Dr Belinda Huntley from Trinityhouse Little Falls represented the South African Mathematics Society (SAMS) at the third BRICS Conference at Innopolis University in Russia from 23 to 26 July.
Belinda went there as a member of the BRICS Core Committee, representing South Africa.
As part of her trip, she presented a maths education workshop on bridging the gap between secondary school level and tertiary level mathematics.
It was noted with interest that most BRICS countries experience similar challenges in this transition period.
Belinda also had the privilege of networking with other mathematicians in the BRICS countries, and many ideas were exchanged and discussed to address real-world economic and scientific problems.
She observed secondary school children involved in a summer robotics and IT camp. With her passion for mathematics competitions and olympiads, she networked with the Director of Maths competitions and Olympiads from the institution to investigate the possibility of collaborating with Innopolis University to invite a group of gifted SA learners to a summer camp in robotics and artificial intelligence in Russia.
South Africa will be hosting the 5th BRICS conference in 2021 and as an ambassador for South Africa, Belinda was able to create strong ties with the other BRICS countries to plan for the 2021 BRICS conference.
