Faculty of Humanities at Nelson Mandela University

Faculty of Humanities at Nelson Mandela University Faculty of Humanities at Nelson Mandela University

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Faculty of Humanities at Nelson Mandela University

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http://www.humanities.mandela.ac.za

The NRF SARChI in Identities and Social Cohesion in Africa (ISCIA) invite you to attend the upcoming Games and Play Semi...
03/09/2026

The NRF SARChI in Identities and Social Cohesion in Africa (ISCIA) invite you to attend the upcoming Games and Play Seminar "Play in making - Shifting Awareness" presented by Prof Vulindlela Nyoni

📆 04 September 2026
🕐 14h30 - 15h30
📍Zoom (scan QR code)

In his presentation Nyoni explores play not as escape, but as a way of paying attention. Through the live unfolding of an artwork—interrupted by shifts in perception—it invites participants to notice how they respond to uncertainty in real time. What happens before we have time to interpret? When does growth occur: in the moment, or only in reflection? Drawing on practices of making, observing, and questioning, the presentation moves between control and disruption, seriousness, and play.

Humanising Innovation. Innovating Humanity.Join the Faculty of Humanities at Nelson Mandela University on Wednesday, 2 S...
31/08/2026

Humanising Innovation. Innovating Humanity.

Join the Faculty of Humanities at Nelson Mandela University on Wednesday, 2 September, for Humanities Research Day, as part of Institutional Research Week.

Under this year’s theme, “Forging Intelligent Futures: Research & Innovation Shaping AI • AI Advancing Research & Innovation,” we celebrate the research, ideas and innovation shaping our understanding of an increasingly intelligent world — while keeping humanity at the heart of innovation.

The NRF SARChI in Identities and Social Cohesion in Africa (ISCIA) invite you to attend the upcoming Games and Play Semi...
26/08/2026

The NRF SARChI in Identities and Social Cohesion in Africa (ISCIA) invite you to attend the upcoming Games and Play Seminar "The serious man and the mushroom: A Mycelial Ethics of Care" presented by Anzel Loubser

📆 28 August 2026
🕐 14h30 - 15h30
📍Zoom (scan QR code)

Abstract: Dominant ethical traditions play a game whose rules they have forgotten are rules. What Deleuze calls the dogmatic image of thought casts the moral subject as bounded, sovereign, and serious. This presentation frames my doctoral research, A Mycelial Ethics of Care, as thought-play: ethical thinking that wanders laterally and rhizomatically off the program. Here, I consider how a mycelial heuristic of care – grounded in the rhizomatic philosophy of Deleuze and Guattari, the phenomenology of psilocybin experience, and selected southern African indigenous epistemologies – might provide a playful alternative way of thinking about ethical relations between human and non-human life.

The Faculty of Humanities came together for a day dedicated to community building, cultural appreciation and creativity....
24/08/2026

The Faculty of Humanities came together for a day dedicated to community building, cultural appreciation and creativity.

From karaoke and Madiba shirt designs to cultural games, Humanities staff expressed their creativity while celebrating the cultural diversity within our faculty. At the heart of the event was a reflection on “What does Ubuntu mean to you?”, capturing the many ways Ubuntu is understood and lived within our community.

The day concluded with a special kite-flying activity, bringing staff and students together to fly the Ubuntu Kite. As a recognised motif of our institution, the kite became a fitting symbol of hope, resilience, freedom and unity.

More than an activity, the day was about creating shared experiences, breaking down silos and strengthening our sense of belonging — embodying the spirit of Ubuntu: “I am because we are.”

Mandela University's Professor Uchenna Okeja inducted into Nigerian Academy of Letters Reasons to be Proud- Professor Uc...
21/08/2026

Mandela University's Professor Uchenna Okeja inducted into Nigerian Academy of Letters

Reasons to be Proud- Professor Uchenna Okeja, Director of the Centre for Philosophy in Africa at Mandela University, has been inducted into the Nigerian Academy of Letters (NAL), Nigeria’s apex body for the Arts and Literature.

As the country’s pre-eminent national institution for the humanities, the NAL promotes excellence in the arts and literature and operates as an independent, non-political entity dedicated to advancing humanities scholarship and fostering public engagement across the country.

The induction, which took place in Nigeria on 13 August, recognises Prof Okeja’s contribution to philosophy and the humanities and places him among scholars distinguished for their contributions to intellectual life, especially the ideals of the humanities.

