Regional Branches

Free State & Northern Cape Branch Committee

Free State Branch Chair: Eldalize Kruger

Eldalize Kruger obtained a M.Sc in Environmental Management degree in 2003 at the NWU. After initially, working for a company specializing in mine rehabilitation and contributing to environmental management in the mining environment, she moved to Bloemfontein in 2001 where she joined the staff of the Geography Department of the University of the Free State. She teaches courses in general physical geography (at first year level) as well as environmental management courses (at third year and honours level). Her research interests include environmental management focusing on various aspects of environmental impact assessments; and environmental awareness and education.

Vice Chair: Hanlie Stander

Hanlie Stander obtained her M.Sc. (Zoology) at the University of the Free State. She is a Registered Environmental AssessmentPractitioner with more than 14 years’ experience as a consultant. She served on the IAIAsa Free State Branch Committee between 2013 and 2017 and is currently the Vice Chair of the said branch.

Secretary: Marguerite Cronje

Marguerite Cronje completed her B.Sc and B.Sc. Hons at the University of the Free State (UFS), as well as a MEM at the Centre of Environmental Management (UFS). She worked as an EAP at MDA Town Planning & Environmental in Bloemfontein for seven years, whereafter she’s been consulting as an EAP as a sole trader and doing contract work for various companies for the last 10 years, specialising mainly in residential and infrastructure projects in the Free State and Northern Cape.

Treasurer: Lorato Tigedi

Lorato Tigedi holds a BSc Hons Wildlife from the University of the Free State. She is the sole member of NSVT Consultants, specializing in Environmental and Social Science Consulting, which was established in 2011. She has 20 years of experience in the consulting field and thus has completed a myriad of environmental management applications like basic assessment, environmental impact assessment, waste management license, and water use license applications for various developments. She is a registered member of the South African Council for Natural Scientific Professions, Environmental Assessment Practitioners of South Africa and is a licensed International Association for Public Participation trainer.
Gauteng

Gauteng Branch Committee

Gauteng Branch Chairperson: Lehlongonolo Mashego

Lehlogonolo Mashego is a Sustainability Manager working at BDO South Africa and a sustainable living activist. Through her professional experience she has served and continues to serve the mining industry, township establishments, energy sector, resettlement and maintenance/rehabilitation related work. Her profession has served to equip her to understanding the sensitivities that are faced as a population and the urgent need to present practical solutions. With over six years of professional experience, Lehlogonolo continues to grow in her field of speciality.
Lehlogonolo completed her MSc in Environmental Science with the University of Witwatersrand. She is a six-year IAIAsa member and continues to serve the committee with the aim of bringing transformation and youth empowerment. Lehlogonolo’s passion lies in environmental awareness, sustainability, water management and stakeholder engagement. Her professional wish is to make a mark in driving strategic development while bringing sound solutions for implementation.
Lehlogonolo plans to work her way toward becoming a leading Sustainability Advisor and Lecturer. Lehlogonolo is young and vivacious, leaving a lasting impression on everyone she meets. The song that best represents Lehlogonolo is “Run the World” by Beyonce. Lehlogonolo is well on her way to running the world and she is a shining star we should all keep our eyes on. In the meantime, we are lucky to have her energy and her sass on our committee, keeping us on our toes.

Gauteng Branch Secretary & Events: Sharon Meyer

Sharon Meyer has over 20 years of experience as a Senior Environmental Assessment Practitioner and Project Manager. Currently working at SLR Consulting. She has worked on a range of projects from mining rights applications and hydroelectric power projects as well as large power generation projects. Sharon has significant experience in industrial waste management for both mining and the power sectors and has managed multi-disciplinary and multi-national teams on Due Diligence Projects within Africa to review compliance with international financing requirements.

Gauteng Branch Vice Chair, Student and Young Professionals Support: Lethabo Maebana

Lethabo holds a BSc Honours in Limnology and has eight (8) years of experience in the environmental management sector. She currently works as an Environmental Management Officer at Eskom: Lethabo Power Station and has worked at two environmental consultancy firms prior to her appointment in Eskom.

