Consultant, Es’kia Mphahlele Heritage Foundation

It’s difficult to understand what Koketso Marishane means when he says he’s “an obsessed cosmopolitan educational arts activist” – until you have a look at his resume. The 29-year-old wears numerous hats: as a consultant to the Es’kia Mphahlele Trust, he advises the chief executive about the direction the organisation should take in terms of global development. Since he became involved, the trust has managed to build a hall named after Mphahlele (who was a well-known South African activist, educationalist and artist) in Polokwane – this will be used to continue the legacy of Mphahlele by developing the community through various education and literature programmes.

Marishane is also a researcher at the National Digital Repository of South Africa, where he plays a crucial role in preserving South African heritage by documenting it online, after interacting with people at grass-roots level.

Marishane, who studied media and communications at the National Electronic Media Institute of South Africa, is also the director of Limpopo Reads Foundation, a recently- aunched initiative that aims to give rural communities the opportunity to participate in private-public programme in the educational sector.

As the accounts chairperson for the Organisation of African Youth, Marishane is responsible for sourcing investments into the organisation at a continental level. He’s also a keen writer and has been published on all seven continents.

One of his earliest roles was as a marketing and communications officer for the Black Writers’ Forum, which operated mainly in Limpopo, organising literature sessions that attracted more than 100 people weekly.

Marishane says he’s made many mistakes but they’ve only served to further his resolve to make a lasting contribution to society.

“Behind me infinite power, before me is endless possibility, around me is boundless opportunity.”
— Fatima Asmal

Twitter: @kmarishane