The University of Mpumalanga’s (UMP) culture and heritage lecturer and cultural activist, Thulisile Bhuda, is the youngest member and the only Ndebele woman to become a member of the panel of advisers for the National Department of Sport, Arts and Culture on indigenous knowledge and living treasures.
This 29-year-old serves on the committee that identifies indigenous knowledge systems that are about to become extinct and advises on the documentation of that knowledge.
She is passionate about the decolonisation of education, promotion of indigenous languages, indigenous knowledge preservation, protection, management and dissemination. The appointment had a criterion that focused on people who were doing great work in intangible heritage from all South African provinces, and Bhuda was one of those identified.
The panel includes knowledge keepers, academics and traditional leaders. Through the panel, the department wants to establish a good relationship with the indigenous communities and work closely in preserving and promoting indigenous knowledge systems.
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“I am very grateful for this opportunity. I would like to believe that this appointment has come at the right time as I have contributed quite a lot in the systems field, and the department is investing in me as a young professional with great potential.”
Part of the work that the committees does is to establish a criterion that guides which knowledge is worth documenting urgently.
“We work with elders and young people to ensure that the knowledge is well captured. The committee also creates platforms such as workshops and interactive networks for promoting intergenerational learning between elders and young people on indigenous knowledge. We have identified appropriate methods to document the indigenous knowledge and identified the initial knowledge that needs to be documented.”
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Bhuda, a PhD student of indigenous knowledge systems (IKS), is also passionate about sharing African culture and heritage and has penned a children’s book, Kwekwezi’s Cultural Mural Art, which was then translated into isiNdebele as Umgwalo Wobukghwari baka Kwekwezi.
“I believe that I am a role model to young people who look up to me and who always have questions about careers in African studies and why IKS is relevant in the 21st century. So many young people expect only adults to be in such fields and show interest. It is therefore important that I become a good example by working hard and providing tangible results.”
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