Over the years, she has grown to become influential and indispensable due to her growing knowledge of working on environmental and sustainability projects by coordinating, managing and conducting a range of environmental impact assessments, licensing, compliance monitoring and providing environmental advisory services.

Lethabo has been an active IAIAsa member since 2018 and she prescribes to the code of conduct of the South African Council for Natural Scientific Professions (SACNASP) and the Environmental Assessment Practitioners Association of South Africa (EAPASA) where she is registered as a Professional Natural Scientist and Environmental Assessment Practitioner, respectively. Furthermore, she also serves as mentor, through the EAPASA mentorship program, for the Registered Candidate EAPs.

Gauteng Branch Treasurer : Amy Galvao

Amy is a vibrant and passionate junior consultant. She has a background in environmental law BSc in Environmental Science and Legal Theory and a BSc Honours from Rhodes in Environmental Science in addition to a Masters Degree in Environmental Sciences from Wits. She has a bubbly personality and is great at networking and organising events. Amy aspires to grow her knowledge base surrounding the latest sustainability issues. She has an interest in environmentally focused technology and how this could become an important tool in sustainability and environmental management. Amy is in the early stages of her Environmental Consulting career at SLR Consulting and has a keen interest in specializing in the Renewable Energy sector.

Kwazulu Natal

Kwazulu Natal Branch Committee

KZN Branch Chair: Humayrah Bassa

Humayrah is a Senior Environmental Scientist with over 13 years experience in environmental consulting. She is a registered Environmental Assessment Practitioner (EAP) with the Environmental Assessment Practitioners Association of Southern Africa and a Professional Natural Scientist (Pr.Sci.Nat.) in the field of practice of Environmental Science with the South African Council for Natural Scientific Professions. She is also the KwaZulu-Natal Branch Chair for the International Association for Impact Assessment South Africa (IAIAsa).

Humayrah is presently a Principal Environmental Consultant at SLR Consulting. She has a successful track record in environmental permitting processes that meet Good International Industry Practise (GIIP) and is versed in the application of international lender standards including the International Finance Corporation (IFC) Performance Standards, World Bank Equator Principles and the application of the World Bank Environmental, Health and Safety (EHS) sector-specific guidelines. She has extensive knowledge of environmental governance in Southern Africa and the complex challenges associated with environmental regulatory process including Environmental and Social Impact Assessments (ESIAs), Environmental and Social Management Plans (ESMPs) / Environmental Management Programmes (EMPrs), Screening Assessments, Water Use Licence Applications (WULAs), Waste Management Licence Applications, Public Participation and GIS mapping.

She holds a Master of Science (MSc) in Environmental Science from the University of KwaZulu-Natal.

KZN Branch Deputy Chair: Nazeer Jamal

Mr. Nazeer Jamal is Managing Director and Lead Environmental Specialist at Khweza Environmental Consulting. He has a B.Sc. (H) in Environmental Science majored in Economics, Geography & Environmental Management and over 10 years’ experience in all 3 spheres of government including the National DWS, the National DEA, the KZN EDTEA and the eThekwini Municipality. He was an active Environmental Management Inspector for the Green Scorpions for 9 years. 

He has been awarded as One of 200 Top Young South Africans by Mail & Guardian in 2011, as Climate Reality Leader by Climate Reality, and serves as Council Member of the KZN Climate Change and Sustainable Development Council. He is Chairman of Penny Appeal South Africa, an international humanitarian aid organization and is an avid landscape and travel photographer.

KZN Branch Secretary: Riona Patak-Govender

Riona Patak-Govender holds a B.Sc. Honours Degree in Environmental Science from the University of KwaZulu-Natal (UKZN). Over the last 11 years, Riona has practiced as an EAP and gained consulting experience through her involvement in environmental processes for a wide range of government and private clients across various sectors (including infrastructure, mining and renewable energy). Riona worked in the Pietermaritzburg area for the first 9 years of her employment and was an active member of IAIAsa KZN branch committee. She then relocated to Gauteng temporarily. Since relocating back to KZN, Riona has been employed as an Associate Environmental Consultant for SLR based in Durban. Riona serves on the IAIAsa KZN committee as branch Secretary.

