Rhodes University Research Articles

Learning from Black Theology

Black Theology had a profound effect on the religious, especially Christian scene in South Africa in the late 1960, 1970s and 1980s. The traditional stance was that clergy should not get involved in politics. What Black Theology in fact enabled clergy to understand, was that the Gospel was not primarily about the forgiveness of sins but about setting the oppressed free. Thus, politics was at the heart of the work of the clergy in South Africa. Black Theology also had a radical understanding of God. While the need for Black Theology may be less critical in post-Apartheid South Africa, there are major lessons to be learned from how it constructed the Gospel message in the then current context of the oppression and exploitation of the oppressed South African blacks. (This article is an edited version of my honorary doctorate presentation at Rhodes University in 2012.)

A Personal Tribute

A Personal Tribute Terence Rapke My recollection of the exact time and place when I first saw Ken Matier is clear. It was on a very warm early January evening 1983, in the lounge bar of the New Union Hotel, Pretoria. The occasion was the first evening of that year’s biennial national conference of the Classical Association of South Africa. In order to more fully immerse myself in the life of the conference and to attempt to get to know my fellow delegates better, I had decided to stay in Pretoria – its eponymous university was the host that year – rather than return to Johannesburg each night. Within hours of arriving and registering for the gathering, I was regretting the decision. At first sight a South African classical conference seemed to be utterly alien to the ones that I had come to know and enjoy in Australia over more than half a dozen years as a graduate student, then junior academic in Classical Studies. The Antipodean versions were unfailingly convivial, not to say bibulous, relaxed, and almost devoid of formality in both dress and attitude. By contrast, my first few hours’ experience of the South African counterpart seemed as different as it was possible to get. Colleagues addressed one another not by first names but predominantly by titles. They zealously attended one another’s papers. They mostly spoke to each other in a language (Afrikaans) with which I was barely acquainted. They were preponderantly male, and almost all wore suits. As I sat in the lounge bar contemplating those few delegates who had consigned themselves to a working week cohabiting with their colleagues, my gaze was drawn to two male figures seated next to each other in large armchairs beside the hotel’s (unlit) main fireplace. The larger of the two, a robust and vivid individual with a parade-ground voice, who was consuming Amstel beers at a pace that even an Australian could admire, I learned was Dr. Ken Matier – senior lecturer in Classics at Rhodes University and shortly to be elected into the first of his two terms as national secretary of the Classical Association. The slighter of the two, a smaller, older, and very elegant individual who was chain smoking French cigarettes, Gitanes, I think, and tossing back snifters of South-African brandy, turned out to be Associate-Professor (W.) Hansel Hewitt – Rhodes departmental colleague and boon companion of Ken Matier, and destined to be chosen as the next national Vice-Chairman of the Classical Association. I introduced myself to them both, was delighted to hear that [End Page 12] they were conversing solely in English, and accepted the offer of a beer. It was to be a long evening – full of entertaining anecdotes and insights, and one that I only hazily recalled the next day. Thus began my more than 30-year friendship with Ken, which ended only with his death on Boxing Day 2017. It was fitting and prophetic that we met at a national conference. Ken and I were to go on to attend every such meeting including the one at the University of Cape Town in 1991. We also attended most of the Colloquia Didactica which were held in the ‘off years’, the even-numbered years when national conferences were not held. For eight of these years, from 1983 to 1991, Ken continuously and with distinction served the Classical Association executive – first as Secretary (1983–1986); Chairman (1987–1988); and Vice-Chairman (1989–1990). At the 1991 conference it was Ken’s responsibility, as Vice-Chairman, to chaperone the guest of honour – none other than the national Minister for Education, Professor Gerrit Viljoen (himself a Classicist). There was another facet to the effort that Ken put into making the Classical Association and its activities more accessible and more enjoyable. He served as an invaluable bridge between the Afrikaans- and English-speaking wings of the Association. At the beginning of the 1980s there was a sharp divide between the two. Ken’s written and spoken Afrikaans was excellent, thanks to his grounding at Wynberg Boys’ High. He could handle meetings in either of the then two official languages. An endless flow of official correspondence...

