochorias was the most sensitive to AMD after long-term exposures, and it was adjudged as a good indicator of AMD along with P. subcapitata. Long-term scenario-specific WQG for AMD for the protection of over 95% of the population species was derived as 0.014%. Results of the TBA revealed that the relative abundance and diversity of taxa at a site that received direct impact from TAMD generally corresponded to trait-based predictions. The site that received direct TAMD was largely dominated by members of the Corixidae and Naucoridae families. However, Leptoceridae was more vulnerable to TAMD than Leptophlebidae contrary to predictions. Its assemblage did not match the predictions although Leptophlebiidae corresponded to predictions in terms of its assemblage and diversity. As water quality improved further downstream of the TAMD source, macroinvertebrates assemblage and diversity also improved as predicted. However, it is important to note that other equally important traits that were not studied might influence the response of organisms during toxicity test exposures. The MCA findings suggest that the trait-based decision-making support tool is a useful management strategy for the predicting vulnerability of taxa aquatic stressors including AMD and increasing salinity. Overall, the outcome of this study suggests that AMD poses an ecological risk to aquatic biota, but this becomes riskier in the presence of excess sulphate salts. Albeit, the WQGs for sulphate salts and AMD as well as the developed trait-based decision support tool all contribute novel sound scientific knowledge basis for managing the AMD and increasing salinity in freshwater ecosystems. The study recommends incorporating different life stages of indigenous species tested to determine if their sensitivity to AMD and sulphate would correspond to current findings because early life stages could be more sensitive to aquatic stressors than juveniles or adults. This is important for the derivation of strong and relevant WQGs. The TBA requires further refinement for its incorporation in ecotoxicology on a wide scale.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2018
- Authors: Vellemu, Emmanuel Captain
- Date: 2018
- Subjects: Acid mine drainage Environmental aspects South Africa Mpumalanga , Salinization South Africa Mpumalanga , Water salinization South Africa Mpumalanga , Water quality South Africa Mpumalanga , Aquatic animals Effect of water quality on South Africa Mpumalanga , Freshwater ecology South Africa Mpumalanga
- Language: English
- Type: text , Thesis , Doctoral , PhD
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/60563 , vital:27797
- Description: Acid mine drainage (AMD) and increasing salinity of freshwater ecosystems pose serious threats to water quality in water-stressed South Africa. These threats are exacerbated by mining activities, mainly gold and coal from both active and abandoned mines that continue to release acidic water that is rich in toxic metals and high sulphate concentrations. Therefore, the overarching hypothesis for this study was that “the combination of AMD and sulphate salts confers high ecological risk to the aquatic biota”. The study employed both laboratory and field investigations to test this hypothesis and provide appropriate tools to protect freshwater ecosystems from increasing anthropogenic impacts. Firstly, a laboratory investigation was carried out to develop risk-based water quality guidelines (WQGs) for sulphates and treated AMD (TAMD) using the species sensitivity distributions (SSDs) technique. Five South African freshwater species belonging to five different taxonomic groupings, including Adenophlebia auriculata (insect), Burnupia stenochorias (mollusc), Caridina nilotica (crustacea), Pseudokirchneriella subcapitata (algae) and Oreochromis mossambicus (fish) were exposed to varying concentrations of sodium sulphate (Na2SO4), magnesium sulphate (MgSO4) and calcium sulphate (CaSO4), as well as TAMD in separate ecotoxicological experiments, applying short-term (96 h) non-renewal and long-term (240 h) renewal exposure test methods. Secondly, a novel trait-based approach (TBA) was also used to predict the vulnerability of taxa to treated acid mine drainage (TAMD). The TBA used a combination of carefully selected traits of organisms that are mechanistically linked to TAMD for their potential vulnerability predictions. Leptoceridae (caddisflies) and Leptophlebiidae (mayflies) were selected taxa for evaluation of the trait-based vulnerability predictions to TAMD for laboratory toxicity exposures. This was followed by a field investigation to assess macroinvertebrates assemblage responses, abundance and richness to a TAMD-impacted stream using the South African Scoring System version 5 (SASS5) protocol. Outcomes form the above three sources were combined in a multi-criteria analysis (MCA) to develop an appropriate water quality management strategy in a form of a trait-based decision-making support tool. Results of the risk-based WQGs revealed that Na2SO4 was the most toxic of the tested salts. A concentration of 0.020 g/L Na2SO4, 0.055 g/L CaSO4, and 0.108 g/L MgSO4 or a combined sulphate salts limit of 0.067 g/L were derived as long-term WQGs to protect over 95% of the population species in a natural environment considered as relatively pristine. This means that the generic 0.25 g/L sulphate compliance limit for South African freshwater systems is