KZN Branch Marketing & Communication: Sizakele Zungu

Sizakele is an independent consultant who previously worked as Project Officer: Environmental Policy for Dube Tradeport Corporation, specialising in project managing applications for environmental authorisations and water use licenses. Prior to working for DTPC, she worked as an Environmental Officer for the KZN Department of Economic Development, Tourism and Environmental Affairs (EDTEA) under the Environmental Impact Management section, reviewing Environmental Impact Assessment applications. She is trained in the review of EIAs and is registered with EAPASA as an Environmental Assessment Practitioner. 

She holds a Bachelor of Science in Microbiology, an Honours BSc in Environmental Management and a Masters in Business Administration.

KZN Branch Partnerships: Divhani Ramovha

Mr Divhani Ramovha is an Environmentalist at eThekwini Municipality and is passionate about environmental protection. Divhani holds an Honours in Environmental Sciences and Eight years’ experience working in the Environmental Management field. He has additional training in Environmental Law and Environmental Management Systems ISO 14001:2015. Coupled with his academic and professional experience, he is a registered Environmental Assessment Practitioner (EAP) with EAPASA and a Professional Natural Scientist (Pr.Sci.Nat) with SACNASP as well as member of the International Association for Impact Assessment South Africa (IAIAsa).

KZN Branch Student Support: Bulelwa Doyisa

Bulelwa currently works for Transnet Pipelines as an Environmental Young Professional where her primary focus is on Environmental Permitting and  Compliance. Prior to joining Transnet, she worked as an Environmental Trainee with eThekwini Municipality’s Biodiversity Management Department.

She holds a BSc Environmental Science degree from UKZN and a BSc Environmental Management honours degree from UNISA. She is currently pursuing her Master of Science (MSc) in Environmental Science focusing on water quality. Bulelwa is a registered Candidate Environmental Assessment Practitioner (Cand.EAP) with EAPASA.

Theo

KZN Branch Treasurer: Theo Wicks

Theo Wicks is an Associate Environmental Consultant at SLR Consulting (South Africa/Africa) (Pty) Ltd with more than 15-years of consulting experience. He holds a BSc (Hons) degree in Geographic and Environmental Science and Masters degree in Environmental Management and an EAPASA registered Environmental Assessment Practitioner. His experience has allowed him to consult on large and small scale projects across sectors (renewable and non-renewable power, infrastructure, mining, and oil and gas) and at different stages of the project life cycle (prefeasibility screening and concept development, permitting, and construction and post construction monitoring).

 His experience has taken him across the continent having consulted on projects in southern, central, eastern, and west Africa, supporting these to comply with local regulatory and international finance institution requirements.

Mpumalanga Branch Committee

Mpumalanga Branch Chairperson: Tshepo Shakwane

Tshepo Shakwane obtained his BSc degree (Microbiology and Biochemistry) from the University of Durban Westville in 1994, and completed his honours degree in Microbiology in 1995. He worked with the three state departments tasked with mining and environmental management i.e. Department of Water and Sanitation (Gauteng and Mpumalanga Region), Department of Mineral Resources (Mpumalanga Region) and Department of Agriculture, Conservation and Environment (Gauteng Region). Tshepo Shakwane has been in the consulting field since 2004 and has over 22 years’ experience in the environmental management.
He has been involved in multiple projects where he managed and undertook environmental permitting processes. He has been involved in the development of environmental management programmes, water and waste management plans, rehabilitation plans and closure plans for a number of coal mining projects.
He is also involved in the environmental management for operation mines which include environmental auditing, environmental monitoring and general environmental management. He is the managing director of Geovicon Environmental (Pty) Limited, an independent environmental consultancy company working mainly in the coal mining industry.
He is registered with the Environmental Assessment Practitioners Association of South Africa (EAPASA) and South African Council for Natural Scientific Professions (SACNASP) as an independent Environmental Assessment Practitioner (EAP) and a Professional Natural Scientist in terms of section 24H of the National Environmental Management Act, (Act 107 of 1998) and section 20(3) of the Natural Scientific Professions Act, 2003 (Act 27 of 2003), respectively. He is also a member of the International Association for Impact Assessment, South Africa (IAIAsa).

