We are pleased to announce that Mulisa Mudau, a student in the Department of Geography, Geoinformatics, and Meteorology, has secured the second position in the 2023 NextGen Space Challenge. Additionally, Mulisa has been selected as one of the winners for Digital Earth Africa Mentorship, a well-deserved recognition of his exceptional talent.

He will receive mentorship for his 2024 Honours research project, "Characterisation of Biomass Burning Emissions from Seasonal Sugarcane Burning in KwaZulu-Natal." This project seeks to shed light on the environmental impact of sugarcane burning in South Africa, with a primary focus on KwaZulu-Natal.

The DEA Mentorship will also cover the winning project "Water From a Rock Initiative", which was submitted by the YouthMappers Chapter at the University of Pretoria, where Mulisa serves as the President of the chapter. This innovative initiative focuses on leveraging Digital Earth Africa tools for flood preparedness, enhancing disaster risk assessment, emergency response, and communication.

Mulisa's accomplishments stand as a testament to his dedication and contributions to the Department, and we are immensely proud of his achievements. We extend our congratulations to him for this well-deserved recognition and look forward to witnessing his continued success in this exciting endeavour!

For more on the NextGen Space Challenge please have a look here. The Department wishes to extend their congratulation on the winner, Micaela Davids from Wits. For more information on the activities on the UP YouthMappers Chapter, plaese read our recent post.