November has been a good month for staff and students at FABI. The Southern African Plant Breeders' Association has shortlisted Professor Dave Berger as one of 41 nominees for their annual 20 most influential plant breeders on the African continent. The Top 20 will be announced later this month. This follows his recognition by the University of Pretoria for 20 years of service. The Faculty of Natural and Agricultural Sciences celebrated the academic prowess and talent of its students at the Annual Exceptional Achievers’ Function for Students on 9 November. The online ceremony replaced the event originally scheduled for May and honoured the achievements of students in the various departments in 2019. Dean in the Faculty of Natural and Agricultural Sciences Professor Barend Erasmus saluted students in the faculty for “adapting, innovating, surviving and thriving” in a tough and uncertain year amid the challenges posed by the global COVID-19 pandemic.

FABI celebrates the achievements of the following five students who received awards in various categories. MSc student Cheyenne Theron, who received the Bayer CropScience – Science for a Better Life Award. The award is presented to the best student in Plant Pathology in the final year of the BSc Agric (Plant Pathology) programme. Cheyenne also received the Dean’s Academic Merit Award. The Department of Biochemistry, Genetics and Microbiology honoured MSc student Dee Twiddy for achieving her BSc Honours in Microbiology degree with distinction. Trystan Nadasen and Kevin Scheepers each received the Margaretha Mes Medal for Plant Physiology, awarded to the best BSc Honours students who obtained their degree with a mark of at least 70% and whose essay was based on an aspect of plant pathology. Mehda Sood received the Inqaba Biotec Prize for the best BSc Honours student in the Biotechnology programme. FABI Director Prof. Bernard Slippers congratulated the five on their talent and making FABIans proud.