The finalists in the 2020/201 National Science and Technology Forum ((NSTF-South32 Awards) – the premier research awards in South Africa – have been announced.
This year, three researchers from the University of Johannesburg (UJ) are among the finalists.
The NSTF Awards were established in 1998 as a collaborative effort with members and stakeholders to recognise outstanding contributions to science, engineering and technology (SET) and innovation in South Africa. This includes experienced scientists, engineers, innovators, science communicators, engineering capacity developers, and organisational managers/leaders, as well as data and research managers.
The theme for the NSTF-South32 Awards is the creative economy and is in recognition of the 2021 International Year of Creative Economy for Sustainable Development as declared by the United Nations (UN).
The UJ finalists and their respective categories are as follows:
Finalist in the TW Kambule-NSTF Award: Researcher and in the Engineering Research Capacity Development Award
Professor Philiswa Nosizo Nomngongo,
DSI/NRF South African Research Chair Initiative,
Nanotechnology for Water
Finalist in the TW Kambule-NSTF Award: Researcher
Professor Nnamdi Nwulu , Director: Centre for Cyber Physical Food, Energy and Water Systems; and an Associate Professor in the Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering Science.
Finalist in the Management Award category
Professor Saurabh Sinha,
Deputy Vice-Chancellor:
Research and Internationalisation
This year, the NSTF Awards Gala Event will take place as a hybrid event broadcast from two cities, Johannesburg and Cape Town. This might be a first of a kind in South Africa, building on the success of the new online live streamed NSTF Awards Gala Event introduced last year as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. This means the usual Gala Dinner will be reintroduced with the addition of a celebration in Cape Town and broadcasting from both cities to an online audience via the NSTF YouTube channel.
