She may be soft-spoken, diminutive and delicate but Dr Shernice Soobramoney of Durban is certainly no bird brain. Shernice — or Dr Soobramoney — is an ornithologist and holds a Doctor of Philosophy (Science) degree from the University of Natal (Durban).
She has attended numerous national and international scientific conferences where she has presented papers and has also published widely in scientific journals.
She recently attended the 25th International Ornithological Congress (Campos do Jordão, Brazil) where she presented a paper “Niche Separation of African Parrots”.
She is presently employed at the South Africa Netherlands Research Programme on Alternatives in Development (SANPAD) as a Projects Manager and oversees 180 research projects funded by SANPAD at various universities in South Africa.
“My job is to receive all new research project proposals, process and review the new applications and select appropriate reviewers. “I am also tasked with ensuring that project leaders complete projects within the defined scope, quality, time and budget constraints,” said Shernice.
For 15 years, Shernice has been involved in serious research at university and is presently writing three papers that describe and compare the alarm calls of five species of African lovebirds.
Her current research interests include bioacoustics, especially avian vocal communication. Her commitment to research has seen Shernice take on a central role in SANPAD’s annual Women in Research conference which takes place in Durban from 26 to 28 October 2010.
Shernice said that one of the main objectives of the conference is to promote greater participation by women in research and their consequent influence on socioeconomic and development issues, which would eventually lead to changes in government policy.
“Women Project Leaders at SANPAD are currently engaged in research encompassing a wide variety of topics including education, languages and literacy, socio-economic and environmental issues, health and nutrition, digital communication, quality of life, service delivery and HIV/AIDS, amongst others.
“The conference will be a forum where the SANPAD female project leaders will be able to highlight their current research objectives and results that have emanated from their studies.
“It will further provide an opportunity for women of different academic disciplines to engage and interact, which will hopefully result in greater inter-institutional cooperation and collaboration,” said Shernice.