
Call for Nominations 2019/2020 NSTF-South32 Awards:
Special Annual Theme Award: Plant Health

The Special Annual Theme Award 2020 will be made for: Research and development (R&D) and innovation in Plant Health. This Special Annual Theme Awards is made in recognition of the International Year of Plant Health (2020) declared by the United Nations.
The scope could include:
- All areas of science, engineering, and agriculture that improve plant health in managed or natural ecosystems
- Research combating the threat of pests, weeds, and disease-causing organisms to plants
- New findings about plant health and fighting plant disease, pests and weeds
- Understanding Invasion biology and ensuring plant biodiversity, in the context of climate change
- Improving plant health through innovations in fields which could include plant nutrition, genetics, biological control, agrochemicals, pollinator biology, etc
- Finding innovative solutions to plant health challenges, including indigenous knowledge systems (IKS), directed towards South Africa’s sustainable development, particularly for job creation and the alleviation of poverty.
The International Year is an opportunity to raise awareness on how protecting plant health can help end hunger, reduce poverty, protect the environment and boost economic development.
The work can be theoretical, or practical, and should include analyses of the approximate or relative costs involved to establish or maintain an industry based on the work.
Additional Criteria
The Annual Theme Award can be awarded according to the criteria in any one of the other Awards categories, which are described in detail on separate pages and the respective nomination forms for each category.
In section 12 of the nomination forms (section 13 on the form for Engineering Research Capacity Development) additional input is requested to the extent that is practical.
- Describe in what way the work and outputs described in the motivation involve plant health. A comprehensive description is needed and claims must be backed up with substantive information. Do not repeat what has already been set out in the motivation, but some reference to the relevant information is then necessary.
- What further developments would be necessary for the outputs described to become innovations if they are not already? Are these new uses new applications or reconfigurations of older applications?
- Over and above what has been stated in the motivation, is there any possible further contribution to plant health from the SET work?
- To what extent does the work and outputs provide for social inclusiveness, employment and poverty reduction?
- To what extent is the SET work resource efficient, and does it contribute to environmental protection and to the reduction of the effects of/on climate change?
- Describe to what extent the SET work contributes to the preservation of cultural values, supports diversity and respects heritage where applicable?
- Describe to what extent the SET work contributes to mutual understanding and peace and security?
- Provide an analysis of the approximate or relative costs involved to establish or maintain an industry based on the work being researched or developed.
Previous Special Annual Theme Awards:
2019: Materials for inclusive economic development
Winner: Prof Alexander Quandt – University of the Witwatersrand (Wits)
2018: Sustainable Energy for All
Winner: Professor Harald Winkler – University of Cape Town (UCT)
2017: Sustainable Tourism for Development
Winner: Professor Melville Saayman – North-West University (NWU)
2016: Crop Science and Food security
Winner: Professor David Berger – University of Pretoria (UP)
2015: Photonics
Winner: Prof Andrew Forbes – (Wits)
