60 The Actionists About Partner With Us Contact Us FAQ ____________________ Thom Pierce Studios Menu Close Sun Mabengeza Taking permaculture to communities Sun Mabengeza in his permaculture garden Sun’s passion for permaculture comes from his love for the earth, growing food and sharing it with his neighbours. But mostly his passion is for teaching others that you can grow your own food with very little physical work, if you have the space and know what you are doing. He claims that he can teach you everything you need to know in one hour. It has always been in Sun’s blood to move around, to not get too attached to one place or specific items. He moves fluidly between Port Elizabeth, Polokwane and Johannesburg. This nomadic lifestyle complements his philosophy of shared spaces and the freedom to grow food wherever it can be produced. The journey into permaculture started in 2006 when Sun formed a guerrilla gardening crew called the Ambush Garden Collective. They would create wild gardens in dump sites and other forbidden spaces as an awareness campaign, highlighting the importance of greening spaces and living sustainably. As a member of the Bez Valley Agriculture Cooperative, Sun now runs a Permaculture garden called NDAWO ENTLE EZELE Uthando NaturalGrowing Heritage Site and Living Plants Museum. Here he grows a number of different edible wild plants, which he sells to the public from a small shop on site. But his real passion is education. From the garden, he hosts events, festivals and school visits with the intention of demonstrating how easy it is to live in a more sustainable, environmentally conscious manner. The gardens are a zero-waste environmental learning space that also provides the possibility for homeless people and job seekers to learn, grow, eat and create their own small businesses. < Previous Item Next Item >

# PayTheGrants What happens when the help meant for the poorest, is too expensive for them to reach? This is the crisis of the Social Relief of Distress (SRD) Grant, introduced in South Africa (SA)during the Covid-19 Pandemic to help many in the face of dire poverty, unemployment and inequality. Yet right now, millions of our people are left excluded. And those who can access it remain struggling. We deserve better; a better grant, a better basic income, a better economy that is built for you. As #PayTheGrants (#PTG), that is what we stand for. We are a community-based organisation and registered NPO (287-115), working across the country. We help our people access the support they deserve, confront corruption, push for better systems and policies, and advocate for basic income. Nothing about us without us. Now, we are taking the government to court in our pursuit for justice. Along with our partner, IEJ, and lawyers, SERI we launched the case in 2023, and now stand ready to be heard in High Court on 29 & 30 October 2024. Our aim? To challenge the many ways in which those in need are excluded from the SRD Grant. It does not end here. There is a long journey ahead. And we are ready. Because what happens here can impact not only the SRD Grant, but the future of social protection in SA; towards a more fair, inclusive, and effective system that sees its people as the most important investment. # PayTheGrants About Us What happens when the help meant for the poorest, is too expensive for them to reach? This is the crisis of the Social Relief of Distress (SRD) Grant, introduced in South Africa (SA)during the Covid-19 Pandemic to help many in the face of dire poverty, unemployment and inequality. Yet right now, millions of our people are left excluded. And those who can access it remain struggling. We deserve better; a better grant, a better basic income, a better economy that is built for you. As #PayTheGrants (#PTG), that is what we stand for. We are a community-based organisation and registered NPO (287-115), working across the country. We help our people access the support they deserve, confront corruption, push for better systems and policies, and advocate for basic income. Nothing about us without us. Now, we are taking the government to court in our pursuit for justice. Along with our partner, IEJ, and lawyers, SERI we launched the case in 2023, and now stand ready to be heard in High Court on 29 & 30 October 2024. Our aim? To challenge the many ways in which those in need are excluded from the SRD Grant. It does not end here. There is a long journey ahead. And we are ready. Because what happens here can impact not only the SRD Grant, but the future of social protection in SA; towards a more fair, inclusive, and effective system that sees its people as the most important investment. Budget Cap The SRD is meant for the poorest right? E-e. It is for a few. And Treasury wants it less & less every year. Right now, +16mil qualify, but less than half access. Online-only Access No data? Smartphone broken? Stuck online? Uxolo, the only way to apply is online. SASSA offices are not even trained to help. flawed checks Once you apply, you will be checked against outdated databases. How is that right? everything = income Get help from family? Found a piecemeal job? Sold your stuff to survive? According to SASSA, that counts as “income”. starvation threshold Qaphela. More than R624 in your account = rejected. Kanti, having R625 for the family means we are still starving. fake Appeals Process Rejected, and you want to appeal? Shap. But no evidence is allowed. Baie dankie. No justice in