Executive Interview - Kristian Moeller

Throughout history people have been facing risks associated with food. Food scares of the twentieth century have caused consumer panic leading to loss of confidence in the safety of the food chain. Many public and private initiatives in the form of food quality certification schemes have evolved to restore confidence. One such private initiative is the GLOBALGAP (former EUREPGAP). This executive interview discusses the role of GLOBALGAP in food certification with Dr. Kristian Moeller who is the Managing Director for GLOBALGAP. This discussion took place during IAMA’s 17th Annual World Forum and Symposium in Parma, Italy on June 25, 2007.EUREPGAP, GLOBALGAP, food safety, good agricultural practice, farm assurance. transmission rather than from incentive based contractual arrangements., Agribusiness, Agricultural and Food Policy, Farm Management, Food Consumption/Nutrition/Food Safety, Q10, Q12, Q13,

Strategies to improve family member's experiences of end-of-life care in a high care unit

Introduction When death of a loved one happens in a hospital setting it can be even more painful as the family is not familiar with the environment. End-of-life care to support the family in the high care unit is vital for long term grieving outcomes. However, healthcare professionals often omit the needs of family members. The experiences of families regarding end-of-life care may be used to identify strategies to improve quality of end-of-life care. Aim The aim of the study was to identify strategies to improve the end-of-life care experiences of family members in the high care unit. Objectives The objectives were to: i)explore adult family members’ experiences of end-of-life care in the high care unit, and ii)collaboratively identify strategies that can be implemented by healthcare professionals Design and methods A qualitative descriptive research design was used to achieve the aim of the study. The study was conducted in one high care unit in a central hospital where approximately 70 patients are managed each month. Family members and/or significant other of patients managed in the high care unit were selected using a purposive sampling method. Ten family members whose loved one received end-of-life care in the high care unit were interviewed. Data was analysed using the collaborative hermeneutic data analysis method to identify strategies to be implemented to improve the family member’s experience of end-of-life care in future. Findings The following main themes emerged: 1) quality of care 2) compassion 3) support structure and 4) communication. Supporting and involving families in the care of the critically ill family member may improve family satisfaction, reduce complaints and ultimately lead to good death. Conclusion Understanding the experiences of family members whom their loved ones had been given end-of-life care in the high care unit, expanded the healthcare professionals understanding of the current practices of end-of-life care as experienced by the family members. Collaboratively identifying strategies to improve the family member’s experiences in future contributed to better the experiences of families when the strategies are implemented in practice. Keywords: Collaborative data analysis; end-of-life care; family experiences, high care unit; healthcare professionals.Dissertation (MCur (Clinical))--Univerity of Pretoria, 2021.Nursing ScienceMCur (Clinical)Unrestricte

Isiqondiso solimi uphiko lwezilimi

The purpose of this booklet is to assist both the language and the nonlanguage speakers with terminology and the University’s high frequency words and phrases. The following factors were considered when specific African languages were selected for development as academic and administrative languages for the University of Johannesburg: The language situation in the country (the total number of speakers of the individual languages). The language situation in the province (the number of speakers of the individual languages in the province). Language planning guidelines for the Gauteng Province. Languages identified by the Gauteng Provincial Legislature as the languages to be used in the province for official purposes. The recommendations in the ministerial committee’s report The development of indigenous African languages as mediums of instruction in higher education

Bring back the signal: an evaluation of the existence of a digital public sphere in the South African mediascape.

