Page 4 - DUT Conduit Dec21

Transformation for Community Development
Pictured: Dr Celeni Nyide
Sindisiwe Ndlovu
Academic, motivational speaker, apostle, reformer and rural community development practitioner Dr Celeni Nyide is passionate about driving the transformation agenda.
“I aspire to be a world-class transformational leader who inspires many, particularly those from marginalised backgrounds through my engagement at DUT and the communities I serve,” he said.
Nyide is a Senior Lecturer and Research Coordinator in DUT’s Department of Finance and Information Management (Midlands). He is a member of the National Research Foundation Masters and Doctoral Institutional Review Committee and of the International Institute of Social and Economic Sciences. To date, he has published 18 peer- reviewed articles in accredited journals. The highlight of his life was completing his PhD in just two years.
“I obtained my PhD in 2016. I was pursuing my doctoral studies while I was diagnosed with depression. I navigated challenges with support from my then Head of Department Professor Paul Green, who eased my workload to enable me to focus on my studies. My supervisor, Dr Lawrence Lekhanya also provided sterling support,” said Dr Nyide.
While his research interests are multi- disciplinary, they lean more towards Environmental Management Accounting (EMA) given the various environmental issues that threaten the future of humankind and that EMA helps to drive the sustainability agenda and responsible business practices.
Dr Nyide has received three awards for his research contributions, namely, the Faculty Researcher of the Year Award – 2016; Junior Researcher of the Year Award – 2019, and Faculty Researcher of the Year Award, Platinum Category – 2019.
He commented that if he were in power, he would invest in programmes that promote sustainable rural economies that have the potential to increase employment opportunities in rural areas, reducing regional income disparities, curbing rural-urban migration, and reducing poverty at its source.
His vision for the future revolves around community development through education.
“Dr Nelson Mandela noted that, ‘education is the great engine of personal development. It is through education that the daughter of a peasant can become a doctor, that the son of a mineworker can become the head of the mine, that a child of farm workers can become the president of a great nation’. It is what we make out of what we have, not what we are given, that separates one person from another.
“These words always reverberate in my heart and drive my long-term agenda of becoming a community builder, particularly in rural communities, yet recognised globally. South African rural societies remain some of the
most impoverished in the world, and lack of access to employment, education, land, housing, health services and other essential resources divides them from their urban neighbours. I identified a need for a Centre for Rural Development in my village, Oshabeni Location. Its main objective will be to promote community development by building individual skills and community solidarity. The centre will promote self-reliance and hence, the community’s ability to control its ultimate destiny,” he added.
Dr Nyide also provides skills and capacity development programmes to several non- profit organisations, including Uncedo Community Organisation, the Youth Academic Development Agency, and the Isibani Development Agency.
With over 15 years’ experience, he has learnt to never underestimate students. “Our lecture rooms are filled with the future leaders of the corporate sector and communities,” he said
He highlighted that if he had a chance to relive his life, he would not necessarily do
anything differently, as we are the sum of our experiences. Positive or negative, his experiences have made him who he is today. However, given what he knows now, he would tell his younger self to be more patient.
He called on young South Africans to never allow reality to get in the way of their dreams. “There is a profound story in the Bible (1 Samuel, chapters 16 – 17) about David, a shepherd who killed a giant called Goliath. Even though there were leaders in the land (of Israel), they failed to deal with Goliath. One of the reasons they failed is that they were relying on old and outdated strategies to deal with existing challenges. The nation’s problem (Goliath) was solved innovatively by David, a young man.
“The point is that, while we face mammoth challenges in our country, these can be addressed through young people’s active participation in socio-economic activities. Young people must refuse to live in a world of broken dreams and recognise that this land is full of possibilities.”
Lecturer, Opera Singer and Entrepreneur!
Waheeda Peters
For DUT lecturer Ms Nozuko Teto, being an academic is as rewarding and gratifying as singing opera. The Junior Lecturer for Voice and Singing in the Drama and Production Studies Department has travelled all over the world and uses her experience to inspire and nurture aspirant young performers.
Teto holds a Bachelor of Music in Music Education and a Post Graduate Diploma in Opera Performance. On completion of her studies at the University of Cape Town she was awarded a scholarship by the Nicolai Ghiauroy Foundation to study Belcanto Singing Technique in Modena, Italy with her favourite soprano, the legendary late Mirella Freni.
She made her international debut in 2011 and has performed widely overseas and in South Africa.
“Singing has always been part of my life from around the fireplace with my seven siblings, to gospel groups with my neighbours and school choirs. My choir conductor at school Mr V. J. Dumela saw something special about my voice and encouraged me to study further. As a lecturer, I pay back by encouraging students to unlock their true potential,” she said.
The soprano expressed her great love for choral and opera music. “Choral music paved the way to opera music which now gives me opportunities to ‘live truthfully under imaginary circumstances’ and get paid for it, change lives, and build a legacy,” she said.
Initially uncertain about the possibility of making a career of music in South Africa, before becoming a lecturer, Teto registered a private company, Adesso Enterprises (Pty) Ltd which offers a platform to create opportunities not only for herself but for those around her who are willing to ‘be the change’ they want to be. She also runs a registered non-profit organisation that accesses government funding. Her outreach programme sources funding to take music to the townships and rural areas through mentorship programmes.
“With these two organisations I hope to inspire and nurture the teenage voices of girls and boys through music performances. A lot can be achieved by such performance, especially for young people who are exposed to peer pressure, bullying, or gender- based violence,” she said.
Pictured: Nozuko Teto
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