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Palesa Natasha Mothapo

Head: Postdoctoral Research Support, Stellenbosch University

Dr Palesa Natasha Mothapo is a Scientist and Research Manager, currently the Head: Postdoctoral Research Support at Stellenbosch University, Division for Research Development. Palesa is passionate about young women in STEM and devotes much of her time to mentoring and encouraging young women, particularly in rural and underdeveloped areas, to gain access and be retained in STEM careers. She is a Mentor for STEMIAfrica and Smart Tribe, with female mentees from 6 African countries. She holds a PhD degree in Zoology and has completed her BScHons and Master’s Degree with Cum-laude, from Stellenbosch University; coupled with a diploma in Public Management from the University of California Davis, and certificates in Environmental Law and Biostatistics from the University of Pretoria. Palesa is the 2020 InspiringFifty Women in STEM winner, a 2018 Mandela Washington Fellowship for Young African Leaders alumnus, an alumnus of the GreenMatter WWF Nedbank Green Trust Emerging Leaders, was listed on the 2014 Mail and Guardian 200 Young South Africans, a lifetime member of the Golden Key International Honour Society, and a Global Goodwill Ambassador-Science and Technology. African youth development is part of Palesa’s mission, and to achieve this she partners with many organisations focused on giving capacity and skills to young people in Africa. She is director and co-founder of PenGen, an npo focused on raising awareness in STEM, ULG Agri and Motheko AgVentures, agriculture and logistics companies, Director of Operations at Youth Social Press, and the Deputy CEO of World Youth Summit NPC. Palesa serves on the SARIMA (Southern Africa Research and Innovation Management Association) committee in the Research Management portfolio, is project lead on the BRECCIA (Building research capacity for sustainable water and food security in the drylands of Sub-Saharan Africa) project, and a member of the Technical Sub-Committee (TSC) for Good Research Management Practice (GRMP) under the African Academy of Sciences (AAS) and the Research Management Programme in Africa (ReMPro Africa).

Experience

  • 2019–present
    Head:Postdoctoral Research Support, Stellenbosch University
  • 2018–2018
    Postdoctoral research fellow, Purdue University
  • 2016–2018
    Postdoctoral research associate, Kobe university
  • 2014–2018
    Postdoctoral research fellow, Stellenbosch University

Education

  • 2013 
    Stellenbosch University, PhD (Zoology)

Grants and Contracts

  • 2018
    Role:
    Postdoctoral Research Fellow Dept. Botany and Zoology
    Funding Source:
    National Research Foundation