2011-NMMU-Research-Report - Research Management - Nelson ...

New DST/NRF Research Chairs
The South African Research Chairs Initiative (SARChI) is designed to
significantly expand the scientific research base of South Africa in order
to support implementation of national Research and Development
(R&D) policies. NMMU was granted four Tier 1 Research Chairs and
initiated a process to identify candidates to fill these prestigious
positions. The four Chairs are:
Research Chair in Earth Systems Science
This research chair will broaden the current biodiversity/ecology/
sustainability focus to include physical and chemical Earth processes.
Research will be undertaken into the links between local, African,
and global bio-geo systems, and between the current and past
environment to develop a perspective on environmental evolution
and anthropogenic impact and consequences. The Chair will pursue
fundamental disciplinary research in the physical and chemical nature
of Earth and planetary materials, and will also engage in research on
the evolution and impact of solar system processes on Earth systems.
Both practical and theoretical research will be undertaken, aimed at
a holistic integration of natural and social science disciplines relevant
to Earth systems and the human impact on them.
In addition to engaging with most departments in the Faculty, it is
anticipated that the Chair will also work closely with the Sustainability
Research Unit in the Science Faculty, as well as with the Africa
Earth Observatory Network (AEON), which recently located to the
NMMU. The potential for inter-disciplinary collaborative research is
enormous.
Research Chair in Microfluidic Bio/Chemical
Processing
This chair will focus on the use and development of microfluidic
and other small production platform concepts in the chemical and
biotechnology fields. Research undertaken by the Chair will be on the
development of production processes using the advantages of micro-
and small production devices. It is envisaged that this research will
advance the current understanding of the chemical or biochemical
mechanisms at work during chemical or bio-processing and then
fitting those mechanistic requirements for optimum performance
and control into a fit-for-purpose reactor technology. The Chair is
expected to make a significant contribution to the ability of South
Africa to derive benefit from developments in chemical/biochemical
processing through basic and applied research and the training of
postgraduate students.
Research Chair in Shallow Water Ecosystems
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This research chair will undertake research to address the ecosystem
functioning of shallow water ecosystems such as coastal wetlands,
estuaries and surf zones, with particular emphasis on health and
conservation to support management. This builds on an existing
strength of NMMU, which has an established track record in research
outputs and postgraduate training in estuaries, sandy beaches
and surf zones and has already made a contribution to this field
of knowledge internationally. Past research activities have focused
on linking science, policy and management and it is envisaged that
this will remain a focus of the Research Chair. New programmes will
be advanced in fields of water quality management, ecotoxicology
and coastal wetlands.
Research Chair in Law of the Sea and
Development in Africa
This chair will undertake research on the legal regime governing
the South African maritime zones and the exploitation of their
resources, development in Africa and the law of the sea, including
relevant indigenous law and marine tourism law as a way to
promote development. The premise of the research is that further
growth in Africa requires an adequate locally grown marine-law
environment, which underpins safe and world-standard port and
shipping activities to maximise international trade opportunities,
and to ensure that Africa assumes its rightful place in international
negotiations regarding exploitation and protection of marine
resources. The Chair will provide a knowledge base from research,
as well as increased human capacity in all African countries to make
a contribution in the fast and increasingly complex contemporary
developments in this field.