The much disputed Intellectual Property Laws Amendment Bill — which will give protection to indigenous knowledge under SA’s existing intellectual property laws — has finally been approved by a parliamentary committee after nearly two years of deliberations and despite strong opposition.

Read the full article on the Business Day …

The Ulwazi Programme’s Niall McNulty is a finalist in the Highway Africa New Media Awards, taking place at the Cape Town International Convention Centre this weekend.  The awards honour people who ‘find innovative ways to overcome the limitations of the existing African infrastructure’, which we think is exactly what the new media component of the Ulwazi Programme does.  We wish him the best of luck and hope he comes back with the trophy!

Peter Machen, in an excellent publication developed for an exhibition at the Durban Art Gallery, explains why the street name changes took place in Durban, who the streets were originally named after and who the people behind the new street names are.

• Read the document (PDF, 10mb) …

The eThekwini Living Legends awards ceremony took place last night at the Inkosi Albert Luthuli International Convention Centre. Twenty-two residents of eThekwini were honored for the contribution they have made to their communities. Both locally and abroad, their sustained and extraordinary contributions have made an impact in various categories from music, sport, science, business, social work, education and more. They have, in their own way, helped to provide others with a sense of identity and continuity and have promoted respect for cultural diversity and human creativity. They have achieved greatness through their practices, knowledge and skills, and by their expressions have contributed to our city’s rich intangible heritage.

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The first of the Living Legends Seminar series, held on 15 June in the Wreck Aquarium at uShaka Marine on the Durban beachfront, was well attended by local luminaries from the sporting fraternity, and soccer in particular.  Mr. Thembinkosi Ngcobo, Head of the Parks, Recreation and Culture Department of the eThekwini Municipality lauded various people who have made contributions in putting the City of Durban on the national and international map. Amongst those receiving a special mention were Neil Tovey and Clive Barker, captain and coach respectively of the 1996 Bafana Bafana squad who won the 1996 Africa Cup of Nations. Mr. Ngcobo called for a commitment to owning and celebrating homegrown talent and contributions and achievements of Durban people. He made an appeal for Durbanites to cherish, own and celebrate Durban soccer teams and Durban victories.

The topic for the evening’s panel discussion was “The role of youth academies in the development of internationally competitive footballers in South Africa”,  Moderator Lindani Mbense of SABC Sport introduced the three panelists Clive Barker, Sugar Ray Xulu and Thabo Dladla. Continue Reading