An exploratory study of Heads of Departments' responses to student calls for decolonised higher education

Central to the tumultuous student protests of 2015 and 2016 was an urgent call for the decolonisation of South African universities. Existing curricula, including teaching and assessment practices, as well as institutional cultures and structures were challenged. Against this backdrop, this article focuses on the academic leadership role of Heads of Departments (HoDs) at Rhodes University. In this small-scale project cultural historical activity theory was used as an analytical tool to interrogate how HoDs conceptualised their roles in this uncertain and complex context. Data were generated from an online questionnaire administered to all HoDs. The data analysis pointed to a number of contradictions in the ways HoDs conceptualized and enacted their roles. Also emerging from the analysis were institutional enablements and constraints which influenced their ability to offer transformative leadership. This was particularly in relation to the concepts of social and epistemic inclusion/exclusion; central to debates in the decolonising literature. The findings indicate that the role of HoDs has become increasingly complex. Despite this, the issues that were raised during the protests catalysed HoDs into reclaiming stronger academic leadership roles.

Blending problem-based learning and peer-led team learning, in an open ended ‘home-grown’ pharmaceutical chemistry case study

Pharmaceutical chemistry, medicinal chemistry and the drug discovery process require experienced practitioners to employ reasoned speculation in generating creative ideas, which can be used to evolve promising molecules into drugs. The ever-evolving world of pharmaceutical chemistry requires university curricula that prepare graduates for their role as designers with the capability of applying complex concepts in pharmaceutical chemistry, thereby improving the decision-making process. Common methods of teaching drug discovery, including the linear nature of the traditional case study model, do not provide a realistic picture of the underlying complexity of the process, nor do they equip students with the appropriate tools for personal sense making and abstraction. In this work, we discuss the creation of an open-ended, nonlinear case study for 3rd year pharmaceutical chemistry students, developed from drug discovery research conducted at Rhodes University. Furthermore, we discuss blending problem based learning (PBL) with peer-led team learning (PLTL) in the context of curriculum transformation, underpinned by the theory of semantic waves, to assist students in the early attainment of abstract concepts and answer questions of contextualisation, personal sense making, relatability, relevance and ultimately the skills for lifelong learning.

ROLE OF GLOBAL SOUTH IN THE MULTIPLEX WORLD Interview with Professor AMITAV ACHARYA, UNESCO Chair in Transnational Challenges and Governance, Distinguished Professor at the School of International Service of American University

Amitav Acharya is the UNESCO Chair in Transnational Challenges and Governance and Distinguished Professor at the School of International Service, American University, Washington, DC. He is the first non-Western scholar to be elected (for 2014-15) as the President of the International Studies Association (ISA), the largest and most influential global network in international studies. Previously he was a Professor at York University, Toronto, and the Chair in Global Governance at the University of Bristol, U.K. He held the inaugural Nelson Mandela Visiting Professorship in International Relations at Rhodes University, South Africa in 2012-13 and the inaugural Boeing Company Chair in International Relations at the Schwarzman Scholars Program at Tsinghua University in 2016-18. He was a Fellow of Harvard’s Asia Center and John F. Kennedy School of Government, and was elected to the Christensen Fellowship at Oxford. His books include Constructing Global Order [Acharya 2018a]; The End of American World Order [Acharya 2018b]; Why Govern? Rethinking Demand and Progress in Global Governance [Acharya 2016]; The Making of Southeast Asia [Acharya 2013]; Whose Ideas Matter [Acharya 2009] and et. His essays have appeared in leading international affairs journals such as International Organization, International Security, International Studies Quarterly, Journal of Asian Studies, Foreign Affairs, Journal of Peace Research, International Affairs, and World Politics. He has received two Distinguished Scholar Awards from the ISA, one in 2015 from its Global South Caucus for his “contribution to non-Western IR theory and inclusion” in international studies, and another in 2018 from ISA’s International Organization Section that recognizes “scholars of exceptional merit... whose influence, intellectual works and mentorship will likely continue to impact the field for years to come”. In his interview, Professor A. Acharya talks about non-western IR theories, Global South issues and concept, contemporary international studies, multiplexity and the role of new institutions of global governance.

