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Grassland Society Congress generates great discourse
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This year, SAEON had the privilege of sponsoring and participating in the Annual Congress of the Grassland Society of Southern Africa (GSSA), which took place in Kimberley, the capital of South Africa's Northern Cape Province.
Though remnants of World Cup euphoria, such as the sporadic blowing of vuvuzelas and welcome posters written in foreign languages still remain part of the city’s avenues and centres, nothing in this world, not even the World Cup itself, had the power to deter a group of enthusiastic scientists and researchers from discussing the Grasslands.
The event began with a well attended Meet and Greet function at the historical McGregor Museum. On the second day, a warm welcome from the GSSA’s Hugo Bezuidenhout set the Congress underway, followed by an opening address by Christie Pisane, who represented one of the Congress sponsors, the De Beers Group.
A round of applause and a word of thanks were also afforded to SAEON for its sponsorship and participation in the Congress.
Dr Mike Peel, President of the GSSA, presented highlights of the society’s strategic plans and way forward. Two fascinating keynote addresses by Prof Christo Fabricius and SAEON’s advisory board member Prof Richard Cowling followed. The two speakers’ presentations focused on Building the adaptive capacity of farmers on the threshold and An extraordinary desert: the Succulent Karoo in a global context, respectively.
Advancing rangeland ecology and pasture management in Africa
As is the tradition, the Congress consists of platform and poster presentations of current and ongoing research related to advancing rangeland ecology and pasture management in Africa, and also includes workshops, special symposia, courses and tours. A total of 19 sessions took place within the three days of the Congress with a variety of individual presentations taking place within the various sessions.
With session topics ranging from community-based natural resource management, restoration and degradation, rehabilitation of mined areas and encroaching woody plants to ecology of invading plants and control of invasive woody species, the congress presented an array of issues which are vital to humanity’s understanding of the environment.
When the topics had been presented and discussions explored, numerous aspects of the research and challenges were uncovered and research findings were presented in a highly scientific and enriching way.
SAEON was represented by its Observation Science Specialist and grasslands guru Professor Tim O’Connor. Prof O’Connor was accompanied by his student protégé Andrew de Villiers who gave a poster presentation on Fire-mediated succession and reversion of woody vegetation in the KwaZulu-Natal Drakensberg, South Africa.
What the students had to say
Among the many delegates who attended the Congress, SAEON eNews got an opportunity to interview three students from the University of KwaZulu-Natal. The students were excited and impressed with the congress programme and agreed that they would take back with them a “lot of information and skills to use” in their studies.
“Every time I come here I go back with lots and lots of knowledge and experience, and each and every year I attend the conference I get encouraged by other delegates. This congress has contributed a lot to my studies,” said Takalani Nengwenani, a Masters student who was this year attending the conference for the fourth year in a row.
The Congress ended on a high note with a Gala Dinner where awards were presented for the Best Presentation, Best Presentation by a Young Scientist, Best Paper published in African Journal of Range and Forage Science and the Best Poster. The Peter Edwards Award, which is given to the Best Conservation Farmer in the province in which the Congress is held, was also awarded during the Gala Dinner.
