SEMINAR: Mandela & Science
- tlangelaninyathi
- 9 hours ago
- 1 min read
Nelson Mandela University's Transdisciplinary Institute for Mandela Studies (TIMS) and Chair for Critical Studies in Higher Education Transformation (CriSHET) invite you to a timely and provocative event interrogating the intersection of science, values, and African purpose. In particular, it engages with the question of what Mandela might mean for the natural and 'hard' sciences, such as physics, chemistry, engineering, botany, zoology, medicine etc.
Event Details
Date: 24 April 2025
Time: 16:30 for 17:00 SAST (UTC+2)
Location: Hybrid - Science Centre, Nelson Mandela University & Zoom
Click here to RSVP
This event will feature a conversation between physicist Azwinndini Muronga and strategic thinker Derrick Swartz, facilitated by historian Nomalanga Mkhize. Together, they’ll explore a core question: What does science look like when it is rooted in African purpose, shaped by African worldviews, and carried by institutions bearing the name Mandela?
As Nelson Mandela University navigates the complex terrain of transformation, this conversation asks how it might engage critically with the National System of Innovation. How can science, technology, and innovation serve socio-economic justice—not just as policy goals, but as deeply ethical, contextually rooted practices?
This event is part of the larger [Re] Directions/Ukutshintshwa Kwendlela series—a call to reconsider the path we are taking and to adopt more grounded, transdisciplinary, and justice-orientated approaches to knowledge and action.
Whether you’re an academic, student, researcher, activist, or simply curious about what science can look like when it speaks to the continent’s realities and dreams, we invite you to join us.
The full concept note can be found below:
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