Meeting important educational goals for chemistry through service-learning

This paper describes a service-learning course in Chemistry Honours at Rhodes University in South Africa. Students visit two schools in different settings, where they present a lecture-demonstration, entitled ‘A Pollutant's Tale’, and two hands-on experiments to school learners. The students are assessed on their learnings as seen through their own reflections on the activities in reflective journals. The reflections from 27 students over four years of the course were analysed to investigate to what extent the educational goals of the course were being met. Six broad themes emerged from student reflections: (1) social awareness; (2) civic responsibility; (3) challenging beliefs; (4) enhanced understanding of science communication and demonstration skills; (5) personal growth; and, (6) evaluating the service-learning experience. In our discussion of these themes, we suggest that through service-learning, students have learnt to do things differently in Chemistry: they have learnt about society beyond the laboratory and beyond their previous life-experiences. Importantly, the students have undergone personal development and picked up critical skills which they will need when traversing life and its challenges – such as, working with and learning from diverse groups of people, teamwork and learning to cope in stressful situations. The paper will be of particular interest to those who are involved in chemistry teaching in both schools and higher education institutions, as well as those interested in service-learning as a pedagogical tool, community and civic engagement and the development of transferable skills in chemistry students.

Rhodes University v Student Representative Council of Rhodes University: The constitutionality of interdicting non-violent disruptive protest

Section 17 of the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, 1996 enshrines the right to assemble, peacefully and unarmed, and the Regulation of Gatherings Act 205 of 1993 enables the exercise of this right peacefully and with due regard to the rights of others. The recent student protests across South Africa have occasioned litigation seeking to interdict protest action, which the universities claim is unlawful. Overly broad interdicts, which interdict lawful protest action, violate the constitutional right to assembly and have a chilling effect on protests. In a decision of the High Court of South Africa, Eastern Cape Division, Grahamstown, a final interdict was granted interdicting two individuals from, among other things, disrupting lectures and tutorials at Rhodes University and from inciting such disruption. In this note, the constitutionality of interdicting non-violent disruptive protest is discussed and analysed, using Rhodes University v Student Representative Council of Rhodes University and Others (1937/2016) [2016] ZAECGHC 141.

Rhodes University v Student Representative Council of Rhodes University: The constitutionality of interdicting non-violent disruptive protest

Section 17 of the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, 1996 enshrines the right to assemble, peacefully and unarmed, and the Regulation of Gatherings Act 205 of 1993 enables the exercise of this right peacefully and with due regard to the rights of others. The recent student protests across South Africa have occasioned litigation seeking to interdict protest action, which the universities claim is unlawful. Overly broad interdicts, which interdict lawful protest action, violate the constitutional right to assembly and have a chilling effect on protests. In a decision of the High Court of South Africa, Eastern Cape Division, Grahamstown, a final interdict was granted interdicting two individuals from, among other things, disrupting lectures and tutorials at Rhodes University and from inciting such disruption. In this note, the constitutionality of interdicting non-violent disruptive protest is discussed and analysed, using Rhodes University v Student Representative Council of Rhodes University and Others (1937/2016) [2016] ZAECGHC 141.

Quadratic Hamilton–Poisson Systems on se ( 1 , 1 ) − ∗ $\mathfrak{se}(1,1)^{*}_{-}$ : The Inhomogeneous Case

This research was supported in part by the European Union’s Seventh Framework Programme (FP7/2007-2013, grant no. 317721). The first two authors would also like to acknowledge the financial support of the National Research Foundation (NRF-DAAD) and Rhodes University towards this research. Additionally, the second author acknowledges the financial support of the Claude Leon Foundation.

Salvinia molesta D.S. Mitch.

<i>Salvinia molesta</i> D.S. Mitch.

The Dictionary in Examinations at a South African University: A Linguistic or a Pedagogic Intervention?

This paper interrogates students' use of dictionaries for examination purposes at Rhodes University in South Africa. The practice, which is provided for by the university's language policy, is widely seen as a linguistic intervention particularly aimed at assisting English additional language students, the majority of whom speak African languages, with purely linguistic information. Such a view is misconceived as it ignores the fact that the practice predates the present institutional language policy which was adopted in 2006. Although it was difficult to establish the real motivation prior to the language policy, this study indicates that both English mother-tongue and English additional language students use the dictionary in examinations for assistance that may be considered to be broadly pedagogic rather than purely linguistic. This then invites academics to reconsider the manner in which they teach and assess, cognisant of the pedagogic value of the dictionary which transcends linguistic assistance.