under-protective. Burnupia stenochorias was the most sensitive to AMD after long-term exposures, and it was adjudged as a good indicator of AMD along with P. subcapitata. Long-term scenario-specific WQG for AMD for the protection of over 95% of the population species was derived as 0.014%. Results of the TBA revealed that the relative abundance and diversity of taxa at a site that received direct impact from TAMD generally corresponded to trait-based predictions. The site that received direct TAMD was largely dominated by members of the Corixidae and Naucoridae families. However, Leptoceridae was more vulnerable to TAMD than Leptophlebidae contrary to predictions. Its assemblage did not match the predictions although Leptophlebiidae corresponded to predictions in terms of its assemblage and diversity. As water quality improved further downstream of the TAMD source, macroinvertebrates assemblage and diversity also improved as predicted. However, it is important to note that other equally important traits that were not studied might influence the response of organisms during toxicity test exposures. The MCA findings suggest that the trait-based decision-making support tool is a useful management strategy for the predicting vulnerability of taxa aquatic stressors including AMD and increasing salinity. Overall, the outcome of this study suggests that AMD poses an ecological risk to aquatic biota, but this becomes riskier in the presence of excess sulphate salts. Albeit, the WQGs for sulphate salts and AMD as well as the developed trait-based decision support tool all contribute novel sound scientific knowledge basis for managing the AMD and increasing salinity in freshwater ecosystems. The study recommends incorporating different life stages of indigenous species tested to determine if their sensitivity to AMD and sulphate would correspond to current findings because early life stages could be more sensitive to aquatic stressors than juveniles or adults. This is important for the derivation of strong and relevant WQGs. The TBA requires further refinement for its incorporation in ecotoxicology on a wide scale.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2018
Wagon bridges of the Eastern Cape, c. 1840 – 1900: the contribution of engineering to infrastructural development
- Authors: Walters, Dennis Evelyn
- Date: 2018
- Subjects: Bridges Design and construction 19th century , Civil engineers South Africa Cape of Good Hope , Great Britain. Crown Agents' Office , Public works Great Britain Colonies , Wagon trains South Africa Cape of Good Hope
- Language: English
- Type: text , Thesis , Doctoral , PhD
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/63877 , vital:28500
- Description: This thesis examines an aspect of economic and technological history which has been little explored in South African history. It argues that the military subjugation and the economic development of the Cape Colony, and particularly of the Eastern Cape, were contingent upon good transportation. The geography of the country, which included relatively impassable mountains and numerous often flooded rivers, necessitated bridges as well as roads. Both were expensive. As a leader in industrial technology, Britain was well placed to extend bridge-building skills to its colonies. This thesis examines the processes by which a small and undeveloped colony strove to create an efficient technological infrastructure. As wagon traffic increased through progress, delays in crossing rivers became a hindrance leading to agitation for bridges. It will be shown that the construction of wagon bridges over the numerous rivers encountered in the Eastern Cape Colony was imperative for the initial free flow of military forces and for later commercial expansion as new towns were established. The eastward expansion was led by the military during the frontier wars followed by the Royal Engineers who built roads and bridges along the eastern frontier. The new Colonial Secretary John Montagu, who arrived in 1843, boosted the colonial finances by overhauling the administration. He established the Central Road Board, an organisation that would drive the building of mountain passes, roads and bridges. The Public Works Department succeeded the Central Road Board and with the financial intervention of the Crown Agents for the Colonies, carried on with an extensive programme of road and bridge building. From the 1870s wagon bridge building lagged behind the huge railway building enterprise in response to the opening up of the diamond and gold mines. The final quarter of the 19th century saw increased bridge building activity in the Eastern Cape with the construction of many iron lattice girder, stone masonry arch and timber trestle bridges. The surviving bridges remain as mute testimony to the skill and expertise of British engineers such as Lewis, Woodifield, Robinson, Fforde, Wakefield, Berkley, Grier, Newey, Westhoven and others.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2018
- Authors: Walters, Dennis Evelyn
- Date: 2018
- Subjects: Bridges Design and construction 19th century , Civil engineers South Africa Cape of Good Hope , Great Britain. Crown Agents' Office , Public works Great Britain Colonies , Wagon trains South Africa Cape of Good Hope
- Language: English
- Type: text , Thesis , Doctoral , PhD
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/63877 , vital:28500
