Keynote speech by Prof. Mamokgethi Phakeng
Freiburg, Oct 15, 2021
On October 20, 2021, Rector Prof. Dr. Kerstin Krieglstein will open the Academic Year. As guest speaker, the University of Freiburg is pleased to welcome Prof. Mamokgethi Phakeng. The Vice Chancellor of the University of Cape Town/South Africa will speak about "Why the World Needs Diversity". The event will be livestreamed via the Zoom web service from 10 to 11:30 am.
Mamokgeti Phakeng. Photo: University of Cape Town
Prof. Mamokgethi Phakeng is Professor of Mathematics Education and Vice Chancellor of the University of Cape Town, South Africa, since 2018. A year earlier, she was appointed Vice Principal for Research and Internationalization at the University of Cape Town.
Commitment to science and community
Phakeng has received numerous awards for both her scientific publications and her volunteer activities. Among them, she was named Africa's Most Influential Academic by CEO Magazine in 2014. In 2016, she received the Order of the Baobab, a South African Order of Merit. In 2019, the University of Bristol, England, awarded her an honorary doctorate of science in recognition of her leadership in mathematics education in South Africa. In 2020, Phakeng was named to Forbes' inaugural list of the 50 Most Influential Women in Africa.
The mathematician founded the Adopt-a-learner Foundation, a charitable non-profit organization that since 2004 has provided financial and educational support to students* from townships and rural areas so they can achieve higher educational qualifications.
The world needs diversity
In Freiburg, Phakeng will give a lecture on "Why the World Needs Diversity" at the opening of the Academic Year.
All interested parties are invited to watch the ceremony and ask questions in a live chat. Registration is not required.
The link to the livestream is: https://uni-freiburg.link/zoom-akajahr