26 episodes
The Academic Citizen The Academic Citizen
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- Society & Culture
An academic citizen is anyone who is part of the higher education community. They are engaged in pedagogy or research or both, and are committed to furthering knowledge, education and the advancement of society from their disciplinary position.
An academic citizen sees their work in higher education as a public project, both in terms of being partially funded by taxpayer money, and in terms of the contributions they wish to make to the world around them.
Although citizenship implies an exclusive form of belonging, here we use it to signal the role of academic work in collective life in a non-exclusionary way, and to anchor it in a public project to which all humanity belongs.
We create knowledge not only for our individual benefit but for the benefit of all.
The Academic Citizen is an independent podcast series produced and funded in its second iteration by the South African Research Chair in Science Communication in 2022. It was originally supported by the Academic Staff Association of Wits University (ASAWU) when it was first established in 2016.
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64. Listening For Emotions
What is the significance of engaging with colonial archives, which are laden with historical power imbalances and misrepresentations? In this episode, we embark on a journey through time to explore radio archives from the colonial era. Luc Marraffa, a PhD candidate at the University of Amsterdam, helps us rethink how we engage with archives and give voice to unheard narratives and non-verbal cues.
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63. NASA Sonifications
On the premiere episode of Season 7, listeners are treated to an interstellar auditory experience in the form of an audio postcard. Narrated by Sarah Kane, a PhD researcher in Astronomy from Cambridge University, this episode offers a captivating exploration into the innovative realm of data sonifications. Kane, along with her esteemed team, sheds light on groundbreaking research insights concerning the effectiveness of utilising data sonification in astronomy outreach and communication, with a specific focus on reaching audiences with visual impairments. Come with us.
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54: New Universities
[FROM THE ARCHIVE - 2018] Carina Truyts is part of the pioneers at South Africa’s newest university, Sol Plaatje University in Kimberly. She has established the Anthropology department there. Her teaching and research is focused on contextual knowledge production, sharing and engagement. Truyts’ Masters Research was on Nourishment in the 'first thousand days' in the context of precarious livelihoods in a small Cape Winelands town.
In this episode she shares with with Dr Nosipho Mngomezulu the excitement, countless opportunities and responsibilities associated with being part of this pioneering exercise. They also speak about institutional cultures and the ethical conundrums faced at such new establishments.
Produced, Edited, Researched and Scheduled by:
Simbarashe Honde -
50: Young People and HIV Research Discourse
[FROM THE ARCHIVE - 2018] Dr. Beth Vale is a researcher at the Mapungubwe Institute for Strategic Reflection. She is a Mandela Rhodes and a Rhodes Scholar. Dr. Vale was a postdoctoral fellow under the NRF Chair in Local Histories, Present Realities at Wits University. Her research explored Johannesburg nightclub cultures as sites of identity, attachment and place-making. Vale’s doctoral research completed at Oxford, was an ethnographic study exploring the medication-taking practices of HIV-positive adolescents in the Eastern Cape province of South Africa. She worked as part of a mixed-methods team that worked collaboratively with government and local NGOs to inform policy and programming.
In this episode, Dr Nosipho Mngomezulu caught up with Dr Vale and they chat on youth research, intimacy, HIV and writing for the public. They also discuss effective ways of engagement, conflict and identity construction in disseminating research. -
39: Cycle-Versities
[FROM THE ARCHIVE] South African universities suffer from serious traffic congestion, lack of parking spaces and high pollution levels. Even though many staff and students aspire to own a car, arguably the bicycle offers huge potential to transform the environment and culture of campuses.
In this episode Dr Mehita Iqani and Dr Njogu Morgan, a post-doctoral researcher based at the South Research Chair in Spatial Analysis and City Planning at Wits University, discuss cycling as a lifestyle, health benefit, environmentally friendly alternative to the car. They look into the factors which kind of transport people lean towards and reasons behind the choices.
Both cycling enthusiasts, they round up a dozen reasons to leave that car in the driveway and consider the affordable bicycle as a way to get around.
Produced, edited, researched and scheduled by:
Simbarashe Honde -
33: Universities and Medical Aids
[FROM THE ARCHIVE - 2018] Despite policy initiatives aimed at structuring affordable low cost health care funding products, medical schemes have remained unaffordable, and therefore inaccessible, to the majority of South Africans. Universities, through insurance companies, provide medical aid with high premiums to their staff. Coupled with high tuition, international students attending South African universities also have to pay high prices for compulsory medical aid cover.
The cost of treatment in general and medicine in particular is an important barrier to health care access, with the rising cost of medicine contributing to the growing pressure on affordability. Prof Mehita Iqani had a discussion with Prof Alex van den Heever, the Chair of Social Security Systems Administration and Management Studies at the University of the Witwatersrand and adjunct professor in the Wits School of Governance, on what how medical aids in South Africa are structured and what it means for universities. Is it possible for universities to drive affordable health insurance for all staff and students?
Produced by: Simbarashe Honde