Flying the EFTEON flag high at the annual congress of the Grassland Society of Southern Africa

The 59^th Annual Congress of the Grassland Society of Southern Africa (GSSA) was held from 22 to 26 July at a very chilly Gariep, a Forever Resort near Gariep Dam in the Free State Province, South Africa.

The congress kicked off with a workshop on the responsible use of artificial intelligence in data analysis, writing and research, and concluded with an informative workshop on range-expanding woody species in southern African mountains. In between, there was a jam-packed programme covering interesting topics in rangeland conservation and research. Keynote speakers included esteemed scientists such as Prof. Guy Midgley, Dr Devan McGranahan and Prof. Richard Fynn. After each session there was an interactive discussion enabling attendees to address questions to all speakers and link all talks to the theme of the session.

The Expanded Freshwater and Terrestrial Environmental Observation Network (EFTEON) was represented at the conference by Sachin Doarsamy, biodiversity technician for the Northern Drakensberg Landscape, Dr Lindokuhle Dlamini, a Professional Development Postdoctoral (PDP) fellow studying soil carbon dynamics (hosted by the SAEON Grasslands Node but supervised by EFTEON manager Dr Gregor Feig), and Dr Helga Knoetze, landscape scientist – Biodiversity, based in the Kimberley Landscape.

Prof. Guy Midgley, as a keynote speaker, kick-started the opening session, Climate Change and Carbon. In his interesting talk during this session, Dr Lindokuhle Dlamini presented part of his findings from his PhD research. His presentation, titled “Fire Exclusion and Aspect Influences Seasonal Dynamics and Temperature Sensitivity (Q₁₀) of Soil Respiration in Afromontane Grasslands, Drakensberg, South Africa”, explored how different factors affect soil carbon storage in these important grasslands. Conducted at the long-term Cathedral Peak Research Catchments established in the 1940s, his research highlighted that Afromontane grasslands are crucial, not just for water storage/delivery and plant diversity but also for storing carbon. His study used advanced techniques, including stable isotope analysis and continuous manual and automated soil CO₂ flux measurements, to show that these grasslands store more carbon and release less CO₂ to the atmosphere, and are less sensitive to temperature changes compared to afforested areas. South-facing catchments in particular were identified as better carbon reservoirs that should be conserved in their grassy state. This work cautions against large-scale tree planting in grassy systems as a climate change mitigation and carbon sequestration strategy.

Sachin Doarsamy spoke right after Lindokuhle, presenting his work on long-term vegetation monitoring using Socio-Ecological Observatory for Studying African Woodlands (SEOSAW) protocols at EFTEON sites in KwaZulu-Natal in just five minutes.

On the following day, Prof. Richard Fynn’s keynote address introduced Session 4, which covered Rangeland Ecology and Management. Dr Helga Knoetze presented a five-minute flash presentation of her poster titled “The Expanded Freshwater and Terrestrial Environmental Observation Network (EFTEON) – An environmental research infrastructure in South Africa”. In her talk, she had the opportunity to tell the delegates more about EFTEON and what the research infrastructure, currently being managed by the National Research Foundation (NRF), is all about. Later that day, attendees had the opportunity to engage with Helga during the dedicated poster session, where cheese and wine were served.

At the gala dinner on the final evening, Lindokuhle received the award for Best Platform Presentation by a Young Scientist, an honour he attributes to the support and resources provided by SAEON and EFTEON. He praised SAEON for fostering innovative research and for supporting the development of young scientists. Helga received the award for Best Poster Presentation.

According to Helga, Sachin and Lindo, they consider it a privilege to represent SAEON and EFTEON at this prestigious event, and they hope to do so for many years to come. Next year, the GSSA Congress will celebrate its 60^th anniversary, which will be held in Hilton, KwaZulu-Natal, an event they are all looking forward to.