On Monday, 21 August 2023, the University hosted Helin Bäckman Kartal, South African Sweden University Forum (SASUF) Project Coordinator. Kartal is also an Uppsala University administrator in Sweden. Kartal provided a project plan to allow a few researchers who attended proper planning and reflection on how they would have to align their topics to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Professor Nokuthula Sibiya, Deputy Vice-Chancellor, Research, Innovation, and Engagements, pleaded with the researchers to start conceptualising their projects now in preparation for SASUF 2024 which will take place in Sweden. “Only 11 delegates will be allowed to attend per university, and this means that the competition will be tight. I advise you to get a head start and start identifying partners, both in South Africa and Sweden. I will try my best to ensure that we submit a lot of quality papers. We may even need to request SASUF to allow us to increase the number of delegates,” said Professor Sibiya.
SASUF will issue a call for workshops, satellite events and poster sessions on 1 September 2023. Kartal indicated that this call would close on 17 November 2023. “Colleagues, brace yourselves for a lot of hard work during this time if you want your project to be accepted,” said Sibiya. “I am very excited about your previous participation and look forward to engaging with you further. There will be a series of briefing meetings to assist people to develop papers aligned to the SDGs”, she added.