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Wamkelekile, Welkom
Wamkelekile, Welkom
The Vice-Chancellor’s Inaugural Lecture Series
Inaugural lectures are a central part of university academic life. These events are held to commemorate the inaugural lecturer’s appointment to full professorship. They provide a platform for the academic to present the body of research that they have been focusing on during their career, while also giving UCT the opportunity to showcase its academics and share its research with members of the wider university community and the general public in an accessible way.
2019
Rattling conventional thinking on evolution
Research by Professor Rebecca Ackermann shows that our huge diversity results from two other major evolutionary forces, in addition to natural selection.
19 Aug 2019
Fighting the power in hip hop and scholarship
While they may seem worlds apart, music and scholarship face the same challenges, UCTʼs Professor Adam Haupt said during his recent Vice-Chancellorʼs Inaugural Lecture.
05 Aug 2019
Making Africa’s past ‘usable’ for the present
In his 3 May inaugural lecture, Professor Shadreck Chirikure shared insights from deep history and archaeology.
07 May 2019
Growing Africa’s genetic ‘library of life’
Professor Ambroise Wonkam delivered the first Vice-Chancellorʼs Inaugural Lecture for 2019, with a focus on enabling genetic medicine in Africa.
15 Mar 2019
2018
Working towards a water-sensitive Cape Town
When it “forgot to rain” in Cape Town, the city went on water-saving alert. Now it’s time for a holistic approach to future water management.
22 Oct 2018
Reconfiguring the human through the child
Existing education models “colonise” children merely to prepare them for adulthood, ignoring what they naturally excel at, says education Professor Karin Murris.
07 Sep 2018
Archie Mafeje’s legacy honoured
Archie Mafeje was a revolutionary thinker, a man ahead of his time, Professor Shahid Vawda said in his Vice-Chancellor’s Inaugural Lecture.
10 Aug 2018
Making a case for investing in mental health
Professor Crick Lund made a compelling case for investing in population mental health in low- and middle-income countries during his Vice-Chancellor’s Inaugural Lecture.
25 May 2018
Some surprises in search for SA’s first composer
Historical musicologist Professor Rebekka Sandmeier's inaugural lecture documents her search for South Africa's first composer of Western music - and yields some surprises.
04 May 2018
Prioritise the public interest
When creating a system where access to intellectual property works is regulated fairly, prioritise the public interest, says Professor Caroline Ncube.
05 Apr 2018
Peace parks: the future of Africa’s natural resources
Peace parks, or transfrontier parks, have a long history in Africa, which should not be forgotten when looking at the opportunities they offer for conservation, says Maano Ramutsindela.
13 Mar 2018
2017
Lessons in innovation and intervention
Professor Ulrike Rivett traversed 17 years of ICT4D research in her inaugural lecture: “ICT for development: the good intentions of the mobile phone”.
20 Oct 2017
Vulnerability at the heart of explosions research
In the week of Genevieve Langdon’s inaugural lecture on explosions, a terrorist bomb was planted on the London Underground. It was a reminder of human vulnerability.
20 Sep 2017
2016 and 2015
No inaugural lectures took place during 2015 and 2016.