Money, Banking and Rhodesia’s Unilateral Declaration of Independence

ABSTRACTBased on archival research conducted mainly at the Bank of England, the National Archives of Zimbabwe, Central Archival Repository in Pretoria and the Cory Library at Rhodes University in Grahamstown, the article examines the financial planning of the Rhodesian Front (RF) government (1962–1979) in the making of the Unilateral Declaration of Independence (UDI) of 11 November 1965. Its rebellion against Britain occurred in a period of decolonisation characterised by the attainment of majority rule in African countries. Having enjoyed settler colonial status from 1923 and significant political and economic room to manoeuvre, Rhodesians elected the RF into power to protect white minority interests indefinitely. Although the literature has focused variously on the British–Rhodesian impasse, UDI and the liberation struggle, it has neglected financial developments, without which the UDI would never have been declared and sustained for 15 years.This article provides a first in-depth perspective on how financial considerations were just as important as political, social and military considerations in the period between the RF’s rise to power and its rebellion. Central to its analysis is changing imperial and colonial economic relations. Although Rhodesia’s financial system was fully integrated into London’s sterling area by the 1960s, this link was severed following the rebellion and a post-sterling Rhodesian financial system emerged. Given that London had ruled out military invasion to stop the Salisbury rebellion, its only alternative was economic sanctions on the basis of its historical control of the colony’s financial system in circumstances where the colony was keen on using financial instruments to survive punitive exchange control measures and sustain minority rule. This article examines the financial makings of this imperial-colonial conflict and the considerations and activities on the eve of Rhodesia’s UDI. It shows the importance of local political dynamics and their influence on global financial arrangements. Rhodesia’s rebellion, crucially aided as it was by local financial arrangements, became an important international issue leading to the ostracism of the colony through United Nations economic sanctions where it used its monetary system as a rebel bulwark. In a sense, an examination of the making of Rhodesia’s financial system prior to UDI provides an important background account to its subsequent survival of sanctions for 15 years where it had been projected to collapse in just months.

‘Free, decolonised education’: a lesson from the South African student struggle

This commentary places British geography within transnational currents of student‐focused decolonisation movements. In October 2015, the author travelled to South Africa for the first time, visiting Witwatersrand University (Johannesburg), University of Cape Town (UCT) and Rhodes University in Grahamstown. This paper draws on historical accounts of the British colonisation of what is now South Africa, contextualising both the domestic and global inequalities which it’s students are currently challenging. British imperial history also provides a basis for understanding the roots of British geography, offering the campaigns to decolonise the South African university as an opportunity to critically reflect on how our own discipline produces knowledge. The commentary asks this timely question: as geographers, particularly those based in the old centre of Empire, how can our work be used to dismantle the colonialism our discipline has been implicated in since its formal inception?

What’s next? Experiences of a formal course for academic developers

ABSTRACTA growing impetus for disciplinary status for academic development has prompted efforts to construct a principled knowledge base in this emerging field. This paper considers the impact of academic developers’ access to structured knowledge through a systematic process. In 2011, the Centre for Higher Education Research, Teaching and Learning at Rhodes University implemented a postgraduate qualification for academic developers. This paper documents the experiences of two cohorts by exploring routes into and expectations of the course, value attached to its knowledge base and impact on identity formation (coming to be) through an encounter with knowledge (coming to know). This study explores participant experiences through identifying key insights following their introduction to new conceptual and theoretical notions by considering four knowledge domains in the course. General assertions are drawn from participant responses to inform ongoing development of the course. The course is examined as a potential mechanism for academic developers to construct an academic developer identity via an encounter with knowledge. It is anticipated that this encounter enables knowledge-based responses to complex questions.

Editorial

This edition of PER consists of eight articles, four notes and two book reviews covering a range of topics. The first article is by Oliver Fuo, a postgraduate student of the North-West University (Potchefstroom Campus). His contribution deals with the status of executive policies and the basis for their judicial enforcement in a constitutional and socio-economic context. He demonstrates that "executive" policies may be perceived to have the force of law, especially where their enforcement may be imperative for the realisation of socio-economic rights. Secondly, Ig Rautenbach of the University of Johannesburg considers empirical data on the effectiveness of the Constitutional Court during the period 1995 to 2012. He focuses on the following three questions: "How did the cases reach the court", "why did the court refuse to consider some of them", and "how often did the court invalidate laws and actions". In the third article, Magda Slabbert and Hendrik Pienaar, follows a multi-disciplinary approach to discuss the legal position of the locum tenens that is often used by medical practitioners in private practice. They recommend that a locum tenens be appointed as an independent contractor rather than an employee, and argues that the onus to ensure that he or she is registered and fit to practice rests on the principal. The fourth article by Carika Keuler deals with the "pay now, argue later" rule in terms of the Tax Administration Act 28 of 2011. She is of the opinion that the Act fails to address the imbalance between the duties of the South African Revenue Services and the right of the taxpayer to access the courts. JC Knobel, the author of the fifth article, gives an overview of the conservation status of eagles in South Africa. He discusses the existing legal framework and makes a number of recommendations to improve their legal status. Two authors, Laurence Juma and James Tsabora, both from Rhodes University, discuss the possibility of South Africa enacting a new law regulating private military and/or security companies, which they refer to as PMSC's. The seventh article by Johan Kruger and Clarence Tshoose gives a South African perspective on the impact of the Labour Relations Act 66 of 1995 on minority trade unions. In the eight place, Dave Holness offers an analysis of compulsory "live client" clinical legal education as part of the LLB course as a means of improving access to justice for the indigent.&#x0D;

