From left: Vere Shaba of Shaba & Ramplin Green Building Solutions; Patricia Schröder of Reclite SA; and Lindiwe Matlali of Africa Teen Geeks. |
Winning the Woman of the Future Award is recognition for all the hard work that my team and I have done and a reminder that hard work does pay off in the end! It will also serve as inspiration for other women to chase their dreams and passions.Vere Shaba of Shaba & Ramplin Green Building Solutions is the winner of the Rising Star Award. Her engineering consulting firm specialises in green building certifications, engineering solutions, energy solutions and strategic partnerships across the African continent.
Winning this award will enable me to create opportunities in the green building sector for South Africans in the future, as well as expand the business into key economic hubs in Africa and Europe.Lindiwe Matlali of Africa Teen Geeks won the Social Entrepreneur Award (awarded to a female entrepreneur who is making a real difference in her community). Africa Teen Geeks offers children between the ages of six and 18 free lessons on how to code. The NPO has partnered with UNISA to facilitate Saturday classes in their computer labs countrywide.
Knowing that we give kids hope and raise their aspirations is my biggest achievement and driver.”I always find the winners of the Fairlady Santam Women of the Future Awards absolutely admirable,” says Brokensha. “But what has really struck me about this year’s winners is how they are future-proofing the world through their businesses: Patricia and Vere through huge green initiatives that have gone out of the domestic and into the commercial world, and Lindiwe through giving marginalised kids a real shot at competing in this economy on an equal footing.”