A thesis submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Masters in Media Studies, 2017On the 12th of February 2015, in an unprecedented move, members of the media in South Africa (SA) protested in Parliament and chanted “bring back the signal”, waving their smartphones in the air after discovering that a signal jamming device had been activated to disrupt cell phone signals in the National Assembly. Their protest denied President Jacob Zuma the opportunity to deliver his State of the Nation Address (SONA) until the signal and connection to the internet had been restored. It was the first time in the History of democratic SA the SONA was disrupted. The presence as well as the rapid spread and use of new media technologies in the SA mediascape has led scholars like Yu-Shan Wu to question the nature of their use and impact on government policy decisions. This study contributes to such work as well as long standing debates about the role of new media technologies in advancing democratic ideals in emerging democracies and the internet’s role as a public sphere. It does this by using a case study research method focusing on SONA 2015 to evaluate whether the South African digital space constitutes a digital public sphere. This paper concludes that indeed the South African digital space does constitute a form of digital public sphere. This sphere is largely operated and structured by news media organisations that use their websites, social media and various online platforms to engender it.XL201

The Impact of title sponsorship on customer-based brand equity: an evaluation of seasonal soccer tournaments in South Africa

Sports sponsorship has become an integral brand building tool as brands wrangle to be differentiated and to create loyal customers. Sponsorship is seen as impactful as it brings brands closer to consumers through a passion point and by borrowing equity of the sponsored property. As the sponsorship market continues to grow, brands are diversifying into title sponsorship of short-term tournaments to gain a competitive edge. The mere association by means of name sharing as title sponsors is not strong enough to alter what consumers see, hear, feel, and think of the brand. Thus, brands have to employ brand experiences that are engaging, enjoyable, and memorable enough to deliver lasting impact on consumers in terms of what consumers see, hear, feel, and think. These modules together form customer-based brand equity (CBBE), the potential commercial value that a brand can derive based on what resides in the mind of consumers. Nonetheless, there is currently no scholarly investigation that examines the impact that brand experiences has on CBBE. The goal of this research is to unpack the proliferation of title sponsorship in short-term tournaments and explore if CBBE is impacted by employing brand experiences during short-term tournaments. The thesis aims to establish an academic foundation to strengthen the interpretation of the relationship between sponsorship of short-term tournaments and the experiences used to impact CBBE. To achieve this objective, the study presents an adapted framework for interpretation as no scholarly model currently exists. The relationship interpretation is achieved through thorough investigation of existing literature that integrates short-term tournament title sponsorship, brand experiences, and CBBE. Furthermore, custodians of brands that title sponsor short-term tournaments were the focal population of the study to understand their strategic imperatives that inform the relationship under study as research reveals that more title sponsors are integrating brand experiences into their sponsorships

A fuzzy logic micro-controller enabled system for the monitoring of micro climatic parameters of a greenhouse

Motivation behind this master dissertation is to introduce a novel study called " A fuzzy logic micro-controller enabled system for the monitoring of micro-climatic parameters of a greenhouse" which is capable of intelligently monitoring and controlling the greenhouse climate conditions in a preprogrammed manner. The proposed system consists of three stations: Sensor Station, Coordinator Station, and Central Station. To allow for better monitoring of the climate condition in the greenhouse, fuzzy logic controller is embedded in the system as the system becomes more intelligent with fuzzy decision making. The sensor station is equipped with several sensor elements such as MQ-7 (Carbon monoxide sensor), DHT11 (Temperature and humidity sensor), LDR (light sensor), grove moisture sensor (soil moisture sensor). The communication between the sensor station and the coordinator station is achieved through XBee wireless modules connected to the Arduino Mega and the communication between coordinator station and the central station is also achieved via XBee wireless modules connected to the Arduino Mega. The experiments and tests of the system were carried out at one of IKHALA TVET COLLEGE’s greenhouses that is used for learning purposes by students studying agriculture at the college. The purpose of conducting the experiments at the college’s green house was to determine the functionality and reliability of the designed wireless sensor network using ZigBee wireless technology. The experiment result indicated that XBee modules could be used as one solution to lower the installation cost, increase flexibility and reliability and create a greenhouse management system that is only based on wireless nodes. The experiment result also showed that the system became more intelligent if fuzzy logic was used by the system for decision making. The overall system design showed advantages in cost, size, power, flexibility and intelligence. It is trusted that the results of the project will give the chance for further research and development of a low cost greenhouse monitoring system for commercial use.Electrical and Mining EngineeringM. Tech. (Electrical Engineering

