Dr Tiisetso Elizabeth Lephoto

Nominee's Province:
Gauteng

Age:
33

Project Name/Description:
Microbiologist and Innovator

More info:
https://www.instagram.com/dr.tiisetsolephoto/

Dr Tiisetso Lephoto, 33, from Johannesburg, is one of South Africa’s brightest young researchers and boasts accolades that will inspire anyone to believe in themselves. Her passion for science, agriculture, and innovation has afforded her expertise in insect pest control and management in farms and agricultural industries, where she has discovered indigenous microscopic worms that can infect and kill insects within 24 to 48 hours. She is, in many ways, a pathbreaker. “Recognised as one of the youngest PhD graduates in the field of cell and molecular biology, I obtained my PhD in Nematology, Agricultural Innovation, Genomics and Biotechnology with an emphasis in Bioinformatics at the University of Witwatersrand at the age of 26, where I was one of the youngest to obtain the PhD in my field,” she affirms. Lephoto is also passionate about youth development and mentorship. In addition to the community work she does at GoMaths Tutoring, she has successfully managed several philanthropic projects, including collecting books, toiletries and clothes for children in orphanages. Lephoto has been selected as one of 30 global emerging leaders under TechWomen, a US-based programme that empowers, connects and supports the next generation of women leaders in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) from Africa, Central and South Asia, and the Middle East. “I am now working on breeding a generation of scientists and innovators who can do greater things and also empower others,” she adds.