our people

Our campaigning organisation is run by our director and campaign leads, supported by a small support team, management committee (board), events and communications team, and interns and volunteers.

We are grateful to our 20 or so members, individuals who strongly support our work and whom we have invited to join our voluntary association. 

OUR TEAM

Support

David Le Page

Co-founder & director-coordinator

  • David is the co-founder and director of Fossil Free South Africa, a leading campaign based in Cape Town advocating for fossil fuel divestment and sustainable reinvestment in South Africa.

    After an initial career as a copywriter and theatre critic, he became an environment and human rights journalist and campaigner working for the Mail & Guardian, Treatment Action Campaign and Southern African Faith Communities Environment Initiative.

    Under his leadership, Fossil Free South Africa has successfully pressured institutions like the University of Cape Town to divest from fossil fuels and continues to engage other universities and institutions to promote truly sustainable moves towards a thriving, inclusive and climate-resilient South Africa.

    Beyond fighting fossil fuels, he is obsessed with cultural and economic “fossils” – such the concepts of economic growth and austerity – that impoverish us more than they enrich us; and chases a new Parkrun PB whenever his three small boys permit.

Tracy Caderberg

Finance officer

  • Tracy is an experienced financial manager and administrator who has dedicated her career since 1999 to serving the NGO/NPO community. Past experience includes Edu-Peg, Children’s Resource Centre, Abalimi Bezekhaya and Harvest of Hope. She has a passion for justice and helping people realise their worth, value and purpose.

    Outside of FFSA, Tracy has established a healing circle for women from all walks of life and regularly meets with the group to support them.

Eugene Fisher

Administrator

  • Eugene is a human rights activist with an extensive volunteering background, having worked with Harvest of Hope and the Children’s Resource Centre.

    He is a skilled administrator with multiple certifications from institutions like the University of California, Irvine. He is an avid supporter of buying and sourcing goods and food that are produced locally and ethically, an outdoor enthusiast, and someone who loves being a tourist in his hometown of Cape Town.

Emma Fookwe

Community, events & social media officer

  • Emma, a Stellenbosch University graduate, is a trained social worker with further certifications in marketing, digital content, and copywriting from UCT and Red & Yellow School of Business.

    With a passion for human rights and intersectionality, she manages all our events planning, stewards our community and manages our social media platforms. In addition to this, she also serves on our support team, assisting with internal team building, organisational development and general operations.

    Beyond working with Fossil Free SA, she volunteers her time with a NPO that aims at connecting and building communities between young women globally; and enjoys spinning classes and walks in nature with her dogs.

mobilising universities &

finance advocacy

Sandrine Mpazayabo

Campaign coordinator & team lead

  • Sandrine is a climate justice advocate and impact-driven researcher with a background in migration, governance, and social equity. She has worked across legal, academic, and advocacy spaces, specialising in stakeholder engagement, project coordination, and high-level campaigning.

    Sandrine is currently one of our campaign coordinators, where she leads initiatives such as the "Mobilising universities for climate leadership" and "Financial advocacy" campaigns, engaging students, universities, and asset managers in climate-conscious investing.

    With a Master’s degree in Migration and Displacement Studies (with distinction) from the University of the Witwatersrand and an Honours in African Studies from the University of Cape Town, Sandrine brings an interdisciplinary lens to climate and social justice issues. She has held key roles at various legal and non-profit organisations, where she has led impactful projects in research, legal administration, and community engagement.


    Sandrine is also a Climate Reality Project Leadership Corps graduate and mentor and has published research on urban migration, governance, and African socio-political landscapes. Beyond her work, she is deeply passionate about gender and refugee advocacy, running, reading, and spending time in nature.

stephanie cookson

Campaigner

  • Steph is Master’s student studying Climate Change and Sustainable Development, with an undergraduate in social science. Her research focuses on climate science communication and policy, and she has a passion for social impact, connecting the right people to the right information, and inspiring people to remake the world differently.

    Steph is one of our campaigners that works on our "Mobilising universities for climate leadership" and "Financial advocacy" campaigns. She is also a Climate Reality Project Leadership Corps graduate and mentor.

    After work, if she's not playing video games, you can find her behind her sewing machine with paleoarchaeology documentaries playing in the background.

fossil ad ban

lazola kati

Campaign coordinator & team lead

  • Lazola, a Rhodes University graduate, is a campaigns media and communications specialist. She has a background in social justice and public policy research, and is a dynamic activist and political and international relations practitioner.

zandile bangani

Communications officer

  • Zandile completed her Bachelor of Arts, Honours and Master of Arts at the University of the Western Cape, where she specialised in Linguistics, Language and Communication.

    She has experience in media research and freelance writing for the Media and Communications office at UWC. She also worked as an education journalist for New Frame, and a Media and Communications contract specialist for RISE Mzansi. She joins the team as Fossil Ad Ban’s communication officer, overseeing their social media, events and all communications.

Noxolo Mfocwa

Advocacy campaigner

  • Noxolo, a Rhodes University graduate, has a background in activism, storytelling advocacy, communications and campaign management. She has experience as a campaigns strategist and partnerships specialist.

clean creatives south africa

stephen horn

Volunteer

  • An award-winning producer and director, Stephen brought the Clean Creatives campaign to South Africa and is helping launch and lead Clean Creatives SA as a key programme of Fossil Free SA.

communications

Jo-anne smetherham

Media & publications manager & team lead

  • Jo is an award-winning journalist and PR practitioner with 25 years’ experience and a passion for telling stories of those working to create a more humane and sustainable world. She is a Bachelor of Arts graduate from the University of Cape Town and a Journalism Honours graduate from Stellenbosch university.

    She divides her time as a communications strategist and writer for Seed Communications.

    For FFSA, she specialises in communications strategies and implementation across forums. She focuses on our external media relations and leads our communications team.

zandile bangani

Fossil Ad Ban communications officer

  • Zandile also serves on our wider communications team to ensure that we have consistent messaging and align our communications strategies.

Emma Fookwe

Community, events & social media officer

  • Emma, a Stellenbosch University graduate, is a trained social worker with further certifications in marketing, digital content, and copywriting from UCT and Red & Yellow School of Business.

    With a passion for human rights and intersectionality, she manages all our events planning, stewards our community and manages our social media platforms. In addition to this, she also serves on our support team, assisting with internal team building, organisational development and general operations.

    Beyond working with Fossil Free SA, she volunteers her time with a NPO that aims at connecting and building communities between young women globally; and enjoys spinning classes and walks in nature with her dogs.

MANAGEMENT COMMITTEE

OUR BOARD

nicola wills

Nicola is an economist with DNA Economics who volunteered for our ManCo in March 2024 and became our chair in June 2024.

Chair

jigisha mandalia

Secretary

Jigisha supported our Fossil Free UCT campaign as a student activist in the Green Campus Initiative and now works for a renewable energy company.

mark new

Member

Professor Mark New is a climate scientist and former head of UCT’s African Climate and Development Initiative who volunteered for our ManCo in early 2024.

dean bhebhe

Dean is a climate activist with Power Shift Africa and former consultant to our Fossil Ad Ban campaign, who joined our ManCo team in early 2024.

Member