Of Springs and things

This morning we wake up in Springs, which given that it’s a bleak Johannesburg day, might not be the best place in the world to wake up (apologies to any Spring-ites out there!). The sunlight is weak and watery, it’s vrek-koud, the veld is dry-brown, the trees are bare and there’s a layer of morning frost on the grass. There’s also a smudgy brown layer of smog that makes me want to hold my breath and not think that I’m breathing ‘this’ in. I find myself already missing the open space of Limpopo with its African bushveld.

We’re on our way to Tsakane township and Mark’s GPS is giving us gyp. It’s telling us to turn left and there is no left. Instead there’s just an open veld, some stray dogs and a lone taxi. Given that this is Jo’burg and we’re in a bakkie loaded with camera equipment I’m already feeling a bit jittery, but it’s all cool and the taxi driver re-directs us to Ext 11. (I’m reminded again of my South African hyper-vigilance which seems at odds with the normalcy of township life around me, people sweeping in front of their homes, walking to work, taxi’s stopping to drop off commuters, shop-owners opening up spaza shops, hanging up bags of naartjies… )

Whilst Tsakane township isn’t as poor as rural Umbumbulu in KZN (where we visited Gogo Mkhize living in her mud house. Read Fresh and Good.), it’s also not a wealthy suburb lined with leafy green trees and neat sidewalks. Peri-urban communities like this often struggle to cope with the sheer density of people per m² and the resources that take strain are sewerage and refuse removal, access to clean running water and electricity. This in turn leads to other social problems, so supporting development in these communities definitely forms part of the scope of the Old Mutual Foundation.

Nozipho Mbanjwa of Umlambo Foundation speaks with passion about transforming one school at a time.

Buhle Bemfundo is the school we’re visiting this morning, which I think is a great name for a school because it means ‘Beauty of Knowledge’!  The reason we’ve chosen this particular project today is that experience has shown that throwing resources at a school will not improve results; however developing strong leadership skills and management systems will.

So in 2009, in partnership with the Umlambo Foundation, the Old Mutual Foundation funded 16 principals from selected schools to complete their Advanced Certificate Education (ACE) training. Whilst undergoing their training, these principals also were linked in with retired schoolmasters as mentors. The improvements for Buhle Bemfundo have been impressive:

2007 – 31% matric pass rate (410 Grade 12 pupils)
2008 – 46% matric pass rate (370 Grade 12 pupils)
2009 – 48% matric pass rate (310 Grade 12 pupils)
2010 – 82,7% matric pass rate (220 Grade 12 pupils)

Buhle Bemfundo school principal, Mr Mononyane has turned around the previously poor results of this township school. Now the school has a strong management systems in place and works closely with the parents and local community.

School principal, Mr Monoyane was appointed in Jan 2008 to transform the school and completed his ACE in 2010.  “My task was to bring change,” he says emphatically, “the school was in tatters, there was no stationery, no timetables, no classes were running.” He ticks off each finger, firing points like bullets…

“We immediately set up time-tables. Classes had to commence.
We brought in the police to assist with drug trafficking in the school.
We called in the mother’s union in the area.
We started building the SCG (School Governing Body consisting of parents and educators).
Every morning at 6.45am I was at that gate. When the children saw me, they learnt they’d better run to class. They must think, ‘Here’s comes that soldier, this man means what he says!’”

I’m riveted by his passion. The bullets continue, “Late coming I don’t like. Smoking I don’t like. Being in class I like. Reading books I like.”

“I’m a man who likes to talk,” he continues, I nod unable to disagree, “but what point is there to a conversation if we’re not talking education?” I ask him why education is his passion. Born in 1961, he was 15 years old at the time of the 1976 Soweto school riots. “So I’ve struggled for my education,” he explains, “but my modus operandi now is that I’m no longer that person who fought; now I’m a person who loves.”

I’m glad to know that there’s someone so passionate leading this school, but we both acknowledge that the challenge is now to maintain and improve these result. Later that morning, I hear a soaring operatic tenor coming from across the courtyard. It’s Mr Mononyane singing Happy Birthday to a staff member. There’s a table set out with food, he has a chicken wing in one hand and is about to tuck into some birthday cake. He grins. I grin. It’s time for us to go.  

Driving across Johannesburg at lunch hour is not fun. The midday June temperature has climbed, the traffic is heavy, there seem to be tolls every 5km, so we’re feeling a bit knackered and city-stressed (or I am at least) when we arrive at our next project. But Waste2Wow is like stepping into a colour explosion that is instantly refreshing. It’s like sitting under a psychedelic waterfall that makes you want to jump around and be naughty and I laugh, because I can see it's having the same impact on Mark and Tim, they’ve start hustling around, spontaneously energized, cameras rolling.

The Waste2Wow team, headed up by Maryka Kellerman. Used advertising billboards are processed and transformed into a range of funky bags, furniture and functional fashionwear

The reason that we’re here is that Waste2Wow is a successful beneficiary of the Old Mutual Legends programme which is funded by the Old Mutual Foundation. Legends is a programme run in partnership with Fetola, to develop small businesses and emerging entrepreneurs into sustainable enterprises.

This is one couch that is guaranteed to rock your world!

Legends has assisted this innovative non-profit organization develop into a healthy small business manufacturing practical, trendy products from recycled advertising billboards and other material. I’m fascinated, I didn’t know billboards were made from heavy-duty, environmentally-unfriendly PVC, and it’s certainly never occurred to me to even wonder what companies did with their used billboards? But here was a fantastic way to get double value out of an advertising budget, by creating funky company products out of used company billboards – and you’ve got the green factor going for you as well.

I immediately boost their sales for the day by purchasing a host of bags for myself, between Mark taking photographs and Tim videoing the crew at work. We decide that instead of featuring only one person, this time we want everyone in on the action, so we overload the image with people and colour and bags and stuff. It’s all lekker! 

By now, we’re moeg and klaar, and it’s time to head home to our guesthouse. It’s an odd evening, because it’s the last one of our road trip. The three of us have talked about this in the car during the day, it’s going to feel odd going back to normal life; we’ve been in each other’s company for days on end and been on the go 24/7.


Over dinner Tim clears his throat and says that he and Mark have been chatting, they feel that seeing as I’ve been writing for the duration of the road trip, they’d like to reserve the right to write The Last Road Trip Blog. I agree, they’ve both been incredibly tolerant with me writing about them.
“You’ve become quintessential characters to the blog,” I exclaim.
“Ja,” Mark says, “just like Beavis & Butthead.”
They turn to each and ask simultaneously, “So who’s Butthead?”
We pack up laughing. I’m going to miss this.