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2022/23 HSRC/USAf Medal for Social Sciences and Humanities

Background

In 2021, Universities South Africa (USAf) partnered with the Human Sciences Research Council (HSRC) on the 2020 Medal for Social Sciences and Humanities — a project that the HSRC had undertaken from as far back as 2016. The Medal is awarded annually to scholars who have made outstanding contributions through their research in the social sciences and humanities.

The 2020/21 project

The 2020/21 Awards were dedicated to social scientists, researchers and academics who had contributed outstandingly to South Africa’s response to the CoViD-19 pandemic. The medal was contested in three categories, namely:

• Established Researcher
• Emerging Researcher
• Team Award demonstrating a) a groundbreaking contribution to South Africa’s approach towards responding to CoViD-19 and b) the upliftment of particularly female and young researchers.

From the 34 nominees received, Professor Jonathan Jansen (right), Distinguished Professor of Education at Stellenbosch University and President of the Academy of Science of South Africa, won in the Established Researcher category. A widely respected curriculum theorist and an A-rated researcher (NRF) whose work is focused on the politics of knowledge, Professor Jansen has authored, co-authored and co-edited several books. His research projects at the time of the Award included a national study on the impact of the pandemic on the academic work of women scholars, and a study on the underlying causes of chronic dysfunction in 10 South African universities.  

In the same year, Dr Ryan Nefdt, a Senior Lecturer in Philosophy at the University of Cape Town and a fellow at the Centre for the Philosophy of Science at the University of Pittsburgh, scooped the Emerging Researcher award.

In addition to the two individuals, two teams won the inaugural Team Award. They were the Durban University of Technology’s (DUT)Urban Futures Centre (UFC) team that was recognised for their outstanding work during the CoViD-19 pandemic, led by Professor Monique Marks, and The Human Science Research Council’s CoViD-19 research team that was awardedfor being at the forefront of South Africa’s social sciences research response to the pandemic. The latter was led by Professor Priscilla Reddy.

 

 

The 2021/22 project

Professor Deevia Bhana (left), a National Research Foundation B1-rated scholar and a South African Research Chairs Initiative (SARChI) Chair in Gender and Childhood Sexuality based at the University of KwaZulu-Natal, won in the Established Researcher category. First appointed a SARChI Chair in 2016 and renewed for a second five-year cycle in 2021, Professor Bhana’s reappointment as SARChI Chair re-affirmed her as an undisputed international leader in Gender and Childhood Sexuality studies. Her ground-breaking research — spanning education and childhood/youth studies – with particular attention to gender and sexuality studies, had led to a reconceptualization of childhood sexualities in a nascent field on the African continent, thus contributing to a global debate with significant practical value in improving children and young people’s lives.

The Emerging Researcher for 2021 was Dr Witness Maluleke, a Senior Lecturer in the Department of Criminology and Criminal Justice the University of Limpopo and a ‘Rural Criminology’ researcher with keen interest in agricultural (stock theft) crimes.

The Team Award was also bestowed to two teams in 2022. One was the University of Johannesburg’s Centre for Social Change (CSC) in partnership with the Human Sciences Research Council’s Developmental, Capable and Ethical State (DCES) division. Under the leadership of Professors Carin Runciman and Narnia Bohler-Muller from the Developmental, Capable and Ethical State Research programme, the team had, since April 2020, been conducting an ongoing cross-sectional survey among adults living in South Africa to determine the social and economic impact of the CoViD-19 pandemic.

The second winner in the Team Award category was The Africa Centre for Evidence (ACE), also at the University of Johannesburg, led by an NRF-rated academic, Professor Ruth Stewart, a member of the South African Academy of Science who also held advisory roles across national and international bodies. This team used evidence-informed decisions to reduce poverty and inequality in Africa.


The 2022/23 Awards

A call was made to all public universities to nominate qualifying scholars for the 2022/23 Medal, which seeks to recognise research excellence in “Social Justice.” Under this theme, the HSRC and USAf CEOs will identify innovative research projects that are centred on analysing social justice inquiry, theories and practice aimed at achieving transformative impact in communities – socially, scientifically and otherwise. As such, the awards will recognise scholars and researchers who approach social justice issues using sharpened analytical lenses, rigorous conceptualisation, and research methods characterised by meaningful engagement with their peers and the affected communities.

This time around, the Medal will be awarded in four categories and nominations may be made against this set of criteria:

A. The Established Researcher Award: To be considered, a nominee must possess the following attributes:

  • A lifetime of achievement and excellence in research. A record of sustained academic excellence in the social sciences and/or humanities, including publications and student supervision (master’s and doctoral degrees)
  • An international reputation for their scholarship, including international collaborations, leading research projects and evident visibility
  • A strong record of contribution to the public’s understanding of social sciences and/or humanities in the area/theme of their scholarship
  • Evidence of meaningful, impactful work over an extended period, e.g. impact on public policy, research use, knowledge translation, social change, community interventions, etc.
  • Contribution to the social sciences and humanities in terms of social justice scholarship
  • Nominees are required to live and work in South Africa.

The nomination form for this category may be accessed on this page:
https://www.usaf.ac.za/established-researcher-award-nomination-form/

 

 
 

B. The Mid-career Researcher Award: For consideration, a nominee must possess the following attributes:

  • A record of sustained academic excellence in the social sciences and humanities of at least 10 years, including publications and student supervision (master’s and doctoral degrees)
  • A record indicative of international reputation for their scholarship
  • A strong record of contribution to the public’s understanding of social sciences and/or humanities in the area/theme of their scholarship
  • Evidence of meaningful, impactful work over an extended period, e.g. impact on public policy, social change, community interventions etc.
  • Contribution to the social sciences and humanities in terms of social justice scholarship
  • Nominees are required to live and work in South Africa.

The nomination form for this category may be accessed on this page:
https://www.usaf.ac.za/mid-career-researcher-award-nominee-form/

 

C. The Emerging Researcher Award: For consideration, a nominee must possess the following attributes:

  • A record of sustained academic excellence in the social sciences and humanities of at least 5 years
  • A record indicative of developing an international reputation for their scholarship
  • A strong record of contribution to the public’s understanding of social sciences and/or humanities in the area/theme of their scholarship
  • Evidence of meaningful, impactful work over an extended period, e.g. impact on public policy, social change, community interventions etc.
  • Contribution to the social sciences and humanities in terms of social justice scholarship
  • Post-doctoral fellows and researchers working for socio-political think tanks and similar entities, including NGOs, will be considered.

The nomination form may be accessed here:
https://www.usaf.ac.za/emerging-researcher-category-form/

 

D. The Team Award: To be considered, teams should be able to demonstrate:

  • Their contribution to South Africa’s understanding of social justice scholarship.
  • Their contributions to diversity and inclusion in their science and research work.
  • A record of sustained academic excellence in the social sciences and humanities, recent collaboration with outputs, and an international reputation for their scholarship
  • A strong record of contribution to the public’s understanding of the social sciences and/or humanities in the area/theme of their scholarship
  • Evidence of meaningful, impactful work over a period, e.g. impact on public policy, community interventions etc.
  • Contribution to the social sciences and humanities in terms of social justice scholarship

The nomination form for the Team Award may be downloaded here:
https://www.usaf.ac.za/team-award-form/

 

The cash prize for each category is as follows:

  • Established Researcher: R60 000
  • Mid-Career Researcher: R40 000
  • Emerging Researcher: R30 000
  • The Team Award: R40 000   


The Closing date for all submissions is 24 February 2023.