Mandy has had a front row seat to the civil unrest, the nine wasted years, the anatomy of the state capture project, the evisceration of state-owned entities and the establishment of the shadow state. She has often written the first draft of our country’s history.

 But her focus is on the ‘Hope Dealers’, those who withstood the onslaught. She tells the stories of the good people who did their jobs, the civil servants who held the line, the members of the judiciary who maintained the rule of law, the whistleblowers who felt compelled to speak truth to power, the civil society activists who stepped into the breach and the journalists who dug up the dirt to hold authorities to account. She considers the importance of changing the narrative of the country.

 There are lessons in these stories for corporates and for individuals on what needs to be done to improve governance, to change legislation and to create a speak up culture in order to root out corruption. Most importantly these stories will inspire the audience not to be apathetic or complacent, but to fight for a better South Africa. 

She has won a number of National and Regional Vodacom ‘Journalist of the Year’ awards, has been ‘The CNN African Radio Journalist of the Year’ and has received several commendations in the Webber Wentzel ‘Legal Journalist of the Year’ awards. In addition, she has received the National Press Club award in the Radio Category and the Social Media category and was awarded the ‘Rising Star – Women in the Media’ award in 2011