There are a number of big questions that ongoing and planned surveys of neutral hydrogen (HI) in galaxies aim to address, including: - How do galaxies form and evolve and what role does neutral atomic hydrogen play in these processes? - What transformation processes in terms of accretion and gas loss occur in galaxy clusters? - How does the neutral hydrogen in galaxies relate to the star formation rate and how does this evolve with cosmic time? - How is mass (in the form of galaxies and clusters) distributed in the local Universe and how does the large scale structure influence the local velocity flow fields? In this proposal we aim to address many different aspects of these questions within the various sub-projects listed below which include both ongoing HI surveys as well as preparation for surveys on the SKA precursor instruments, MeerKAT, APERTIF and the JVLA. South African and Dutch astronomers are closely linked by their collaborations on these surveys. There are already active collaborations in various areas including software development, collaborative data analysis for projects already underway (e.g. CHILES, Coma Cluster), technical planning for data reduction, co-supervised students, etc. Further details are listed by sub-project in the main proposal.

Note: This is the literal proposal as sent on December 16, 2012 to the coordinators of the NWO/NRF collaboration, prof. Wijers and Kraan-Korteweg. Because of an unclear agreement on the actual submission to NWO/NRF this proposal is only now formally submitted to both agencies. The working group on Astrophysical transients, their hosts and their physics,established under the NWO/NRF bilateral agreement in Astronomy and enabling technologies for Astronomy, has a natural focus on the approved two large radio transient surveys defined on the SKA-precursor telescope MeerKAT (TRAPUM and ThunderKAT) and the closely associated LOFAR transient key science project (TKP) on LOFAR2. Preparatory work on these large surveys and their associated science programs are currently ongoing at a number of Dutch and South African research institutes and universities, in close collaboration with the Universities of Southampton and Manchester in the UK. These projects have already established close ties between a number of institutes in the Netherlands and South Africa, both in terms of research visits of senior staff and joint co-supervision of South African postgraduate students. The latter is best illustrated by the current Erasmus Mundus SAPIENT exchange between the University of Cape Town (UCT) and Radboud University Nijmegen (RU) of two South African PhD students. It is on this strong foundation that this working group seeks to strengthen existing research collaborations and identify growing areas of common research interest in astrophysical transients and their hosts by bringing together researchers in South Africa and the Netherlands through a research exchange program involving staff, postdocs and postgraduate students, and joint workshops. As transient astronomy is multi-wavelength and multi-messenger astronomy, this working group automatically includes efforts both at radio, optical, X-rays wavelengths as well as astroparticle physics. Within this context, the working group identifies the concept of a small optical telescope (MeerLICHT) with an instantaneous field-of-view identical to MeerKAT and permanently linked in real-time to MeerKAT, as a novel and innovative approach to transient science, maximising the scientific returns of the fully commensal observing mode of MeerKAT as employed by ThunderKAT and TRAPUM. We also identify a need for high-energy coverage, in particular from space. Given the membership of RU in Virgo, the North-West University (NWU) participation, and a University of Amsterdam (UvA)/RU-led proposal for participation in the Cerenkov Telescope Array (CTA), it is natural to include multi-messenger astronomy within this working group, as the source populations of transients are also the natural source populations of TeV photons and gravitational waves.

The objective of the project is to contribute to, review and assess the development of fisheries governance frameworks and institutional arrangements in South Africa and South Asia for the resolution of core fishery conflicts. A key focus will be on facilitating processes to reincorporate the excluded. Through research and capacity development, the project will promote responsible fisheries governance that takes into consideration the principles of environmental sustainability, social justice and human wellbeing. The fishery conflicts under consideration have a bearing on the process of national reconciliation as it is taking place in both countries, and their resolution is critical to facilitate socio-economic development and poverty reduction. In South Africa the project focuses on monitoring and assessing progress with regard to the development and implementation of a new fisheries policy that takes better account of small scale fisher rights and needs. In South Asia the project facilitates the development and implementation of a new framework for the regulation of fisheries in a marine border area between India and Sri Lanka. Mutual learning through collaborative research and capacity development are essential elements of the project. To support this policy process, the project identifies key knowledge gaps. It contributes data and analysis on the nature of the conflict in both regions, on social-economic change in the small-scale fisheries sector, and on the impacts of fisheries governance and conflict on fisher wellbeing.

CONNEXION identifies and addresses critical connections between water management and human health in the Inkomati-Usuthu water management area (South Africa). We combine disease and water-energy-food (WEF) interaction models to better understand these connections. We visualise results in a dashboard for decision making, supporting WEF and health managers in their policy and daily practice. Our consortium includes a broad team of researchers and practitioners in WEF, nutrition, and infectious diseases, who will work together with various local stakeholders to co-create potential scenarios and recommendations. CONNEXION will contribute to improved resilience, community livelihoods, health, and wellbeing in the research area and beyond.

Our research focuses on significantly improving investigations into poaching and illegal wildlife trade by developing advanced forensic techniques specifically designed to tackle these activities. We utilize body temperature dynamics to estimate the time of death and conduct chemical analyses of bodily fluids to determine the time since poaching. This is crucial for reconstructing the timeline of events, verifying alibis, and establishing targeted search strategies. By adapting these advanced and legally applicable methods for crime scene investigations after poaching incidents, we aim to introduce new advanced methods for forensic research in addressing this large-scale wildlife crime.