Science student takes part in Trilateral programme

A master's student in science from the Mafikeng Campus of the North-West University was chosen to take part in the India-Brazil - South African Trilateral (IBSA) initiative programme. The IBSA programme requires that there be programmes and sharing of knowledge between researchers in Brazil, India and South Africa.

Tsholofelo Mollootimile is currently visiting two universities in Brazil for a period of a month. She will spend the first two weeks at the University De Sao Paulo with Prof Gregoire Demets, and the next two weeks at the University of Campinas under the mentorship of Prof Maria de Medeirois. During this period, she will conduct some of her experimental work. She is working on advanced instruments with the aim of characterising fouled membranes and also for the fingerprinting of nanoparticles whether in solution or when embedded on the surface, such as the membrane.

Mollootimile had this to say about her visit to Brazil. "I really appreciate the opportunity presented to me by the campus and the organisation; I am using it to my level best as there are more facilities to help with completing research."

According to Mollootimile's supervisor, Dr Michael Klink, one of the advantages of belonging to such a trilateral collaboration is that researchers and students take advantage of research infrastructure that resides at individual institutions if not available at their own institution. An added advantage is that it also creates a good platform for networking in terms of research.