Masakhe 01 DIGITAL HIRES SINGLE - Flipbook - Page 29
CEM PRESENT
She contacted Professor Mostert,
who was now lecturing at UCT. Louie
decided to follow her and completed
her PhD under Professor Mostert’s
supervision. “It was because of her
influence that I pursued a career in
academia,” Louie says.
Professor Mostert, who specialises
in Property Law and Mineral Law,
holds the Mineral Law in Africa
SARChI Research Chair at UCT’s
law faculty. After being offered
a part-time research position, Louie
simultaneously worked on her PhD
degree while completing research
for the chair.
Having no prior knowledge or
experience in Mineral Law, a niche
subject within the law faculty, Louie
was encouraged by her supervisor to
find a connection between minerals
and Property Law. Therefore, Louie
decided to focus on land use and
the regulation thereof for mining
purposes, an incredibly crucial topic
in today’s political landscape.
One day, while Louie was visiting
Professor Mostert in her office,
the Construction Economics and
Management department contacted
Professor Mostert asking if she
could teach a Master’s course on
Property Law. Mostert declined the
offer; however, she immediately
recommended Louie for the position,
thus introducing Louie to the
department which would ultimately
inspire her to find a permanent
lecturing position.
Lecturing part-time in the CEM
department allowed Louie to marry
theoretical knowledge and practical
experience. It was not “pure property
law as you would teach at the law
faculty.” It was something new and
interdisciplinary. As most of the
students taking this course would go
into property development or real
estate, they needed to understand
how the law interacts with their
specific discipline rather than just
learn the legal theory. At the end
of her PhD, Louie applied for a
permanent lecturing position in
the CEM department.
She now lectures Property Law for
second years, Property and Contract
Law for third years, Applied Property
Law for Honour’s students, and
Property Law for Master’s students.
Louie began lecturing permanently
in January 2020, two months before
the country went into a national
lockdown. COVID regulations
wreaked havoc on lesson plans and
any preparation whatsoever. After
providing everyone with a week
to figure out their home lives, the
Master’s course that Louie was set
to teach that year began, completely
online.
There were multiple struggles that
occurred, however, Louie says that
this time period was all about finding
our humanity:
“I didn’t want to upload a bunch of
stuff on the internet and the students
must sort themselves out. We wanted
to retain that connection. (…) Our
message to the students was that we
are here for you and whatever you
need and whenever you need it.”
It is a philosophy Louie has carried
over into 2024. She still promises to
be there for her students in whatever
capacity she can be.
ISSUE 1
27
OCTOBER 2 024