Enhancing Project Management for SMEs: A Hybrid Approach

Objective: South Africa's economic growth and development are closely intertwined with government-prioritized infrastructure development projects. However, SMEs in this sector often grapple with insufficient project management processes, impeding their efficacy and economic contributions. The issue stems from the inadequate implementation of project management methodologies by SMEs, which adversely affects project outcomes and consequently their economic impact. Research Design & Methods: A literature review was conducted to assess the implementation of project management methodologies by SMEs in South African infrastructure development projects. The objective is to highlight areas for improvement, rectify the deficiency in project management practices among SMEs, and bolster their effectiveness and economic contributions. Findings: Preliminary findings accentuate the critical role of project management as a discipline for SMEs involved in infrastructure projects. Its absence or inadequate implementation hampers the growth and sustainability of organizations aiming to make substantial economic contributions and create employment. A hybrid project management model tailored for SMEs in infrastructure development emerges as a mechanism for effectively managing infrastructure projects. Implications and Recommendations: The conceptualization of a hybrid project management model for infrastructure development projects holds the potential to enhance project value by facilitating adaptability. By incorporating agile project management components, this model also stands to improve client engagement, consequently elevating the prospects of success in infrastructure development projects. Contribution & Value Added: This study contributes to the understanding of how SMEs can improve their effectiveness and economic contributions in South Africa's infrastructure development sector. The proposed hybrid project management model offers valuable insights for practitioners and policymakers in South Africa, ultimately fostering economic development and sustainable growth in the country

Investigating Bachelor of Education second year university students' difficulties with non-technical words presented in the science context

A research report submitted to the Faculty of Science, University of the Witwatersrand, in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science. Johannesburg, June 2017The language issues in South Africa recently made headlines where inclusive education in respective mother tongues has been the outcry. South Africa has been a democratic state for more than 20 years and still such language inequalities are most prevalent. The issue of language redress to accommodate the country’s educational needs and demographics remains a big concern even at University levels. The focus of this study was to investigate the challenges, concerns, familiarity and understandings of the difficulties that non-technical terms presented to B.Ed. second year University students. This case study explored whether issues with non-technical terms’ science contextual meanings and familiarity in science related fields of study were still persistent at University level. The study was conducted at an English medium South African University, with student demographics coming from mostly urban settings with mixed home language backgrounds where English was highly spoken in school. The data collected in this case study was derived from University students’ responses on a questionnaire to predetermined questions that focused on non-technical terms’ meanings followed by a semi-structured group interview. The findings in the interview with participants gave an indication to their contextual familiarity and understanding of non-technical terms’ science context meanings, with the aim to improving teaching and learning of physical sciences in schools as a preparatory measure for further University studying. Similar to the findings from studies with South African teachers and Grade 12 learners’ (see Oyoo, 2016, in press; Oyoo & Semeon, 2015) which revealed that South African school learners encountered difficulties with non-technical terms presented in the science context, this study revealed that South African University students’ also experience difficulty with non-technical terms’ science context meanings. The main sources of difficulty identified in the study were attributed to the South African language and historical background which contributes to poor vocabulary. Students’ lacked the exposure, and contextual familiarity to the language that these meanings are embedded in. This led to students’ inability to differentiate between non-technical terms’ specific scientific context meaning from terms’ everyday meaning. The lowered exposure to these terms’ actual contextual use inside and outside classroom conversations is a factor that needs to be countered. Students’ acknowledged that explicit meaning of non-technical terms’ science context meanings should have been made when learning science at school. School science instruction needs to pay special attention to details on the context of the word in use as a preparatory measure for University. This claim is more on the fact that, participants acknowledged that familiarity is the major factor to their difficulty based on their different lived experiences.LG201