Tying in with Science and Technology Minister Naledi Pandor’s mission that science should be used to create wealth, thereby creating jobs and eradicating poverty, the seventeenth National Science and Technology Forum (NSTF) Awards Gala Dinner was held to celebrate such contributions.

In partnership with resources company South32, the awards, held in Gauteng on Thursday, celebrated contributions to excellence in science, engineering, technology and innovation.

Persons involved in the areas of scientific research, technological innovation, environmental sustainability and the green economy, technology transfer, education and training, capacity building, management and communication and outreach were recognised for their work.

Two people were recognised in the ‘contribution over a lifetime by an individual’ category. University of the Witwatersrand (Wits) Reproductive Health and HIV Institute executive director Professor Helen Rees was given this award for her contributions in the field of HIV prevention, reproductive health and vaccines, while Wits professor of system ecology Professor Robert Scholes received recognition for his contribution to environmental science, systems ecology, savannah ecology and global change.

Wits School of Physics Professor Andrew Forbes received the Special Photonics Award for an individual for significant contributions to photonics in South Africa through basic research and innovations that have led to commercialisation.

Further, University of Pretoria (UP) Department of Genetics and Forestry forest genomics and biotechnology Professor Zander Myburg and University of Cape Town (UCT) Psychiatry and Mental Health Department head Professor Dan Stein each received the TW Kambule-NSTF Award for research and its outputs over the last five to ten years by an individual.

Myburg was recognised for his research, which uncovered the genomic control of wood formation in fast-growing Eucalyptus trees, while Stein was recognised for his contribution to advancing basic and clinical neuroscience.

In the ‘research capacity development over the last five to ten to years by an individual’ category, UCT Department of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences Professor Jennifer Jelsma received an award for her achievement as one of the first physiotherapists in South Africa to obtain her PhD.

UP Austin Roberts chair of mammology and South African Research Chairs Initiative mammal behavioural ecology and physiology Professor Nigel Bennett received the same award for his contribution to research in the field of mammology.

Meanwhile, UP Department of Genetics lecturer and Centre for Microbial Ecology and Genomics researcher Dr Thulani Makhalanyane and UCT Department of Medicine senior research officer Dr Grant Theron received the TW Kambule-NSTF Award: to an emerging researcher (post-doctoral in a period of up to six years after the award of a PhD or equivalent in research).

Makhalanyane was recognized for his contributions in the field of microbial ecology of hot and cold deserts
and Theron for his contribution to the advancement of tuberculosis (TB) diagnosis through, besides other things, the invention of a device to measure patients’ infectiousness.

For running a project in biological control of invasive aquatic weeds that help to return invaded aquatic ecosystems to functioning states, Rhodes University Department of Zoology and Entomology head of entomology and director Professor Martin Hill received the NSTF-GreenMatter Award for an individual or an organisation that strived towards achieving biodiversity conservation, environmental sustainability and a greener economy.

Stellenbosch University Centre for Evaluation, Science and Technology researcher and lecturer Marina Joubert was, meanwhile, recognised for her pioneering contribution to promoting and developing science communication as a field of practice and research in South Africa. She received the ‘communication for outreach and creating awareness by a team or individual’ award.

North-West University Department of Innovation Support and Technology Transfer Professor Deon de Beer received the award for ‘research leading to innovation by a team or individual through a corporate organisation’ for his role in the establishment of additive manufacturing in South Africa.

Diagnostic tools developer Antrum Biotech CEO and team leader Khilona Radia was lauded for the promotion and development of an accurate rapid test for extrapulmonary TB. She received the award for ‘research leading to innovation by a team or individual in a small-to-medium enterprise’.

Lastly, Western Cape Primary Science Programme director Zorina Dharsey received the ‘nongovernmental organisation through technology transfer and education and training activities’ award for supporting and promoting quality primary science and mathematics teaching and learning as the basic building blocks for children to succeed and pursue further education and employment opportunities.