Launched on 2 December 2009, the ICESSD aims to be Africa’s leading interdisciplinary centre of excellence promoting sport as a powerful tool for development, health, wellbeing and social change through high quality research and combining the areas of sports and health sciences and community development and wellness.
The Centre’s research focuses on sport as a vehicle for social transformation and peace building as well as a tool to achieve the Millennium Development Goals.
Director, Professor Marion Lees and her team are engaged in investigating the impact of the 2010 Soccer World Cup on communities in South Africa.
Other interests include Youth Development through Sport in Africa and Sport and Recreation as Cooperate Social Responsibility Strategy within the South African Wine Industry to promote community health and wellbeing in rural areas.
The Centre created a Participatory Video for Sport, Peace and Social Transformation in cooperation with the Free University of Berlin, Germany and is involved in the African Regional Integration for Conflict & Peace Studies and Practices.
The Centre received an endorsement by the United Nations Office on Sport for Development.