Rooted Resilience: Integrating Indigenous Plant Knowledge & Emerging Technologies for Health, Climate & Community Wellbeing
Date & Time: 26 November 2025 | 08:00 – 09:30
Track: Science & Society Nexus (Agriculture, Health, Climate Change, Just Transition)
Venue: Ruby
Host: Sefako Makgatho Health Sciences University (SMU)
Session Coordinator: Dr Clarissa Naidoo, SMU (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. )
Africa’s rich heritage of Indigenous plant knowledge—honed over millennia—holds transformative potential for addressing today’s intertwined challenges in health, climate resilience, and sustainable development. This dynamic session explores how this ancestral wisdom can be ethically and effectively integrated with emerging scientific and digital technologies to foster inclusive, future-ready solutions.
Featuring panelists from The Innovation Hub, Mint Group, the Southern African Essential Oil Producers Association, Dohne Agricultural Development Institute, and leading academic institutions, the discussion will spotlight innovations in entrepreneurship ecosystems, data-driven knowledge protection, agro-processing, climate-smart agriculture, and scientific validation of traditional remedies.
Panelists
1. Prof Nqobile Monate Mkolo - Sefako Makgatho Health Sciences University (Moderator 1)
2. Dr Mohora Feida Malebatja - Sefako Makgatho Health Sciences University (Moderator 2)
3. Dr Phuti Chelopo-Mgobozi - The innovation hub
4. Mr Peter Gardner - Mint Group
5. Ms Karen Swanepoel - Southern African Essential Oil Producers Association
6. Ms Babalwa Mpambani - Dohne Agricultural Development Institutes
7. Dr Ryan Rattray - University of Johannesburg
Designed as an interactive dialogue, the session will incorporate youth-led pitches, live audience polling, and a co-creation case study to catalyse actionable strategies for ethical collaboration, equitable benefit-sharing, and community empowerment. By bridging Indigenous Knowledge Systems with modern science, the session underscores a transdisciplinary path toward just, sustainable, and locally rooted development in Africa.
