Thursday, 29 August 2013

Opinion article: Should a woman's role in the kitchen be restricted?


courtesy of www.freestockphotos.biz
A woman’s role is a role that can be fulfilled by man in some cases, however a woman does it better. The saying “a way to a man’s heart is through his stomach” is true, for she fulfills her role with passion, in order for her to provide and sustain a household together with a man. However, a woman’s role should not be limited in the kitchen for it is traditionally and societally a woman’s responsibility to be in the kitchen. It is a custom that has been developed in the past and it should still be practiced by women of today, for the past is the platform of the future.
African cultures consist of customs and rules that they need to follow, in the will of respect. Respect is the essential tool for peace and stability in a household. Young girls are taught how to maintain a household in a respectful way, as they are introduced into womanhood. In addition, men are known to be breadwinners in families, and a woman’s role is to be a housewife.

 Annalisa Klein wrote: “When you picture a parent cooking, which one do you visualize? When a parent is attacking an intruder, which one is doing it? Our own mind’s eye deceives us and leads us to believe that men are stronger than meek women. In two parent households, these responsibilities should be distributed and are but in gender-specific ways.”

 These days’ roles have switched due to certain circumstances although it is debatable that a woman’s role should be restricted or not, for some men choose to be in the kitchen. This can also be justified by the fact that many men are now working in kitchens for they have developed a passion for cooking, where some even study to be great chefs. It is quite clear that there have been changes in society. It is still debatable that women belong in the kitchen. However, in my opinion, even though with the change in society about man versus a woman’ duties, the change should not restrict a woman from providing for her family and homestead.

Monday, 8 April 2013

Personality Profile: Lerato Tshabalala


Smile, Pose, Click!

Capturing memories of friends and family has been a lifelong hobby for Lerato Tshabalala. Lerato (23) , is a 4th year student nurse and an aspiring photographer from Senaone, Soweto.

Through the hardships of choosing a career path, as well as “trying out” studying something suitable to pursue, like any other pupil, Lerato was undecided on what to study after completing her matric. “I took a gap year in 2009, and did a learnership at a call centre and worked there for a couple of months” she said. Although she discontinued working at the call centre due to a lack of interest, she also approached nursing as a field that she felt she could prosper in.

“I applied in nursing and got accepted in 2010” she said. She is currently at her 4th year in being a student nurse at one of the biggest hospitals in Gauteng.  With having an impact in her community, Lerato would like to pursue a career as a doctor two years after completing her course in nursing. “It puts me in a good position in helping other people, I love the autonomy part of it, where you have to take decisions of your own and you don’t have to rely on anybody else”.

Lerato does not only help people medically, but socially as well. Her passion for photography has captured millions of memories of the events of her community members, family as well as friends.

“Having a good photographer is quiet essential for memories for the future, forever” she said. This self-taught photographer acquires her skills through reading books, as well as by taking many photos using her Canon compact camera. Lerato also aspires to have her own studio in future, as a platform for her to grow as a photographer as well as to fulfil her future plans. “I would like to take photos of new born babies because I believe it is beautiful and a mother deserves to have pictures of their babies” she added. Her journey started last year (2012), by attending baby showers as well as birthdays where she would take photos of such events to explore her skills behind the camera.

In every field of work, it is expected to be approached by challenges, in which encourage or discourage individuals. Photography in comparison to nursing is a challenge for the young lady as feels the crime in her neighbourhood restricts her from being free from capturing pictures of her neighbourhood, in which she would have referred to as “the ghetto”. “I cannot do the things that I want due to crime, I believe taking my camera out there to take pictures is a risk” she said. However, with nursing her only challenge is her workload, as well as the amount of hours she works. In order to overcome her challenges, Lerato aims to avoid taking risky pathways and arrange a rather “safer” alternative to obtain the pictures she desires.

The young photographer is compensated by friends for her work, which could possibly open doors for her passion into becoming a business. Lerato claims she would love to be nationally recognized into becoming famous for her work “right now I would like to build up my skills in photography and be the best that I can be because I’m doing this for myself, an award would be a cherry on top” she adds.

Lerato was fascinated by DJing as well, however she could not be taught because she was overwhelmed with school work. “I would have loved to be a commercial DJ because I am from the hood” she said. “I would have liked making people dance” she added.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Wednesday, 27 February 2013

karoo fracking and its environmental effects.


Karoo Fracking- Is it a threat or benefit?

South Africa’s Great Karoo is a tourist destination in which travellers explore the nature exposed onto the endless plains among the mountains. It is a historical habitat for the Khoi and San people, who left their legacy as art on their rocks. The great Karoo consists of Flora and Fauna, in which makes up the Karoo as wonderful as it is today.

The Karoo region is frequently identified by the geographic extent of a region of natural vegetation. In search of minerals, through 'fracking', which is the pumping of water and chemicals into rock at high pressure, the rapid expansion of natural gas drilling across the nation endangers human health and the environment, as well as vegetation.
How shale gas is extracted (http://www.foe.co.uk/resource/briefings/shale_gas.pdf)



Although it’s a danger to the environment, it can also be seen as a potential contribution to the economy, as Jobs can be created. In a country where unemployment is a huge factor, hydraulic fracturing automatically becomes one of the alternative measures taken to create jobs.


According to the South African Think Tank, the gas extracted could provide South Africa with 400 years’ worth of energy. For a country that regularly endures power cuts, that would mean a brighter future. It is also estimated that shale gas development could add trillions of rand’s to the country’s Gross Domestic Product.

According to the Department of Mineral resources, making a moderately optimistic assumption that ultimately 30 Trillion Cubic Feet (TCF) will be produced, and using indicative pricing of US$ 4 per thousand cubic feet of gas and an exchange rate of R8 per US dollar, the gross sales value would be almost R1 trillion. Similarly, 1 TCF was sufficient to launch Petro SA’s gas-to-liquids project in Mossel Bay which provides approximately 5% of the national demand for liquid fuels and entails 1500-1600 jobs.

According to KPMG Global Energy Institution, there are 485 shale gas reserves, trillion Cubic feet. It is expected that the contribution of shale gas production to the growth of the economy and GDP would be enhanced by the necessary creation of service industries with all the attendant implications for sales of goods and services.

Fracking, however, is a danger factor to the ecosystem in the Karoo, damaging flora and endangering animal life. It is also a threat to farmers, as the crop production will decrease due to crop damages. This will lead to loss of lives as many depend on the crops for survival, including the farmers. According to KPMG Global Energy Institution, the other environmental factors include Groundwater contamination; where chemicals leak into underground rivers, as well as drinking water leads to health risks, in being exposed to diseases such as cholera, Gasification; when gas migrates into groundwater, it may build up pressure, leading to explosions, water usage risks, in which water may be intensive and may pose risks in water restricted areas, Spills and blowouts, in which well blowouts can cause spills that could spread into the surrounding soil and wetlands, streams and waterways. Therefore wastewater kept in storage ponds can overflow in high rains.

Sources consulted