Prof Okeja described the induction as a memorable occasion, particularly because of the Academy’s rich history and the diversity of disciplines represented among its Fellows, including foundational fellows, including Nobel laureate Prof Wole Soyinka and global icon of literature, Chinua Achebe.

Read more here: https://news.mandela.ac.za/News/Mandela-University-s-Professor-Uchenna-Okeja-induc

Students often move from high school classrooms to university lecture halls. Ubuntu reminds us that we need to go back t...
20/08/2026

Students often move from high school classrooms to university lecture halls. Ubuntu reminds us that we need to go back to those classrooms.

SRC Faculty Representative for Humanities, Pathan Mackenzie, recently visited Gamble Secondary School and Uitenhage High School to engage with learners about university opportunities, applications, faculties, and student life.

Opportunities like this are a great way for our Humanities community to share information, answer questions, and give aspiring students a better idea of what to expect as they prepare for their next step after school.

The NRF SARChI in Identities and Social Cohesion in Africa (ISCIA) invite you to attend the upcoming Games and Play Semi...
18/08/2026

The NRF SARChI in Identities and Social Cohesion in Africa (ISCIA) invite you to attend the upcoming Games and Play Seminar "Choices & Voices: Video Games as the Embodied Thought-Experiment" presented by Jade Classen

📆 21 August 2026
🕐 14h30 - 15h30
📍Zoom (scan the QR to RSVP).

Video games embody the player within the game world by simulating spatial dynamics that allow players to move through and orient their bodies within digital space. Video games contain the “execution element” which enables the player to become an active participant rather than a passive observer; to encounter dilemmas, make decisions, and experience consequences. These moments constitute instances of player intentionality, in which the player intervenes in and shapes the game world while engaging in feedback loops that prompt reflection, adaptation, and moral judgments. Drawing on a critical theoretical and phenomenological framework, the talk examines how games like Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice (2017) and Detroit: Become Human (2018) transform abstract ethical and psychological questions into lived experiences.

Gqeberha Mindshift Talks 2026 🧠On 15 August, the Faculty of Humanities joined designer Laduma Ngxokolo (MaXhosa Africa)...
18/08/2026

Gqeberha Mindshift Talks 2026 🧠

On 15 August, the Faculty of Humanities joined designer Laduma Ngxokolo (MaXhosa Africa), Director of School (LMC) Prof Subeshini Moodley, and Prof Shelley Barry at the Lindelwa Foundation’s Gqeberha Mindshift Talks.

Held at the historic Little Theatre Athenaeum in Central, Gqeberha, the event brought together changemakers, academics, industry leaders and creative voices for a day of meaningful conversations, reflection and fresh perspectives on leadership, personal growth, innovation, entrepreneurship, mentorship and social change.

The Faculty of Humanities was proud to collaborate with the Lindelwa Foundation, with our photography and film students contributing to the event, alongside faculty support.


Don't miss out!📆12 August 2026
08/08/2026

Don't miss out!
📆12 August 2026

The NRF SARChI in Identities and Social Cohesion in Africa (ISCIA) invite you to attend the upcoming Games and Play Semi...
06/08/2026

The NRF SARChI in Identities and Social Cohesion in Africa (ISCIA) invite you to attend the upcoming Games and Play Seminar "Authoethnographic reflections of a researcher at play" presented by Abigail Wiese

📆 07 August 2026
🕐 14h30 - 15h30
📍Zoom (scan the QR to RSVP).

This seminar is autoethnographic in its consideration and approach to thinking about play, its role in our day to day meaning making and what it might tell us about being human. In this discussion I recall moments from various stages of my life where elements of play act as the foundation in the memory formation. In doing so, I reflect on my journey as a student, theatre educator, maker and creative, researcher and mother. I ask how the last 7 years of raising and relating to my son has impacted how I think about play and its relationship to my creative and thinking practice. I also reflect on the academic landscape, a place where I often feel a relationship to play appears frivolous and forgotten. As an antidote to this state of academic practice, I include my reflections in response to two of Erin Smith’s ISCIA seminar presentations, ‘Art for relating to the Earth’ and ‘Storytelling under the Stars’.

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Nelson Mandela University, University Way
Port Elizabeth
6031

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Monday 09:00 - 16:00
Tuesday 09:00 - 16:00
Wednesday 09:00 - 16:00
Thursday 09:00 - 16:00
Friday 09:00 - 16:00

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+27655958259

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