By Selina Rapulane 03 December 2021

Dr Tozama Qwebani-Ogunleye: Senior Lecturer: Chemistry and a Project Manager at Traditional Medicine Unit at VUT

‘’It is an honour and a privilege to be entrusted with this responsibility. I feel honoured”. These were the words expressed by Dr Tozama Qwebani-Ogunleye: Senior Lecturer: Chemistry and a Project Manager at Traditional Medicine Unit at the Vaal University of Technology (VUT) towards her nomination by the South African Young Academy of Science (SAYAS) as Co-chair for the year 2021/2022.

SAYAS is the voice of young scientists in South Africa. It aims to contribute towards solutions to national and global challenges facing society, provide a platform for young scientists to influence policy decisions, contribute towards the development of scientific capacity in South Africa through mentoring and role-modelling of future scientists, and foster opportunities for interdisciplinary collaborations amongst young scientists.

In 2018, she was nominated to be a SAYAS member and since then, she has been serving under the Policy Working Group. On the 10th of November 2021, she was elected to be part of the leadership in the capacity of a Co-chair for the year 2021-2022.

“One of my passion and interest is bridging the gap between science and the society, and science and policy. Serving in this role is more like a necessary collaboration with scientists and teams that have similar goals in the National System of Innovation, to be among the catalysts of positive impact in this space. Additionally, serving in this role will also enable me to meet candidates and leaders that I would not have had an opportunity to meet if I was not serving in this capacity”, alluded Dr Tozama.

Dr Tozama stated that she will gain critical skills for collective leadership as well as collaborations that transcends disciplines in this platform. She is hoping to continue building on the great strides of those that came before her and this will be a collective effort.

She will be working with Co-Chair Prof Sudesh Sivarasu (University of Cape Town), the Executive Committee, the Secretariat, SAYAS members, Academy of Science South Africa (ASSAf) and other related stakeholders.

‘’One of the shortfalls we face today is that; scientists understand scientists and publish manuscripts that can only be read by scientists. If we are intending to be impactful and solution driven scientists, we need to remodel the house of science and embrace collective leadership that transcends disciplines and provide solutions to matters of national importance while global competitive. The future research trajectory shows that alignment to the sustainable development goals is of paramount importance and inclusivity is a necessity”, mentioned Dr Tozama.

In 2022, she and her team will be part of the steering committee for the Global Science Forum. The forum provides an opportunity for scientists, policymakers, representatives of civil society and industry, as well as science communicators, to discuss the social and economic relevance, including the influence and responsibilities of science globally. Moreover, they are also working with Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development- Global Science Forum on mobilising Science in times of crisis.