this court.98% failure rate. Payments never made Approved? Halala! But were you paid? Pay dates that never arrive, verification links not sent, money disappeared, the list continues... poverty value received And if you get the R370? It is something, but barely. Our people deserve enough to survive AND to better their lives. The Key Issues The legal challenge highlights several critical issues that undermine the grant’s effectiveness and fairness. These include: Featured Products Add paragraph text. Click “Edit Text” to update the font, size and more. To change and reuse text themes, go to Site Styles. Best Sellers Add paragraph text. Click “Edit Text” to update the font, size and more. To change and reuse text themes, go to Site Styles. Back in Stock Add paragraph text. Click “Edit Text” to update the font, size and more. To change and reuse text themes, go to Site Styles. OUR STORIES The human impact of the injustices in the application and delivery of the SDG grant cannot be overlooked. The following stories are those of communities who have struggled for years to survive on a grant that is designed to fail them. Our Voice In The Media Join Our Facebook Group Visit Our YouTube Channel Follow Us On Twitter Contact US Media & Other Queries: media@paythegrants.org.za Grants Assistance: helpdesk@paythegrants.org.za Facebook: Pay The Grants Twitter: @PayTheGrants *We are not SASSA, & can only assist where able. **Explain any issues fully, but keep your security details safe. ***We are an independent organisation of community activists. Home About Stories Media Contact #Donate

71 The Actionists About Partner With Us Contact Us FAQ ____________________ Thom Pierce Studios Menu Close Life Esidimeni Justice through documenting a national crisis Christine Nxumalo, Harriet Perlman and Mark Lewis Faced with the bleak future of AI-generated imagery, film, music and almost any other creative endeavour that you can imagine, there is one discipline that should endure...stories of real human experiences. At this time we cannot generate a photograph of a person reflecting on their own life-changing ordeals, we cannot ask AI to dictate the story of a real memory, and we cannot digitally implant empathy into the people who connect with these stories. Not yet anyway. And so, in a world saturated with increasingly artificial content, real human stories are vital. In 2016 the Life Esidimeni psychiatric care hospital was closed down and over a thousand patients were moved to other facilities. Many of the new facilities were ill-equipped to deal with the patients and the process was rushed and dangerously mismanaged. The tragic result was that 144 people lost their lives and over 1,400 patients were exposed to human rights violations. As with any tragedy, it is not just the victims who are impacted. The families of many of the patients suffered horrific trauma when they could not locate their loved ones, having to travel long distances with the hope of finding them and bringing them to safety. Over the years since the tragedy, there have been several court hearings to deal with the impact, including an arbitration case in 2017 which brought about compensation for the families and a criminal inquest in 2021 which is still ongoing. But this story is not about the horrific events of 2016 and the ongoing injustice of reparations. This story is about the need for victims to be seen, represented and remembered in a world that so quickly moves to forget. In 2019 writer Harriet Perlman and photographer Mark Lewis with the support of Cassey Chambers from SADAG teamed up with Christine Nxumalo, who lost her sister in 2016 and was one of the members of the Life Esidimeni Family Committee to produce a series of stories that would maintain the momentum from the arbitration hearing and keep the stories of the victims in the minds of the public. They created a website in partnership with SADAG and SECTION27, that stands as an online memorial to the victims as well as an ongoing resource for information and assistance for those who need it. "I think what came out of it was that all of the families needed a way to express their anger and frustration. Mark and Harriet with Cassey Chambers as a trusted ally represented that group of people who understood their stories and as a result they felt safe and therefore validated what they had gone through." - Christine Nxumalo In creating the project they needed a vehicle to tell the stories of the lives that were lost and the relatives who were left behind. They asked each of the family members to choose a photograph of the loved one who had died and to reflect on the photograph itself, where and when it was taken and what it meant to them personally. "During the arbitration, many families were deeply hurt that they were accused of abandoning their loved ones. We travelled to people’s homes to interview them and take the portraits. It was important, for these stories to provide clarity of where the clinics were located and how far people, often with no resources, had to travel to visit their loved ones.." - Harriet Perlman Through this simple but effective storytelling technique they allowed the heartbreaking stories of loss, anger, betrayal and injustice to come through. "We were reminding people that this tragedy was about real lives lost. But another angle that we mustn’t forget is that Life Esidimeni is an extraordinary story about people fighting back, organising and being helped by civil society." - Mark Lewis This year a book will be published containing the stories that have been made so far, 40 are available on the website. But for Mark and Harriet, it still feels like there is work to be done. They want to find funding to tell the remaining stories, to honour those who died and to keep the events of 2016 in the minds of the South African public, as a way of ensuring that what happened at Life Esidimeni in 2016 can never happen again. This story was created in partnership with Heinrich Böll Foundation < Previous Item Next Item >

