Nobanathi Wendy Maxakato is an associate professor in chemistry at the University of Johannesburg, where she has been lecturing and researching for the past 14 years. She teaches various modules, including inorganic chemistry, chemistry for somatology, environmental health, engineering, food technology, biotechnology and analytical chemistry. She also is a supervisor involved in training and mentoring postgraduate students.
She often invites undergraduate students to the laboratories to help the undergraduates decide on their studies and careers. Her key interest is in developing renewable energy-based technologies that are crucial for a sustainable future. One branch of this is in helping to develop direct alcohol fuel cells, which use ethanol or methanol produced from biomass such as sugarcane.
She is collaborating with biotechnology researchers to contribute to meeting the United Nations’s sustainable development goals. Nobanathi’s research group, Material for Energy, is dedicated to producing effective electrocatalysts for fuel cells, using nanotechnology to produce novel electrocatalyst materials.
She plans to contribute to developing clean and sustainable energy for all, and empower women and girls by addressing the economic and educational challenges they face.
The name of the organisation at which you work
University of Johannesburg
Your educational background, listing your qualifications and institutions, if any:
- PhD (Applied Chemistry), University of Pretoria
- MSc (Applied Chemistry), University of the Western Cape
- BSc Hons (Applied Chemistry), University of the Western Cape
- BSc (Chemistry and Biochemistry), University of the Western Cape
Your greatest achievement
My greatest achievement lies in my passion for teaching and research, through which I have contributed to shaping a better future for the students I have taught and the postgraduate students I have graduated. It is truly rewarding to see my students go on to become successful entrepreneurs, industry leaders and business moguls, regardless of their gender.