Sol Plaatje University’s (SPU) Sociology postgraduate students represented the University exceptionally well at the 29th South African Sociological Association (SASA) Annual Conference, hosted by Stellenbosch University from 1 to 4 July 2024. Notably, three Master’s and eight Honours candidates from SPU presented papers that addressed critical challenges facing contemporary society, including the green economy and smart cities, climate change, the digital revolution, platform economy, worker agency, and gig work. The presentations were well received and attracted invaluable feedback, which will be vital in developing the candidates’ research projects and publications. This opportunity also inspired the students and served as a critical initiation into research and the discipline of Sociology.
The conference, themed Sociology and its publics: Institutions, audiences, and vocabularies in a new era of contestation, remains a crucial space for the engagement, development, and advancement of Sociology in South Africa and beyond.
The main themes of the conference revolved around the digital revolution and big data, and their impact on society’s political, economic, and everyday social landscape, particularly in relation to data colonialism. A keynote address by Professor Bandana Purkayastha from the University of Connecticut, Vice-President of the International Sociological Association (ISA), titled Sociology and its Publics—Thinking Beyond Nation States in Today’s Data Colonized World, raised critical questions about data colonialism, a new form of extractivism that profits from appropriating our everyday relations through digital technology.
The conference concluded with a vote of thanks presented by Dr Crispen Chinguno, Senior Lecturer in Sociology in the Faculty of Humanities at SPU, who was elected as the incoming President of SASA for 2024/25. The University of Mpumalanga was announced as the host for the 2025 SASA conference, and the University of the Witwatersrand for 2026.
SPU congratulates Dr Chinguno on his election and continuous contribution to the field of Sociology in South Africa and globally.
