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Diversity in Biology Speaker Series: Through the Looking Glass: Exploring the Medicinal Botanical Treasures of South Africa
February 17, 2022 at 11:00 am - 12:30 pm
Free
The Diversity in Biology Speaker Series invites you to attend a talk by Dr. Nokwanda Makunga.
Dr. Makunga will discuss how South Africa has an incredible floral heritage that has medical and psycho-cultural significance to local people. Diverse ethno-cultural utilization is thus encouraging entry of new products into global markets based on South African plant endemics.
This talk will showcase the diverse floral riches of South Africa that are of medicinal importance and their historical context. It will also provide the unique opportunities that are presented by interfacing various biotechnologies to Cape plants, to bolster scientific information. Finally, it will illustrate the exciting potential of exploring the medicinal biodiversity of South Africa and how this is important for both its commercialization and conservation.
About the Speaker
Dr. Nokwanda Makunga is an Associate Professor at Stellenbosch University in South Africa. In 2004, she received her BSc and PhD from the University of KwaZulu-Nata. She has won several awards, including the National Science and Technology Award for Distinguished Young Black Researcher, the TW Kambule Award and a Fullbright Scholar acknowledgement. Dr. Makunga is also one of the leaders of Black Botanists Week, which is a social media event that runs annually.