Acquiring critical skills in advanced crop production and the application of GIS systems while farming in a sustainable manner. Interests and passion include organic food production, pharmaceuticals and viable seed production and its impacts on the environment for generations to come.

Ninette

Mpumulanga Vice Chairperson: Ninette Barnard

Ninette is a Safety, Health and Environmental professional, with 24 years’ extensive experience in the mining environment. She holds a B.Sc. Hons degree in Plant Ecology obtained from the University of Pretoria as well as a B Tech in Safety Management from UNISA and is waiting to hear if she has passed her master’s in environmental management at the Northwest University.   She is currently the Environmental Manager for Africoal SA in Emalahleni. Ninette is registered with SACNASP.

Ninette is passionate about sharing information and knowledge and hopes that being part of the IAIASA branch committee can assist to ensure members are always aware of the latest and greatest available information.

She has turned into a cat lady but will never love her cats more than wine.

Phangisile

Mpumulanga Branch Secretary: Phangisile Mthimunye

Ms. Phangisile Mthimunye is a member of the International Association for Impact Assessment South Africa (IAIAsa). She obtained her degree of Bachelor of Earth Sciences in Mining and Environmental Geology from University of Venda. Ms. Phangisile Mthimunye has also completed short courses on Project Management and Environmental Management Systems (ISO 14001:2015). She currently works for Geovicon Environmental (Pty) Ltd as a Senior Environmental consultant. 

Her responsibilities include but limited to: environmental control officer, conducting surface and groundwater monitoring, compilation of mining permits and prospecting right applications, environmental reports (EMPr, Scoping Reports, BARs and EIRs), Water Use Licence applications, environmental assessment audits and integrated water use licence audits.

Mpumulanga Branch Assistant Secretary: Nadine Joubert

Nadine Joubert is an associate member of IAIAsa Mpumalanga. She has obtained her Bachelor of Environmental Science as well as Honours in Environmental Management at NWU. She currently works in the Thungela Coal Mining Industry as an Environmental Officer in Training. Her passion lies in driving environmental compliance and finding new innovations to improve environmental practices. She believes that each small contribution can end up cumulating to a sustainable and healthy environment for everyone. 

Phetile

Mpumulanga Branch Treasurer: Phethile Mkhonto

 Ms. Phethile Mkhonto is a member of the International Association for Impact Assessment South Africa (IAIAsa). She holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Environmental Science from the University of Pretoria. She currently works for Ecoleges Environmental Consultants as a Junior Environmental consultant. Her responsibilities include: Performing Basic Assessments (BA) and/or Scoping & Environmental Impact Assessments (S&EIA) including all related tasks, Undertaking Water Use Authorisation Applications, as well as conducting compliance and/or conformance audits during the development and/or related operational phases of an activity in the capacity of an independent auditor or Environmental Control Officer (ECO). 

Phethile is an ambitious, goal driven person whose intelligence, diligence, and work ethic, allows her to overcome challenges and work under time pressures. 

Her willingness to learn new things allows her to integrate well into a team environment, while her goal-drivenness allows her to work well on her own to ensure deadlines are met. Phethile’s personality helps to build and maintain good working relationships. 