- Description: This thesis examines an aspect of economic and technological history which has been little explored in South African history. It argues that the military subjugation and the economic development of the Cape Colony, and particularly of the Eastern Cape, were contingent upon good transportation. The geography of the country, which included relatively impassable mountains and numerous often flooded rivers, necessitated bridges as well as roads. Both were expensive. As a leader in industrial technology, Britain was well placed to extend bridge-building skills to its colonies. This thesis examines the processes by which a small and undeveloped colony strove to create an efficient technological infrastructure. As wagon traffic increased through progress, delays in crossing rivers became a hindrance leading to agitation for bridges. It will be shown that the construction of wagon bridges over the numerous rivers encountered in the Eastern Cape Colony was imperative for the initial free flow of military forces and for later commercial expansion as new towns were established. The eastward expansion was led by the military during the frontier wars followed by the Royal Engineers who built roads and bridges along the eastern frontier. The new Colonial Secretary John Montagu, who arrived in 1843, boosted the colonial finances by overhauling the administration. He established the Central Road Board, an organisation that would drive the building of mountain passes, roads and bridges. The Public Works Department succeeded the Central Road Board and with the financial intervention of the Crown Agents for the Colonies, carried on with an extensive programme of road and bridge building. From the 1870s wagon bridge building lagged behind the huge railway building enterprise in response to the opening up of the diamond and gold mines. The final quarter of the 19th century saw increased bridge building activity in the Eastern Cape with the construction of many iron lattice girder, stone masonry arch and timber trestle bridges. The surviving bridges remain as mute testimony to the skill and expertise of British engineers such as Lewis, Woodifield, Robinson, Fforde, Wakefield, Berkley, Grier, Newey, Westhoven and others.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2018
A psychobiographical study of Temple Grandin
- Authors: Wannenburg, Nicola
- Date: 2018
- Subjects: Grandin, Temple , Psychology Biographical methods , Psychoanalysis , Autistic women United States Biography , Women animal specialists United States Biography , Developmental psychology , Erikson, Erik H (Erik Homburger), 1902-1994
- Language: English
- Type: text , Thesis , Doctoral , PhD
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/57358 , vital:26877
- Description: Psychobiographical researchers methodically formulate life histories and interpret them by means of psychological theories. The research typically focuses on exemplary and completed lives. The cases that are studied are usually of individuals who are of particular interest to society as a result of excelling in their particular fields, be they to benefit or detriment of society. Temple Grandin was chosen for this study using purposive sampling as she meets the psychobiographical requirement of being an extraordinary individual. As an individual with autism Grandin faced many challenges growing up. Despite a difficult and absent beginning, Grandin developed into a stable and scientifically creative adult who contributes to society. She excels as an animal scientist and designer of humane livestock handling facilities and has an international reputation for her contribution to the livestock industry and animal welfare. The primary aim of this study is to describe and interpret the life of Temple Grandin through Erikson’s (1950/1973) theory of psychosocial development. A mixed method approach (Yin, 2006) was employed for the conduction of this study. The overarching data processing and analysis guidelines for this study were provided by Miles and Huberman (1994, 2002a, 2002b). The conduction of the processing and analysis of data was aided by Alexander’s (1988, 1990) method of asking the data questions as well as an integration of Yin’s (2014) time series analysis with Erikson’s (1950/1973) triple bookkeeping approach. This study contributes to the development of psychobiographical research in South Africa as well as to personality and developmental theory.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2018
- Authors: Wannenburg, Nicola
- Date: 2018
- Subjects: Grandin, Temple , Psychology Biographical methods , Psychoanalysis , Autistic women United States Biography , Women animal specialists United States Biography , Developmental psychology , Erikson, Erik H (Erik Homburger), 1902-1994
- Language: English
- Type: text , Thesis , Doctoral , PhD
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/57358 , vital:26877
