A University of Gloucestershire public lecture will examine what fast-growing cities can learn from Nelson Mandela's South Africa in the post-apartheid era.

Professor Kenny Lynch, professor of development and community, will reflect on what he discovered on several research and field trips with undergraduate students from the university about the response to challenges faced by South Africa under President Mandela.

Professor Lynch will also explore his initial interests in research, which began with an examination of an experimental approach to food production and supply in Tanzania under the presidency of Julius 'Mwalimu' Nyerere.

Based within the university's School of Natural and Social Sciences, he will discuss the links between that early research and his current work, focusing on the challenges faced by fast-growing cities in providing basic necessities such as food and sanitation.

His inaugural public lecture - What lessons do Mwalimu and Madiba have for us in the 21st century? - takes place next Wednesday (March 30) between 4.30pm and 5.30pm at the university's Park Campus in Cheltenham.

The lecture is free to attend but tickets must be booked in advance. 

A Fellow of the Higher Education Academy and Royal Geographic Society, Professor Lynch currently serves as a member of the editorial boards for both the South African Geographical Journal and GEOVerse, an undergraduate journal of geography.

Widely published in international journals, his research focuses on the relationship between the city and countryside in the developing world.