Acknowledgements Valued Sponsors Platinum Department of Science and Technology Telkom Foundation Valued Partners Gold Department of Science and Technology CSIR ESKOM National Research Foundation Silver Armscor National Electricity Regulator (NER) National Research Foundation (NRF) Sasol Bronze ESKOM AngloGold Ashanti Ltd Breathetex Corporation Pty Ltd Coaltech 2020 Medical Research Council (MRC) MTN National Laser Centre (NLC) Necsa PD Naidoo and Associates Telkom SA Ltd University of Cape Town University of Pretoria University of the Witwatersrand Siyabonga / Thank You Sponsors Forestry and Agricultural Biotechnology Institute (FABI) Mintek National Advisory Council on Innovation (NACI) Petroleum Agency SA Rand Afrikaans University (RAU) Röth Medical Components South African Council for Natural Scientific Professions (SACNASP) Schools Technology in Electronics Programme, University of Stellenbosch (Sunstep) University of KwaZulu-Natal University of North West (Potchefstroom Campus) University of the Orange Free State (UOFS) University of Pretoria Water Research Commission (WRC) Contents Message from the Chairperson of the NSTF 2 Message from the Chief Executive Officer 3 Ten out of Ten for Successful National Impact in Science, Engineering and Technology 4 Message from Eskom 5 Message from th NRF 5 A Tribute to Dr Ben Ngubane 6 The NSTF Awards 7 Criteria for Selection of the Award Winners 8 Category A Finalists 9 An Individual during the course of a lifetime Category B Finalists 11 Individual during the last two years through Research and Innovation Category C Finalists 13 Individual during the last two years through activities other than Research and Innovation Category D Finalists 15 Organisations - Corporate organisations during the last ten years Category E Finalists 17 Organisations: SMME during the last three years Category F Finalists 19 Not-for-Profit organisations during the last two years Category G Finalists 21 Researcher, in respect of Research Capacity Development during the last 5 to10 years Category H Finalists 23 Senior Black Researcher during the last 5 to 10 years Category J Finalists 24 Junior Black Researcher during the last 2 to 5 years Achievers in the Education Sector 26 Past Winners 27 Messagethe Chairperson of the NSTFfrom The National Science and Technology Forum has, for many years, taken the initiative to recognise outstanding contributions to South African Science, Engineering and Technology by individuals and organisations. This recognition is intended to honour South African scientists and engineers thereby encouraging them and their colleagues to greater achievement. Excellence in research and technology development is a key enabler of growth in any economy. While this is my first occasion to be part of the awards as Chairperson, I believe that we can be proud of the results achieved in the previous five years of the NSTF awards and expect the same from the event this evening. A brief look through the lists of nominees in the various categories and the short listed finalists in each of the categories shows that we, in South Africa, do not have to hide our achievements. I think that there is a formidable list of achievements by the nominees that will make the adjudicators tasks harder. While we are primarily here to honour these achievements we must not forget that it all starts in school and that we should express our gratitude to those dedicated schools, teachers and headmasters who encourage, motivate and interest pupils in the disciplines of science and mathematics sometimes very early in a learner's career. As we all know this is sometimes done under extremely difficult circumstances. I would like to take this opportunity to salute all who assist in the promotion of science and technology in South Africa. My thanks must also go to the CEO of the NSTF, Dr James Hlongwane, and the secretariat for the hard work and effort that has been put into the awards over a period of nearly six months. To the sponsors, adjudicators and nominees my special thanks as well. In this period of celebration of ten years of democracy it is also fitting that we recognise all the many contributions to the promotion of science and technology and I would particularly like to single out the role that one outstanding South African has played for much of this time, and I refer to the recently retired, past Minister of Science and Technology, Dr Ben Ngubane. We are deeply grateful to have had the value of his advice, council and support for so long. Mr John Marriott Chairperson - National Science and Technology Forum 2 Messagethe Chief Executive Officer from Our ceremony for awards for criteria and the reasons why these have been set. The set criteria were outstanding contributions to Science, used for all categories except G, but were weighted differently in H Engineering and Technology (SET) to and J with their emphasis on research. both individuals and organisations is being held for the sixth year in The reasoning behind the choice of the criteria perhaps needs some succession. These awards are intended elementary re-emphasis. to encourage other individuals and organisations towards greater efforts We wish amongst other things to encourage the sharing of and and for those who are productive, to exploitation of knowledge. Research, which remains locked up share their discoveries and behind the doors of the laboratory or in the notebooks of the developments. The twenty two previous inventors, is of little benefit to society. This sharing needs to be in winners of these awards have been both the scientific and the public domain. Society needs to benefit widely recognised as worthy recipients, from research and the results must be exploited in a manner that is thereby establishing themselves as role models in the SET community. sustainable. All of this prescribes that the benefits need to be quantified in monetary terms. We expect all researchers to be actively This year three new categories, sponsored by Eskom and the NRF, engaged in the mentoring of others and therefore the student list is have been introduced with the object of encouraging more Black of vital importance. For universities and business establishments the entrants into the fields of science, engineering and technology. They rules are the same and whilst there is an obvious need for the have been specifically designed to encourage Black researchers and protection of patent and development rights, this cannot be to the those who mentor them and, also, provide special research grants for exclusion of the societal demands set out. You may say that all of this the winners. is obvious given the objectives of the awards. You would be surprised how many of the nominations ignore some, if not all of these. The 2003 call for nominations attracted 77 nominees (some in more than one category) in the established categories, and 41 (some in We have again invited, as guests of the NSTF at the dinner, girl more than one category) in the new categories. learners, teachers and schools who have excelled in mathematics and science. These include girl learners who were winners of different It is only through the efforts of individuals, either on their own or Olympiads and festivals, the top teachers in maths and science as collectively, in organisations that science and technology will flourish. identified by the Telkom Teacher of the Year awards process, top The evidence of the contributions has to be looked for in the outputs, female matriculants and the top Dinaledi schools from each province but it is not the outputs as such that are recognised by us. There are identified by processes within the Department of Education. We many other awards that recognise outputs, not the least being the recognise their success by a scroll handed to each of them to Technology Top 100 awards. It is either the individual or the encourage greater achievements in Science and Technology. Our organisation that we recognise. Of course organisations are driven by thanks are due to the Department of Science and Technology, Telkom the individuals in them, and sometimes the organisation and a Foundation and ESKOM (Resources and Strategy) - who between them leading individual become almost indistinguishable. In their made this possible through sponsorships. adjudications, the panel has to be sensitive to this and in choosing one, recognition is due to the other and others who may have Our thanks are due to the adjudication panel of independent judges, contributed. An award to the other in another category would be representing all sectors within the NSTF, who reviewed the duplication and, as such, is avoided. nominations to establish the finalists, winners and runners-up where applicable and to all who have contributed to making this event a Where the panel considered that nominations would be more success, not the least being the nominators who of course are appropriate in a category other than the one chosen, they have unheralded but essential to the process and the nominees who put considered them in that category. The periods of time to be themselves on the line. considered for the different categories differ and when this is done, the information supplied may be inadequate for a proper Brief details on the motivations for the nominations of all finalists are consideration to be made. However, where possible, the adjudicators set out elsewhere in this book. have made due allowance for this. Nominators should nevertheless pay attention to the need to supply adequate detail, or to complete Finally, a special word of thanks to our sponsors, listed elsewhere, two motivations, where the nominator for that nominee selects more without whose help this would not have been possible. than one category. The panel has again been able to make its selections without calling for interviews. The panel does not have the resources to seek out more information than is presented.