Under Our Tree: iPendoring’s 2026's Indigenous Language Imbizo
Titled Our Tree: Language, Memory and Power in the Age of Digital Transformation, the Imbizo draws inspiration from the image of justice under a tree, a symbol associated with South Africa's constitutional democracy and rooted in indigenous traditions of gathering, listening and collective decision-making.
The#SayMo campaign recognises that indigenous languages do more than express the same ideas in different words. They carry distinct ways of knowing, understanding and experiencing the world.
“From the architecture and ethos of South Africa’s Constitutional Court to the shade of the tree, imbizo, kgotla and lekgotla remind us that justice is not only about verdicts, but also about creating spaces for listening, participation and collective resolution,” notes Eben Keun, iPendoring general manager.
This distinction lies at the heart of the Imbizo. It raises questions about whose ideas, languages and knowledge systems shape public life, and how these are represented as South Africa navigates a rapidly changing technological landscape.
As artificial intelligence (AI) and digital technologies increasingly shape how information is produced, shared and preserved, these questions take on new urgency.
All the iPendoring 2026 finalists
Programme and panels
The programme will explore these questions through a keynote address and three panel discussions.
- Keynote: Who Gets to Speak for the Nation from the Constitutional Assembly to the Digital Public Square, will consider how indigenous languages, storytelling and digital platforms can strengthen democratic participation.
- Panel: Mother Tongues and the Machine: Language and Ownership in the Age of AI, will examine questions of ownership, representation, consent and who benefits when indigenous languages and knowledge become part of the digital economy.
- Panel: What Will Be Remembered? Translation, Archives and New Forms of Memory will consider whose stories are preserved, what is gained or lost through translation, and how communities and emerging technologies can safeguard and reimagine cultural memory for future generations.
Speaker highlights include:
- Dr Seani Rananga – lecturer, University of Pretoria, and fellow at Data Science for Social Impact Research
- Anriette Esterhuysen – human-rights activist and senior advisor on global and regional internet governance, Association for Progressive Communications (APC)
- Dr Matefu Lefty Mabela – senior lecturer, Department of African Languages, University of Johannesburg
- Pola Maneli – director, animator and illustrator
- Collen Dlamini – founder and executive director, Creative Cnergy
- Mahlatsi Mokgonyana – theatre-maker and co-founder of Theatre Duo & Co.
- Sephue Tau Masemola – chairperson, National Heritage Council
- Prof Liz Gunner – visiting research professor, School of Languages, University of Johannesburg
The Imbizo will bring together academics, linguists, technologists, artists, archivists and policymakers to explore how indigenous languages, knowledge systems and cultural memory can help shape a more inclusive digital future, rather than simply being absorbed into technologies developed elsewhere.
iPendoring hosts the Indigenous Language Imbizo in partnership with the UJ Multilingual Language Services Office (UJ Humanities), UJ Arts & Culture, SA National Commission for UNESCO, Pan-South Africa Language Board, Brand South Africa, ATKV, SABC Radio, and Dagbreek Trust.
Tickets are available now: here
Price: R50 per ticket – includes light refreshments
