Rozena Maart
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Rozena Maart was born in District Six, the former slave quarter of the Cape. Her family along with thousands were forcibly removed in 1973 due to the Groups Areas Act. She spent one year at Square Hill Primary School before moving to Steenberg Senior Secondary School. The following year, Rozena proceeded to the University of the Western Cape. In 1986, at the age of 24, Rozena was nominated to the “Woman of the Year,” award in South Africa for her work in the area of gender-based violence and for starting with four women the first Black feminist organisation in South Africa: Women Against Repression [W.A.R.]. At the age of 25 she obtained a British Council scholarship to undertake her Masters’ degree and by the time she was 27 she published her first book. The following year she started her doctoral degree at the University of Birmingham in the UK, and completed it exactly three years later. Rozena Maart writes non-fiction and fiction and is the winner of “The Journey Prize: Best Short Fiction in Canada,” 1992. Professor Maart has published several books, journal articles and book chapters, and recently edited, Decoloniality and Decolonial Education: South Africa and the World. Rozena has been awarded two lifetime achievement awards and is also an international Research Ambassador to the University of Bremen in Germany.
Joan Madibeng
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Joan Madibeng was born in Mamelodi township in Pretoria. Joan is a dynamic businesswoman, social entrepreneur, a philanthropist and founder of Joan Madibeng Foundation. Joan focuses her energies on developing educational strategies within previously disadvantaged communities. Joan succeeded in overcoming gender stereotypes in sports, in particular soccer, as a former head of marketing for one of South Africa’s celebrated soccer clubs. An international speaker and an MC (Master of Ceremonies), Joan Madibeng spearhead several initiatives that focus on bettering the lives of women and empowering young girls and boys in South Africa and beyond. Joan is the founder of Women the Real Architects of Society – a platform that celebrates and honours women. These known and unsung heroines are making strides despite their challenges in society. Joan is an executive director of several companies in South Africa. She mentors young women whilst also creating opportunities for women to meet their goals and achieve objectives as architects who build a better South Africa. She has been a driving force in creating branding campaigns, events and social awareness projects, the success of her endeavours has been ensured by her business acumen, her qualifications in public relations, business communications and brand development. Joan is also a former Miss South Africa, mother of two, who lives by the motto love, inspire and make a difference!