21 The Actionists About Partner With Us Contact Us FAQ ____________________ Thom Pierce Studios Menu Close Drama For Life Changing lives through performance activism Hamish and Petro in the Drama For Life building at Wits University In the world of academia, Drama For Life is unique. It exists as a post-graduate programme that provides a space to increase the efficacy of performance-based messaging. Through arts intervention and drama therapy work they tackle public health, mental health, governance and environmental issues. But, alongside this academic course, Drama For Life also runs a series of outreach projects, a theatre company and a programme to promote mental health awareness in schools. Petro Janse Van Vuuren runs the academic programme and Hamish Neill is the director of projects. Together, their approach is focused on making important information more accessible and engaging, continuing the work started by programme founder and fellow Actionist, Warren Nebe. Whilst the academic programme is advertised as a post-graduate degree, the objective is to bring together experts and change-makers from around Africa, and beyond. They understand and embrace the power of expertise that originates from varied levels of education or educational backgrounds and, critically, years of hands-on experience. They offer a range of short, project-based bridging courses and recognise prior undocumented learning, experience and impact that equates to an undergraduate degree. “This is someone who has been doing this for 20 years, to not allow them in because they didn’t have the papers, well that wasn’t their choice…Our education programme is part of our activism. It’s not just about getting in post-grad students and ticking boxes.“ - Hamish Neill Drama For Life started in the early 2000s as a response to the fatigue that had set in around the dissemination of HIV information. There was a sense that important messaging was being lost in the oversaturated world of heavily funded HIV campaigns and that little was actually changing. It evolved into a space for the long-term effectiveness and standards of performance-based activism, and healing, to grow by focusing on facilitating discussions, critical reflection and development through applied theatre practices. They recognise that their role is to bring the right people together and provide the tools and space for them to learn from each other. “Our entire teaching programme relies on facilitating the collective information in the room.” - Petro Janse Van Vuuren It is not often that you come across an entire university department so passionate about creating change, and, rarer still, one that understands their role so clearly as a facilitator of others’ expertise. < Previous Item Next Item >

43 The Actionists About Partner With Us Contact Us FAQ ____________________ Thom Pierce Studios Menu Close Diana Musara Upcycling plastic for sustainable schools Diana Musara in the classroom made of eco-bricks, Diepsloot There are three things that Diana Musara is passionate about; entrepreneurship, education and the environment. All of these passions now intersect through her NPO, Earthly Touch Foundation, but they started with a school made out of bottles. Whilst volunteering as a director for Khensani’s collection, an after-school program in Diepsloot that supports struggling students with extra lessons, Diana took it upon herself to build a new classroom for the growing number of learners, with over 70 in one room. At a women's network event hosted by Hirshes, Diana was introduced to the concept of eco-bricks. She realised that this simple idea would provide her with a cost-effective building material which also had environmental benefits. Eco-bricks are 2-litre soft drink bottles packed tightly with plastic, a well-insulated alternative to regular bricks. They also provide an upcycling solution for single-use plastics. The school receives large donations of clothes, so Diana put her business background to work and created an exchange program whereby people from the surrounding community could make eco-bricks from plastic they had collected and exchange the bottles for clothes. Diepsloot has a plastic problem. Discarded litter is strewn everywhere, clogging the water systems and piled on the side of the roads. By offering clothes in exchange for plastic trash, Diana was helping to clean up the neighbourhood whilst also providing an opportunity to anyone who wanted to get involved. So far they have received around 5,000 eco-bricks through the exchange program. “I want to do something that can add value and change people’s lives.” The school made out of bottles provides an environmentally friendly structure that is well-insulated and an innovative solution for plastic waste that is not being collected by the municipality. The labour brings much-needed work to an area that is struggling for jobs, and the building provides a valuable after-school facility for kids in the area. With the threat of global warming and carbon emission, the new eco-brick school will contribute to the avoidance of +- 50 tons of carbon into our environment as a result of repurposed plastic bottles, the use of solar, and limiting the use of cement for construction. That’s quite a lot of value through one relatively simple idea. Through the Earthly Touch Foundation, Diana wants to take the idea even further by mentoring construction students in eco-brick building and training them in how to run a business. Find out more at https://www.earthlytouchfoundation.com < Previous Item Next Item >