- Description: Psychobiographical researchers methodically formulate life histories and interpret them by means of psychological theories. The research typically focuses on exemplary and completed lives. The cases that are studied are usually of individuals who are of particular interest to society as a result of excelling in their particular fields, be they to benefit or detriment of society. Temple Grandin was chosen for this study using purposive sampling as she meets the psychobiographical requirement of being an extraordinary individual. As an individual with autism Grandin faced many challenges growing up. Despite a difficult and absent beginning, Grandin developed into a stable and scientifically creative adult who contributes to society. She excels as an animal scientist and designer of humane livestock handling facilities and has an international reputation for her contribution to the livestock industry and animal welfare. The primary aim of this study is to describe and interpret the life of Temple Grandin through Erikson’s (1950/1973) theory of psychosocial development. A mixed method approach (Yin, 2006) was employed for the conduction of this study. The overarching data processing and analysis guidelines for this study were provided by Miles and Huberman (1994, 2002a, 2002b). The conduction of the processing and analysis of data was aided by Alexander’s (1988, 1990) method of asking the data questions as well as an integration of Yin’s (2014) time series analysis with Erikson’s (1950/1973) triple bookkeeping approach. This study contributes to the development of psychobiographical research in South Africa as well as to personality and developmental theory.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2018
Development and optimisation of a novel Plasmodium falciparum Hsp90-Hop interaction assay
- Authors: Wambua, Lynn
- Date: 2018
- Subjects: Plasmodium falciparum , Molecular chaperones , Heat shock proteins , Protein-protein interactions , Antimalarials
- Language: English
- Type: text , Thesis , Masters , MSc
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/62626 , vital:28216
- Description: Protein-protein interactions are involved in a range of disease processes and thus have become the focus of many drug discovery programs. Widespread drug resistance to all currently used antimalarial drugs drives the search for alternative drug targets with novel mechanisms of action that offer new therapeutic options. Molecular chaperones such as heat shock proteins facilitate protein folding, play a role in protein trafficking and prevent protein misfolding in cells under stress. Heat shock protein 90 (Hsp90) is a well-studied chaperone that has been the focus of cancer drug development with moderate success. In Plasmodium falciparum (P. falciparum), heat shock proteins are thought to play a vital role in parasite survival of the physiologically diverse habitats of the parasite lifecycle and because Hsp90 is prominently expressed in P. falciparum, the chaperone is considered a potentially ideal drug target. Hsp90 function in cells is regulated by interactions with co-chaperones, which includes Heat shock protein 70-Heat shock protein 90 organising protein (Hop). As opposed to directly inhibiting Hsp90 activity, targeting Hsp90 interaction with Hop has recently been suggested as an alternative method of Hsp90 inhibition that has not been explored in P. falciparum. The aim of this research project was to demonstrate PfHsp90 and PfHop robustly interact in vitro and to facilitate high-throughput screening of PfHsp90-PfHop inhibitors by developing and optimising a novel plate capture Hsp90-Hop interaction assay. To establish the assay, the respective domains of the proteins that mediate Hsp90-Hop interaction were used (Hsp90 C- terminal domain and Hop TPR2A domain). The human Hsp90 C-terminal domain and glutathione-S-transferase (GST) coding sequences were cloned into pET-28a(+) and murine and P. falciparum TPR2A sequences into pGEX-4T-1 plasmids to enable expression of histidine-tagged and GST fusion proteins, respectively, in Escherichia coli. The P. falciparum Hsp90 C-terminal domain sequence cloned into pET-28a(+) was supplied by GenScript. The constructs were transformed into T7 Express lysYcompetent E. coli cells and subsequent small- scale expression studies showed the recombinant proteins were expressed in a soluble form allowing for subsequent protein purification. Purification of the recombinant proteins was achieved using nickel-NTA and glutathione affinity chromatography for the His-tagged (Hsp90 C-terminal domains and GST) and GST fusion proteins (TPR2A domains), respectively. The purified proteins were used to establish and optimise mammalian and P. falciparum Hsp90- Hop interaction assays on nickel-coated plates by immobilising the His-tagged C-terminal domains on the plates and detecting the binding of the GST-TPR2A domains using a colorimetric GST enzyme assay. Z’-factor values above 0.5 were observed for both assays indicating good separation between the protein interaction signals and negative control background signals, although relatively high background signals were observed for the mammalian interaction due to non-specific binding of murine TPR2A to the plate. Designed human and P. falciparum TPR peptides were observed to be effective inhibitors of the mammalian and P. falciparum interactions, demonstrating the assay’s ability to respond to inhibitor compounds. Comparison of assay performance using GST assay kit reagents and lab- prepared reagents showed the assay was more efficient using lab-prepared reagents, however, lower GST signals were observed when comparing assay performance using a custom prepared Ni-NTA plate to a purchased Ni-NTA plate. The Hsp90-Hop interaction assays were also performed using an alternative assay format in which the GST-TPR2A fusion proteins were immobilised on glutathione-coated plates and binding of the His-tagged C-terminal domains detected with a nickel-horseradish peroxidase (HRP) conjugate and a colorimetric HRP substrate. The assay showed higher interaction signals for the P. falciparum proteins but comparatively low signals for the mammalian proteins. Z’-factor values for the assay were above 0.8 for both protein sets, suggesting this assay format is superior to the GST assay. However, further optimisation of this assay format is required. This study demonstrated direct binding of PfHsp90-PfHop in vitro and established a novel and robust PfHsp90-PfHop interaction assay format that can be used in future screening campaigns.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2018
