Thando Tema from Alexandra in Gauteng is interested in both sustainability and youth development. He is renowned in his community for making the area safer for schoolchildren by servicing a local bus stop in a sustainable, educational way.

Tema studied engineering and related design at Central Johannesburg TVET College. He has always been community-minded; he owned his own food stall, and took great care to ensure that his products were affordably priced.

He believes in an asset-based community approach, using what is already available in his area. After noting a lack of seating and safety at a local bus stop, he embarked on an ongoing project to service this high-traffic area. He sources old school chairs and tyres and has repurposed them to create seating for daily use by more than 300 children and local informal traders.

Through this initiative, Tema has been able to engage with the children in his community about the importance of sustainability, highlighting the benefits of redirecting unwanted items from landfills. “I teach them [about] the factors that affect our environment, and the benefits of reducing, reusing and recycling,” Tema says.

He has created back yard gardens and nurseries, which attract villagers and inspire conversation, especially among young children. “One can start teaching at an early age,” he says. “To teach South Africans about our natural environment is to teach sustainability.”

Going forward, Tema is keen to continue to spread information on the greening, recycling and manufacturing of reusable materials among locals with his hands-on approach. He hopes to draw attention to the need to reduce landfill waste in particular. “Our land has so much waste we cannot handle,” he says. “Learning to care for our natural environment is essential.”

To teach South Africans about out natural environmental is to teach sustainability

Thuso Motau is passionate about her roles in local, national and global communities, and tends to them — and future generations — with a great sense of responsibility.

Her business, Mighty House of Soap, has been recognised for its work in manufacturing sustainable body soap and other detergent products that are made with recycled cooking oil collected from eateries in local communities. By assisting local businesses to dispose of used cooking oil, Motau has solved a major challenge for businesses and the municipality.

“You can drink our products and you’ll be completely fine,” Motau says with an assuring laugh. “It’s true. We have moved away from synthetic raw materials.” Her products are manufactured in her factory and currently sold in low-income communities from an onsite factory shop. She has plans to work with a major retailer to stock her products and recently signed a contract to export to Germany.

Motau is the recipient of an SAB Foundation Social Innovation Award. She has received funding and support from several institutions, including the Industrial Development Corporation, the South African Manufacturing Technology Demonstration Centre and the National Development Agency.

“I have learned that the little that you do in your community can have a big impact, not only in your community, but around the world as well,” she says. “I now live by this lesson.”
During the Covid-19 pandemic, Motau was able to spot the opportunity to offer an environmentally friendly disinfectant service. This strategy proved successful, and with the increased sales, she was able to create additional jobs.

“It is our responsibility to take care of our precious and delicate environment,” she says. “One of our mottos is ‘from waste to value’. We live this motto by turning waste into value, and we miss no opportunity to encourage others to do the same.”

The little that you do in your community can have a big impact