5 The Actionists About Partner With Us Contact Us FAQ ____________________ Thom Pierce Studios Menu Close Arnold Sibanda Saluting black male positivity Arnold Sibanda outside 27 boxes in Melville, Johannesburg The inspiration to create the Black Male Positivity Project came from a painful loss for Arnold Sibanda. Just before the birth of his son, Arnold’s father passed away. A principled man with strong values, who had Arnold’s best intentions at heart, his father was his role model and his greatest supporter. When he passed, Arnold realised that he needed a support system to navigate his own new journey of fatherhood, to bring up his son in a way that would make his father proud. It was from this that the Black Male Positivity Project was born. Through the project, Arnold runs a collection of programmes that serve to inspire, empower and support Black men and boys in their journey to become more positive members of society. He wants to redress the tired stereotypes and provide the tools needed to provide a more favourable example of what it means to be a Black man in South Africa. “With the increasing reporting of Black men being the victims or perpetrators of violence, we want to spotlight the positive achievements and roles of Black men in their communities. If young men continually see themselves represented in the media in a negative way, it does not give them a lot to look up to. Neither does it help to change the trajectory of their lives.” The idea is to celebrate Black men who are positive role models in society, in order to create a space for discussion and learning through honest reflection. And to facilitate healing through the unlearning of cultural or patriarchal practices that do not serve the best interests of modern life in a 21st-century society. Arnold believes that by engaging with the stories of Black men that break the prevailing narrative, whether it be through in-person discussion or through literature, he can help to change the future for young men who are trying to navigate a world that they have not been properly equipped to deal with. “In our recent support group meeting I realised that most brothers are parenting through generational trauma, and are not aware of it. It is through the understanding of issues such as the impact of the migrant labour system on Black fatherhood, that we can develop appropriate support systems for modern, young Black men.” The values of family commitment, leadership and support are achieved through several different programmes which have been developed to provide men and boys of all ages with a range of tools to facilitate growth. For the younger generations, Arnold has identified the need for opportunities and skills development that facilitate engagement with positive stories. To do this the project provides an ongoing mentorship programme which pairs young boys with positive male role models in their communities, an after-school homework programme and a school-based literacy initiative. For the adults, they host a variety of support groups that deal with issues such as sexual health, new fatherhood and paternity rights. They also have a curated online bookshop that focuses on relatable stories by Black, African, male authors. Together with the NPO Heartlines, they host an annual Father’s Day bike ride which brings a wide community of men together, to connect, celebrate and support each other on a long-term basis. Through the project, Arnold wants to support fathers to raise boys who are emotionally balanced, confident communicators, who can articulate their fears in a healthy way. Young men who can pursue their dreams safely in the knowledge that they have support. You can probably tell that Arnold is also passionate about books. He gets that from his dad. < Previous Item Next Item >

12 The Actionists About Partner With Us Contact Us FAQ ____________________ Thom Pierce Studios Menu Close Desmond D'Sa Battling air, water & land pollution Desmond D’Sa at his office in Wentworth, KZN The list of organisations that Demond D’Sa has been instrumental in forming is overwhelming: RIGHT2KNOW KZN Subsistence Fisherfolks Poor Flatdwellers Movement South Durban Community Environmental Alliance KZN Environmental Alliance Coalition of the Poor As he reels them off, it is hard not to wonder why they are all necessary. But, as he expands on his experience as an environmental activist, it becomes clear that he knows there is strength in numbers. He is also passionate about including everybody in his mission to provide a more just society as well as a healthier and cleaner world for all. Desmond grew up in Cato Manor, KwaZulu Natal. At the time, it was a lush area with clean, fresh water. There was healthy soil to grow food and ample space to enjoy being part of a diverse and generous community. As the 11th of 13 