National Research Foundation Annual Report 2008 / 2009 [Part 2]

41A total of 50 postgraduate and postdoctoral students will be involved in the eight research projectsover the five years of ACEP II funding. This amounts to R4,5 million worth of student bursaries, whichmakes up a significant component of the total research funding allocated. ACEP II management activelyintroduced project leaders to potential students through a national recruitment drive targeting previouslydisadvantaged students. The details of the 46 applicants were captured in a database and provided to theprincipal investigators to select suitable and appropriate students.ACEP II is also in the process of acquiring a fully equipped 13m ski-boat, which will serve as a coastalresearch platform, as well as a remotely operated vehicle (ROV). Both vessels will be available to ACEP IIand Agulhas and Somali Current Large Marine Ecosystems (ASCLME)-supported research and trainingprojects throughout South Africa and the Western Indian Ocean. The ROV, which could be deployed frommultiple platforms, can be easily transported to different sites, ships and countries as required.International collaborationACEP II is becoming increasingly involved in internationally-funded research projects requiring its expertise.Funding and running the coastal research boat and submersible (ROV) has the potential to place DST, theSouth African Institute for Aquatic Biodiversity (SAIAB) (NRF), MCM (DWEA), ACEP II and ASCLME atthe forefront of deep-water marine physical and biodiversity sciences regionally and globally by generatingcutting-edge knowledge of the largely unexplored and unknown offshore marine environment.ACEP II is a key contributor to three international projects currently researching the oceans aroundsouthern Africa. The most important of these is the five-year ASCLME project funded by the GlobalEnvironment Facility (GEF) and implemented by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).ASCLME started as ACEP I came to a close and, to some extent, evolved as a result of the activitiesand networking the latter created. ACEP II is now South Africa’s key in-kind co-funding contribution tothe project. The involvement includes hosting the ASCLME management team, planning, funding andexecuting research on the Agulhas Current; funding the ACEP II scientists who participate in ACEPrelatedresearch; and managing and archiving data through the South African Environmental ObservationNetwork (SAEON), the South African Data Centre for Oceanography (SADCO) and SAIAB.In 2008, 32 South African scientists participated in ASCLME cruises, eight South African or SouthAfrican-led projects were supported and seven South African-based students received training during thefour cruises. ACEP II benefits directly from the ASCLME cruises through training and capacity building,cruise and data reports, conferences and peer-reviewed publications.ASCLME is an extension of ACEP and pursues the same objective of using science to managethe critically important marine resources of the Western Indian Ocean. Arguably its most importantcontribution, however, is its philosophy that ocean resources should be managed as physical, chemicaland biologically defined ecosystems rather than political entities belonging to different countries.Welcome to our worldThe first “modern” coelacanth was discovered close to East London in 1938. Known to scientists only from thefossil record, this ancient fish was believed to have been extinct for millions of years. Thanks to the passion anddedication of the then-curator of East London’s small museum and a Rhodes University Chemistry Professorwho was passionate about fish, an unusual catch in a fisherman’s net unlocked a wealth of scientific knowledge.Marjorie Courtenay-Latimer recognised the fish for what it was and Professor JLB Smith spread the word. Thissparked a concerted research effort into the species and South African fish in general.