Western Cape

Western Cape Branch Committee

Western Cape Branch Chair: Nicholas Arnott

Nicholas has served on the IAIAsa Western Cape Branch committee since 2019. He has over 17 years’ experience in environmental consulting and holds a BSc (Honours) in Earth and Geographical Sciences from the University of Cape Town. He is a registered Environmental Assessment Practitioner with EAPASA and a Professional Natural Scientist (Pr.Sci.Nat.) with SACNASP in the field of practice of Environmental Science. Nicholas is presently an Associate Environmental Consultant at SLR Consulting working on EIAs within the oil & gas, renewable energy, mining, and infrastructure sectors. In addition to being involved in a number of projects located throughout South Africa (both onshore and offshore), he has worked on projects located in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Namibia, Zambia and Zimbabwe.

Marelie

Western Cape Branch: Marélie Botha

Marélie Botha holds a B. Sc. Honours Degree in Geography and Environmental Management from the North West University and is a result-driven, Environmental Assessment Practitioner with a wealth of experience in technical, theoretical, and practical aspects of environmental management, which was gained over the past 13-years. With well over 100 successful reviews and Environmental Impact Assessments (EIAs) under her belt, Marélie has developed a strong expertise in the development of large scale solar photovoltaic (PV) facilities across South Africa. She maintains an impressive 100% approval rate for her EIAs, demonstrating her exceptional competence in the field.

As Director and Project Manager of Blue Crane Environmental, Marélie is responsible for the successful delivery of projects from start to finish, including project management, overseeing the project team’s execution of tasks, budget and timeframe management, and maintaining strong relationships with clients. She has a pragmatic approach to problem-solving and is dedicated to achieving project objectives efficiently and effectively. 

Anwen

Western Cape Branch: Anwen Beukes

Anwen Beaukes is currently employed by Doug Jeffery Environmental Consultants and is a registered Environmental Assessment Practitioner with EAPASA. She holds a B.Sc Honours Degree in Biodiversity and Ecology from Stellenbosch University and is currently pursuing her M.Sc in Environmental and Geographical Science at the University of Cape Town. Anwen is an assertive independent young woman who is determined to accomplish great things in life. She began her career in the environmental management field in 2020 and has worked on a diverse range of projects within the Western Cape both in the public and private sector. 

Anwen is registered as a Candidate Biological Scientist with SACNASP and was recently selected for the Young Scientist SACNASP Candidate Mentorship Programme facilitated by South African Wetland Society. She has experience within the Western Cape both in the public and private sector.

Western Cape Branch: Janet Ebersohn

Janet Ebersohn is the Managing Director of Eco Route Environmental Consultancy, founded in the year 2000 by Dr. Colleen Ebersohn. Janet has grown Eco Route for the past 8 years, which now operates across the Garden Route and into the Eastern Cape. Janet has completed various Environmental Impact Assessments, Environmental Management Programmes, Social Impact Assessment reports, amongst many others. She has worked on the assessment of goods and services that wetlands provide, thereby aiding informed planning and decision making. She has a BSc. Hons in Environmental Management from University of South Africa, and further certificates in Wetland Delineation and Flood Line Determination. 

Janet strives to not only expand the knowledge and skills of the Eco Route staff but has a passion for assisting the community. Janet has hosted several workshops which host real estate agents, local farmers, and other agencies working within the environmental sector. The aim of the workshops is to educate the public on matters concerning EIAs and how to better inform their potential clients. The knowledge from these workshops will hopefully lead to the public making informed decisions in terms of development prior to initiating practices which trigger Listed Activities in terms of NEMA (Act no.107 of 1998) and having to undertake a costly and avoidable Section 24G process. In addition, Janet writes and publishes informative articles in the local newspaper which also serves as an avenue to contribute to the public’s knowledge on EIAs and the relevant processes. 

Eastern Cape

Eastern Cape Branch Committee

Please get in touch with us should you wish to start an IAIAsa Eastern Cape Regional Branch.

Limpopo

Limpopo Branch Committee

Please get in touch with us should you wish to start an IAIAsa Limpopo Regional Branch.

North West Branch Committee

Please get in touch with us should you wish to start an IAIAsa North West Regional Branch.