children, he learned how to share and how to care about the people around him. It was at 15 years old that life changed dramatically. In 1966, the family was split apart and removed from Cato Manor as part of the Group Areas Act. He was relocated to a flat in Wentworth with his mother where he still lives to this day. Desmond’s journey into activism started in 1998 while he was working at an acrylic factory making fibre for clothing and blankets. He noticed that many of his colleagues were becoming sick from working with the toxic liquid chemical acrylonitrile. They were being dismissed by the factory clinic without any concern or treatment, and so he decided to investigate. While his bosses were “sleeping on the job”, Desmond would steal whatever paperwork he could find and take it home to read up about the risks that they were exposed to. After he started asking questions and speaking up at work about the dangers, he was dismissed from his job. This experience lit a fire in him and inspired him to understand the true extent of the damage that the petrochemical industry in Durban was causing to its workers and the communities living around the factories. From that point on, it has been a life mission for Desmond to be the protector of air, water and land pollution, not only in Wentworth but around the country. From a small office building in Wentworth, he started the South Durban Community Environmental Alliance which has grown to become a team of nine people who work tirelessly to monitor pollution levels from local industries. Through a programme of community engagement, regular patrols, a network of whistle-blowers, and monitoring techniques for air, water and soil, they keep an eye on the whole city and, when the pollution levels get too high, they know who to hold accountable. “We are more than a watchdog, the officials don't even know what is going on. We hammer them, we put pressure when we need to.” With over 25 years of experience as an environmental activist, Desmond has learned how to fight and how to get his message heard. He is so passionate about his role as an environmental protector that, from the outside, his workload and responsibility to the community can seem overwhelming. But, having had these values instilled in him from a very young age, hard work and helping others is second nature to Desmond. “My mother and father were always about service. If anyone knocked on the door and asked for anything they would give it. We never hoarded money. We were taught to be providers. As long as we work hard, things will work out.“ < Previous Item Next Item >

35 The Actionists About Partner With Us Contact Us FAQ ____________________ Thom Pierce Studios Menu Close Tarryn Johnston Reviving the Hennops river Tarryn Johnston at the Hennops River The way that other people talk about Tarryn Johnston is a better indication than any other of her passion for cleaning up the Hennops River. Their faces crease into a smile and they say something like “That woman is incredible”. It is Tarryn’s focused intention about her mission to clean up the waterways and the generosity with which she encourages others along on that journey, that brings people to this conclusion. “We don’t have time to sit around and point fingers…I clean rivers. It’s a popular misconception that it is someone else's job.” In 2018, Tarryn’s life was in a very different place. She was on a mission to end the abusive relationships that had shaped her life, embarking on an introspective journey through prayer and meditation. During one of the workshops that she attended, the facilitator identified that she owed a debt to the ocean and this started her on the journey to the realisation of her responsibility towards the environment, specifically water. In 2019 her twelve-year-old daughter asked her if she could help with a river cleanup project and she jumped at the chance. Tarryn had no idea that this was just the beginning of her healing. On seeing the black, sludgy water she was horrified by the dangerous levels of pollution in the rivers near her home in Centurian, Gauteng. She committed to organising a river cleanup every two weeks and, once she realised that she needed money to do so, she started a not-for-profit company. Over the next few years, extreme weather and Covid 19 distracted from the river clean-up operation, and Tarryn busied herself with emergency flood responses and the sheltering of homeless people during the pandemic. But the Hennops River Revival has continued to grow, and through Tarryns positive determination she now has funding, and a team of 12 people who clean up the river 3 days a week. It’s her ability to bring people together that is so enviable. She has a good relationship with the local government, something that she says comes from not pointing fingers of blame but from offering partnerships and solutions. She also has several big corporates that fund small projects through their CSI initiatives which means that she is single-handedly doing the work of several corporate departments. There is also the acknowledgement that this job will never end and that she will never clean up the Hennops in her lifetime. But that’s all part of being an Actionist for Tarryn, taking on the work for the benefit of future generations. < Previous Item Next Item >