Synthesis and biological evaluation of (E)-cinnamic acid, (E)-2-styrylthiazole and (E)-2-[2-(naphthalen-1-yl)vinyl]thiazole derivatives

Rhodes University for a bursary (E. O. O) and Rhodes University and the South African Medical Research Council (MRC) for generous financial support. This research project was supported by the South African Medical Research Council (MRC) with funds from National Treasury under its Economic Competitiveness and Support Package. The xCELLigence Real-Time Cell Analyzer SP Station was supported through the National Research Foundation (NRF) - Department of Science & Technology (DST) Research Infrastructure Support Programme (National Nanotechnology Equipment Programme) grant.

Baloyi's art gallery

Baloyi's art gallery Vonani Bila (bio) for Albie Sachs it's a round chapel-like gallerybaloyi built it with bare hands in the bushwith everything he could findwithout begging or sulking he built it with stones and bricksand grass and reeds and weedshe built it with grey tilesand scraps of steel and corrugated iron mirrors glint on the wallswheel hubs have moulded the spherical windowsthe floor is covered by patterned cowdungthe walls are painted with ochre and animal figures baloyi bought a generatorhe was tired of finding his way through fireflies, moon and starshe bought a truck to collect twisted logs of mondobrought down by elephants in phafuri and makuleke baloyi sat under the mango treecarving drums with tails and legshis darlings—kangaroos and camelsdolphins and shuddering beasts carving and filing wingless birds that soared up in the skiescarving tindzhundzhu with breasts that glugged mudcarving a godzilla to guard the constitutional court in distant joburgcarving the foreign species that surround his dreams [End Page 11] albie sachs came to the opening of baloyi's art galleryhow i wish he were the minister of arts and culturehe would buy and place these sculpturesin all of our public spaces now baloyi has died and clouds are forming, rains are comingwater will pour through the leaking roofants will mottle the wood piece by pieceuntil it dissolves [End Page 12] Vonani Bila Vonani Bila is founding editor of Timbila poetry journal, publisher of Timbila books, and founder of Timbila Writers' Village, a rural retreat center in Polokwane, Limpopo province. He has an MA in creative writing from Rhodes University, and has written five volumes of poetry in English. The poem in this issue of NER is from his manuscript, Grieving Forests. Copyright © 2017 Middlebury College Publications

The poor blacks of the world

the poor blacks of the world Mxolisi Nyezwa (bio) they come fromrough buildingsone after the othermoaningthey are the long pissesof white galleriesthe red faeces of dogsthey boast of buriedcemeteriesand heavy chainsof nocturnal bloodand their hungry mouthson a different daythey will be violentlike caterpillarsangel birds hovering abovecovered with ashdreaded by the wine farmersin the daytimeanguish screamsits head offthere will be rowsof dead peoplelong numbersof drunkardspitchers with strong liquidsthere will be skulls of menand statuesmocking historyfingernailsof blood and mossbroken peoplesodomy will stayin the worldwith mischiefvery quickly [End Page 21] display the gonorrheain the lungthe poor blacks will staybetween the firm mollusksand the beheaded mongrelsthey are the careless colouredsand the stinking kaffirsthey search the veinsof white thighsbeneath the cape's blond torsothe poor blacks are shattered dancersunder the headless shrinein simon's townthey are the sudden church bellsfading slowly like vomitfrom the entire world. [End Page 22] Mxolisi Nyezwa Mxolisi Nyezwa grew up in New Brighton, Port Elizabeth, where he still lives. He manages a not-for-profit arts and culture organization, Imbizo Arts, in Motherwell Township. He has published five books of poetry, Song Trials (Poetry Gecko, 2000), New Country (UKZN Press, 2008), Malikhanye (Deep South Press, 2011), Ndiyoyika (2017), and Songs from the Earth (2017). Nyezwa is the founder and editor of the cultural magazine Kotaz, now in its seventeenth year. He teaches creative writing at Rhodes University. Copyright © 2017 Middlebury College Publications

