eNews
#03 2023
My internship – an experience I will forever be grateful for
By Buster Mogonong, Wits University/EFTEON/SAEON PhD Student
In what for many was a year of pain and misery during the Covid-19 pandemic, SAEON’s Arid Lands Node, together with the Expanded Freshwater and Terrestrial Environmental Observation Network (EFTEON), provided me with the best and most valuable experience that any young science graduate can think of.
My name is Buster Mogonong. I am a third-year PhD student at the University of the Witwatersrand, registered in the School of Animal, Plant and Environmental Sciences. My research interests span the fields of remote sensing and GIS, ecology and socio-ecological systems.
My PhD is focusing on understanding the past and future spatio-temporal changes and drivers of small-scale crop farming in rural South Africa. I am using medium- to high-resolution satellite imagery, climate and socio-economic data to unpack trends and patterns of change as well as the influence of climate and socio-economic factors on small-scale crop farming.
Internship
I previously worked as an EFTEON intern based at the Arid Lands Node in Kimberley. This was at a time when the Covid-19 pandemic took South Africa by storm. Despite the challenges faced in terms of not being able to go to the office and do fieldwork during lockdown, my time with the Arid Lands Node was priceless and has moulded my career trajectory.
PhD student Buster Mogonong’s research interests span the fields of remote sensing and GIS, ecology and socio-ecological systems
Buster describes his exposure to the SEOSAW network as the biggest highlight of his time with the Arid Lands Node as he was involved in setting up long-term vegetation monitoring plots at Benfontein Nature Reserve using the SEOSAW protocols
Most exciting highlights
There are so many memories to be happy about during my internship period. Besides gaining a whole lot of fieldwork experience such as data collection, data handling and analysis, SAEON staff members have taught me the art of networking as a young scientist. Through their networks, I was exposed to exciting international collaborations such as with the University of Jena remote sensing group and the Socio-Ecological Observatory for Studying African Woodlands (SEOSAW) group.
The exposure to the SEOSAW network is the biggest highlight of my time with the Arid Lands Node as I was involved in setting up long-term vegetation monitoring plots at Benfontein Nature Reserve using the SEOSAW protocols. Setting up these plots was exciting because I was given the opportunity to be part of an initiative that contributed data to an African plots network. Moreover, we have successfully analysed and written a paper on this SEOSAW vegetation data, which is currently under review with the South African Journal of Botany.
Other exciting highlights included a visit to Prince Albert farm, a SAEON LTER site. I was also exposed to the eddy covariance systems deployed by EFTEON and the phenological monitoring that the Arid Lands Node has been conducting at Benfontein Nature Reserve. Visiting and climbing the Compassberg Mountain, about 2 500 m above sea level, was a cherry on top of the great experience that I have gained during my internship at SAEON.
Landscape photo of the SAEON LTER site in Prince Albert, South Africa (Photo: Buster Mogonong)
I believe that an institution such as SAEON is a great environment for young scientists who are looking to expand their research skills, sharpen their fieldwork skills and expand their collaboration networks. One of the most important things that SAEON provides young researchers with through their internship programme is a platform that allows them to sharpen their research skills to their best ability and provide them with plenty of research opportunities. If you are willing to learn, SAEON and EFTEON are the research institutions you want to be at.
Wynand Calitz (SAEON Arid Lands Node technician) unpacking tools at the Compassberg Mountain in the Eastern Cape, South Africa (Photo: Buster Mogonong)
Expression of gratitude
I would like to extend my warmest gratitude to the following people who have made my internship worthwhile: Dr Joh Henschel, Dr Gregor Feig, Dr Helga van der Merwe, Mr Tshililo Ramaswiela, Mr Wynand Calitz, Ms Joanne Riet and the rest of the EFTEON staff.
If I was given the opportunity to do an internship and work with the SAEON Arid Lands Node again, I would do it ten thousand times!
Buster Mogonong at the peak of the Compassberg Mountain in the Eastern Cape (Photos: Tshililo Ramaswiela)
SAEON eNews is the bimonthly online newsletter of the South African Environmental Observation Network.
SAEON is a research platform funded by the Department of Science and Innovation (DSI) and managed by the National Research Foundation (NRF).
SAEON serves as a national platform for detecting, translating and predicting environmental change through scientifically designed observation systems and research.