- Authors: Wambua, Lynn
- Date: 2018
- Subjects: Plasmodium falciparum , Molecular chaperones , Heat shock proteins , Protein-protein interactions , Antimalarials
- Language: English
- Type: text , Thesis , Masters , MSc
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/62626 , vital:28216
- Description: Protein-protein interactions are involved in a range of disease processes and thus have become the focus of many drug discovery programs. Widespread drug resistance to all currently used antimalarial drugs drives the search for alternative drug targets with novel mechanisms of action that offer new therapeutic options. Molecular chaperones such as heat shock proteins facilitate protein folding, play a role in protein trafficking and prevent protein misfolding in cells under stress. Heat shock protein 90 (Hsp90) is a well-studied chaperone that has been the focus of cancer drug development with moderate success. In Plasmodium falciparum (P. falciparum), heat shock proteins are thought to play a vital role in parasite survival of the physiologically diverse habitats of the parasite lifecycle and because Hsp90 is prominently expressed in P. falciparum, the chaperone is considered a potentially ideal drug target. Hsp90 function in cells is regulated by interactions with co-chaperones, which includes Heat shock protein 70-Heat shock protein 90 organising protein (Hop). As opposed to directly inhibiting Hsp90 activity, targeting Hsp90 interaction with Hop has recently been suggested as an alternative method of Hsp90 inhibition that has not been explored in P. falciparum. The aim of this research project was to demonstrate PfHsp90 and PfHop robustly interact in vitro and to facilitate high-throughput screening of PfHsp90-PfHop inhibitors by developing and optimising a novel plate capture Hsp90-Hop interaction assay. To establish the assay, the respective domains of the proteins that mediate Hsp90-Hop interaction were used (Hsp90 C- terminal domain and Hop TPR2A domain). The human Hsp90 C-terminal domain and glutathione-S-transferase (GST) coding sequences were cloned into pET-28a(+) and murine and P. falciparum TPR2A sequences into pGEX-4T-1 plasmids to enable expression of histidine-tagged and GST fusion proteins, respectively, in Escherichia coli. The P. falciparum Hsp90 C-terminal domain sequence cloned into pET-28a(+) was supplied by GenScript. The constructs were transformed into T7 Express lysYcompetent E. coli cells and subsequent small- scale expression studies showed the recombinant proteins were expressed in a soluble form allowing for subsequent protein purification. Purification of the recombinant proteins was achieved using nickel-NTA and glutathione affinity chromatography for the His-tagged (Hsp90 C-terminal domains and GST) and GST fusion proteins (TPR2A domains), respectively. The purified proteins were used to establish and optimise mammalian and P. falciparum Hsp90- Hop interaction assays on nickel-coated plates by immobilising the His-tagged C-terminal domains on the plates and detecting the binding of the GST-TPR2A domains using a colorimetric GST enzyme assay. Z’-factor values above 0.5 were observed for both assays indicating good separation between the protein interaction signals and negative control background signals, although relatively high background signals were observed for the mammalian interaction due to non-specific binding of murine TPR2A to the plate. Designed human and P. falciparum TPR peptides were observed to be effective inhibitors of the mammalian and P. falciparum interactions, demonstrating the assay’s ability to respond to inhibitor compounds. Comparison of assay performance using GST assay kit reagents and lab- prepared reagents showed the assay was more efficient using lab-prepared reagents, however, lower GST signals were observed when comparing assay performance using a custom prepared Ni-NTA plate to a purchased Ni-NTA plate. The Hsp90-Hop interaction assays were also performed using an alternative assay format in which the GST-TPR2A fusion proteins were immobilised on glutathione-coated plates and binding of the His-tagged C-terminal domains detected with a nickel-horseradish peroxidase (HRP) conjugate and a colorimetric HRP substrate. The assay showed higher interaction signals for the P. falciparum proteins but comparatively low signals for the mammalian proteins. Z’-factor values for the assay were above 0.8 for both protein sets, suggesting this assay format is superior to the GST assay. However, further optimisation of this assay format is required. This study demonstrated direct binding of PfHsp90-PfHop in vitro and established a novel and robust PfHsp90-PfHop interaction assay format that can be used in future screening campaigns.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2018