Nosipho Bele’s personal philosophy is Christian-based, believing that “If you want to be a leader, you need to learn how to serve first.”

Having grown up in KZN’s KwaMashu, and Waterloo communities with her mother (also her mentor,) Bele understands the need to help others.

She gravitated towards arts at school, studying theatre at UCT and earning her Master’s in Education at Concordia University in Canada. However, her true calling only became apparent during a gap year in 2012.

Tutoring high school pupils in Nyanga township, Bele found herself discouraged at their lack of confidence to pursue university studies, and decided to do something about it. She started her Mentor Me To Success initiative by inviting fellow UCT students to coach township learners, and to help with their tertiary applications.

Bele was recognised for her efforts by becoming one of the first South African recipients of the Queen’s Young Leader Award in 2015. She still oversees the programme, and hopes to expand into KZN, where she is one of the youngest lecturers in the Arts department at UKZN.

In the meantime, the 28-year-old is working towards fulfilling another dream – making a positive contribution to curriculum development and working towards a better education system.

|The best advice I’ve received is that you need to set your own pace in life.|

Categories: Healers