CROSSING THE RACIAL DIVIDE: THE 1946 RHODES UNIVERSITY VERSUS FORT HARE UNIVERSITY ATHLETICS MEETING

In the annals of South Africa’s sporting history, the intervarsity athletics meeting between Rhodes University and the University of Fort Hare that took place in 1946 is not well-known. This encounter between two neighbouring universities is unique for a number of reasons: not only was it the first reported athletics meeting at club level between two universities in the Eastern Cape, it was also the first time in South Africa that different race groups competed at club level. The meeting flouted the government’s policies at that time, as well as its stated position on the segregation of the different race groups. In the article the broad background of segregation in South Africa is outlined, with a description of how clubs developed in keeping with segregationist policies. The historic meeting between the universities of Rhodes and Fort Hare is the focus of the second part of the discussion, which demonstrates how athletics officials at Rhodes were prepared to challenge national policies in an attempt to further racial harmony. The historic athletics meeting between the two universities was a brave effort to normalise society and reflected an enlightened approach to the prevailing segregationist policies being imposed on all levels of society.

Fattest Flies, and: Tongues

Fattest Flies, and: Tongues Ronelda Kamfer (bio) Translated by Mike Dickman Fattest flies there's a new breedof vintage-wearing brown girlsthey started off by straightening their hairand speaking Englishhad Foschini accountsand rode only first class the type that had boyfriendswhen they were still just burksthat got offendedif I scanned something wrong at the till by Clicksthe type that kept that light skin genein the familythey were the prettiest girlin the townshipthe type that's pretty to coloured peoplethe type that believed an au pair in Europeis a titleand married some unattractive old white guy'cause ambition has a bank accountthat's gotta stay full till the millennials went onlineand everyone retired their ghd's and Sheen straightenersbought their way back into the ghettoreplaced their Johnny Depps with Idris Elbasand Michelle Obama Lupita Nyong'o and Grace Jonesmade them women of strength they all know a Alice Walker quotelisten to Jill Scott and supporttheir consciousness movementsthey're trendyinstagram feministsthey protest in their blogsuse words like booty fierce and pro-choice [End Page 18] they deconstruct every American TV seriesand they're nearly always dumb as shit when they really get under my skinI remember my ma's wordswhen one of them said I wasn't prettyand made me cry one day those tarts is like frogs in the rainthey hop from leaf to leaf closer and closerto the latest bowl of kak'cause that's where the fattest flies hang out [End Page 19] Tongues me and my niece were sitting in the clinic one dayher kid had asthma and was therefor the monthly checkupher and me sitting in the middle of a swarm of sick people then a white woman pitched up with three kidsone—handicapped or something—in a wheelchairone snotnosedhis bare feet black with dirtand the oldest looking fineexcept for the Tourette's the woman parks the wheelchair next to meand goes and stands in front of everybodyexcuse me can I have everyone's attentionwhere does the line start my niece looks at meand starts to shake her heada cleaner comes byand looks the white woman up and downsighs and saysthe line ends with youpark your Ferrariout the wayyou're last a couple of folks gigglethe woman starts to talk to the snotnosed onein a strange languagemy niece asks what language it isand someone behind us answersit's jus' showing off that they talk like disdey donknow how to waitnow they talking in tongues —translated from the Afrikaans by Mike Dickman [End Page 20] Ronelda Kamfer Ronelda Kamfer's debut collection, Noudat slapende honed (Kwela, 2008), received the Eugene Marais award, which she followed up with Grond/santekraam (Kwela, 2011), winner of the 2012 ABSA Kanna award. Her third collection, Hammie (2016), received the ATKV WoordTrofee award. All three collections have been translated and published in Dutch, and an Italian translation of Grond/santekraam will appear in 2018. She is an MA candidate at Rhodes University, and is married to cartoonist and poet Nathan Trantraal, with whom she has a six-year-old daughter named Seymour. Copyright © 2017 Middlebury College Publications