RE.SEARCH 12: Global

The theme of this edition, ‘Global’, illustrates how the University of Pretoria (UP) serves as a globally engaged, continental hub that is driving impactful research through innovation, creativity and sustainability.

In this edition, we take you on a journey from Cambodia, where our surgical intervention on an elephant’s tusk made local history, to remote Marion Island, where documenting the flights of albatrosses has implications for aeronautical engineering. We travel back in time to learn how ancient Africans developed climate-smart water storage solutions for droughts in Great Zimbabwe. We also look at the future of faith across the world and consider why globally renowned high-performance athletes need a bit of extra healthcare.

This edition centres on the theme ‘Global’, and reflects not only UP’s global outlook, but also our research that is having an impact around the world. The University has a strong international standing, having placed 63^rd worldwide in the 2025 Times Higher Education (THE) Impact Rankings and securing seventh spot globally for Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 17 (Partnership for the Goals).

This issue features the following articles, all of which illuminate the University of Pretoria's global impact:

A tech centre to optimise business unusual (page 4)
Five pathways to global health equality (page 6)
Refining radiation therapy (page 8)
Energy poverty: A challenge without borders (page 10)
Setting the standards for safety (page 12)
Immigration: The polarising issue of our time (page 14)
Extra time: Keeping footballers in the game longer (page 16)
Who develops the teacher educator? (page 18)
Faith like kisses (our social realisation) (page 20)
Food security starts with biodiversity (page 22)
From ancient wisdom flows modern water solutions (page 24)
Fungi for the future (page 26)
Cambodia witnesses veterinary firsts (page 28)
Eavesdropping on emotion: A new way to understand wildlife tourism (page 30)
The highs and lows of albatross flight (page 32)
Pushing the boundaries of veterinary science (page 34)

Click here or on the cover below to read more.

August 25, 2025

Estimated Reading Time: 1 minute

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RE.SEARCH 13: One Health

This edition is curated around the concept of One Health, in which the University of Pretoria plays a leading role globally, and is based on our research expertise in the various disciplines across healthcare for people, the environment and animals.
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Better brain health: UP neurosurgeon develops non-invasive, eye-based method to measure intracranial pressure

Paediatric neurosurgeon Professor Llewellyn Padayachy, Head of the Department of Neurosurgery at the University of Pretoria’s (UP) Steve Biko Academic Hospital, is redefining how brain-related diseases are diagnosed and treated, especially in low-resource settings. He’s at the forefront of pioneering work in non-invasive techniques to assess and measure raised pressure inside the skull,...
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Minds matter

Africa faces immense challenges in neurosurgery, such as severe underfunding, a lack of training positions and a high burden of disease. There is one neurosurgeon per four million people, far below the WHO’s recommendation of one per 200 000. This shortage, compounded by the lack of a central brain tumour registry and limited access to diagnostics, severely impacts patient outcomes.

RE.SEARCH 12: Global

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RE.SEARCH 13: One Health

Better brain health: UP neurosurgeon develops non-invasive, eye-based method to measure intracranial pressure

Minds matter

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