14 The Actionists About Partner With Us Contact Us FAQ ____________________ Thom Pierce Studios Menu Close Bridget Munnik Drama & performance for social change Bridget Munnik outside the Soweto Theatre Bridget Munnik, also known as Aunty Bree, became a qualified counsellor 11 years ago. Growing up as an orphan, she knew what it felt like to have nobody to care for her, nobody to guide her, and nobody to congratulate her when she passed her Matric. Early on in life, she made a promise to herself that through her work she would help as many children as she could. Bridget’s ambition has taken her from working at the child welfare centre and volunteering at the family life centre to eventually become the centre manager of the Westbury Youth Centre, a communal space for young people in one of the most troubled suburbs of Johannesburg. It was through an audition poster at the youth centre that Bridget first discovered acting and found her most powerful voice. Westbury is a dangerous place, run by gangs and rife with substance abuse and violence, something that Aunty Bree knows all too well having escaped from a violent and abusive marriage herself. It is through the theatre that she now finds a way to provide a lifeline to those in the community who are too fearful to ask for help, and too scared to speak up. Bridget performs regular radio and stage productions about gender-based violence (GBV), substance abuse, teenage pregnancy and bullying. The intention is to let people know that they are not alone in their struggles with their loved ones. It is a way to open up conversations and to facilitate connections with people who can help. “The use of performance is so important because Westbury is so dangerous. You know there are things happening but you cannot reach out. What I show on stage is that you are not alone. I tell the neighbours and community members not to judge others, and I tell the victims that we see them. After the show, I have to come out of character and be a counsellor.“ When audiences watch Bridget’s performances there is often a moment where they recognise themselves in the characters. This connection provides a valuable way to give advice and support, without having to put anyone at risk. They are shown that there are resources available to help them and encouraged to go to the police or seek support from a social worker. “I also run a workshop with the parents who are hurting. In a dark room, I give everyone a candle. I start with me. I talk about my son who was on drugs. After my story, the next person lights a candle and tells their story about their kid who is on drugs. Brightness comes into the room. In the midst of the dark, there is always a light at the end of the tunnel. People have the same stresses but we can support each other if we light the candles one by one.” In Westbury, where speaking up can be fatal, silence is also one of the biggest dangers. Through performance, Aunty Bree has found a powerful way to heal herself whilst also reaching the people who need her. Her voice is loud and her message is clear: “You are not alone and there is help if you need it.” < Previous Item Next Item >

62 The Actionists About Partner With Us Contact Us FAQ ____________________ Thom Pierce Studios Menu Close Linda Twala Building a legacy of altruism Linda Twala at home in Alexandra Linda Twala is the opposite of what he calls a “what’s in it for me” person. When you walk into his house it’s clearly a place of work. People are milling around outside, sorting through donated items and big bowls of onions and potatoes sit on the floor inside. Upstairs is his living space which is crammed full of photographs, newspaper cuttings, awards and memorabilia; a museum of artefacts documenting a lifetime of dedicated work in the community. Linda is the grandson of John Hey Ka Nxele, one of the first residents of Alexandra, a township in Johannesburg that is now home to over one million people in a single square mile. Many of its residents have no work, little food and inadequate accommodation. Linda has lived in Alexandra all of his life. In the 1960s a woman by the name of Rosie Tshabalala would often come by the house, asking for food. Inspired by his own mother’s generosity, he decided to help her. She was so grateful to him that she would wave her stick and say “one day I want you to be the person who buries me”. In 1967 she passed away and Linda honoured her request by organising for her to be taken from the government mortuary and given a dignified burial at the church across the road from his house. This, he says, is how it all began. “From that time I continued to help the destitute…I was born to serve, not to destruct” Over the last 55 years, more and more people have come to Linda for help. He is unable to say no, it is deeply instilled in him to help people. He is passionate about Alexandra and passionate about the people that live there. His work has covered everything from feeding schemes to building houses and planting thousands of trees; providing support to single mothers, people with disabilities and over five thousand senior citizens. It’s not that there is any grand plan, he just tries to help everyone that comes to him asking for support. And with that has earned himself legendary status, which explains the photographs with Madiba, the relationship with Oprah Winfrey and the Mahatma Gandhi award. This year Linda wants to raise enough money to pay for 600 young children from Alexandra to have a helicopter ride, to inspire them to achieve more, and to let them know that they can be pilots, doctors and lawyers. < Previous Item Next Item >