Who

Executive Director

Tamzin Ractliffe

Tamzin is an award-winning venture catalyst and entrepreneurial leader in charitable and social development, philanthropy and impact investment. She has worked across the public, private and civil society sectors, driving a greater impact in the allocation of capital to the greater good. With foundation degrees in Commerce, Anthropology and Economics, Tamzin spent three years working with ex-political prisoners in South Africa during the release phase in the early 1990s. She subsequently refocused her career to engage the corporate sector for the greater good.

In 1998, Tamzin was the creator of the GreaterGood/GreaterCapital group, working to build a bridge between the financial and the social/ environmental/ philanthropic sectors. Recognised as one of the ten most trusted non-profits in South Africa, Tamzin subsequently established the South African Impact Investing Network (SAIIN) under GreaterCapital’s ambit, laying early foundations for unlisted impact investment and ultimately establishing the world’s first regulated impact investment exchange board in collaboration with the Stock Exchange of Mauritius, in June 2011.

Tamzin completed an MPhil in Climate and Development with ACDI in 2014, focusing on environmental citizenship and sustainable consumption. She is currently completing her PhD at the Centre for Environment and Sustainability at the University of Surrey. Awarded the GIBS Social Entrepreneur of the Year award in 2007 and appointed an Ashoka Fellow in 2008, Tamzin won the Thomson Reuters 2012 TrustLaw Innovation Award for the Impact Exchange and was a finalist in the Buckminster Fuller Award for the design of solutions to address 21st Century challenges in 2009 and 2010 and a Finalist in the Global Development Network Award for the Most Innovative Development Project (2009).

Routes to Resilience South Africa Programme Mentor & Advisor

Elspeth Donovan

Elspeth is Deputy Director of Cambridge Institute for Sustainability Leadership, South Africa. She joined CISL in 2008 and in addition to designing open and customised programmes in South Africa, she is a tutor on CISL’s Post Graduate Certificate in Sustainable Business and the Anglo American Advanced Sustainability Management programme. Prior to this, she was at the University of Cape Town’s Graduate School of Business.

Chair

Mike Freedman

After graduating from Oxford University with an honours degree in English, Mike Freedman began his working life as a copywriter, then creative Director and ad agency partner, winning many international awards, including world’s best copywriter.

After breaking his neck in a car accident, he began a portfolio career that spans research, brand development, think-tanks, urban futures, writing and social impact, propelled by the belief that he has consolidated these interests into FreedThinkers.

FreedThinkers is a partnership that specialises in market research, brand development and placemaking. Mike consults on purpose-driven strategy for corporates, NGOs, Governments, towns and cities.

Trustee

Simon Peile

Simon was born in Zambia in 1962 and moved to Cape Town a few years later. He has worked and lived for periods in London and in Sydney, subsequently joining a British adventure travel company to work as an overland expedition leader. After four trans-Africa expeditions and two around South America, and a short spell as a white-water rafting guide back in Australia, Simon returned to Cape Town and to his profession as an Actuary, quickly rising to be the leading consultant at South Africa’s largest firm of consulting actuaries. 

In 2003, Simon and his wife, Magda, also an actuary, joined forces to start an investment management company. In 2015, their company, Sygnia, was listed on the JSE and the company continues on a strong growth trajectory under Magda’s leadership. Sygnia is considered a disruptor in the financial services industry and as a fintech company places a lot of focus on the use of new technologies in delivering investment products and financial services at low cost to consumers.

In March 2017 Simon stepped down from some of his responsibilities at Sygnia to be able to focus his time on multiple other initiatives. Simon graduated from UCT in 1984 with a Bachelor of Business Science degree, majoring in Actuarial Science, and qualified as a Fellow of the Faculty of Actuaries in Edinburgh in 1987.

TRUSTEE, PARTICIPANT OBSERVER, EFFECTIVENESS ADVISOR

Gerry Salole

Dr Gerry Salole has been the Chief Executive of the European Foundation Centre (EFC) since 2005. The EFC is an association of over 200 public-benefit foundations and corporate funders active in philanthropy in Europe and elsewhere. His previous posts have included serving as Representative at the Ford Foundation’s Southern Africa office, based in Johannesburg, and Director of the Department of Programme Documentation and Communication of the Bernard van Leer Foundation, based in The Hague. He has also worked for Save the Children Federation (USA) in Ethiopia and Zimbabwe, and Redd Barna (Norwegian Save the Children) and OXFAM UK and UNHCR in Ethiopia.

Gerry studied Social Anthropology and African History at the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London. He holds an M.A. (Econ.) and Ph.D. from the University of Manchester. Gerry sits on the board of the Impact Trust, the Advisory Board of the Barilla Centre for Food and Nutrition (Parma), the Supervisory Board of the European Cultural Foundation (Amsterdam), The Board of the Firelight Foundation (Palo Alto) and the Advisory Board of the African Centre for Philanthropy and Social Investment (Johannesburg).

Trustee

Anthony Notcutt

With a background in finance and ten years experience in the banking industry, Tony switched to fulfil a career in leisure and hospitality management, establishing his own business in the New Forest in 2007.

Passionate about securing South Africa’s future, he has spent the last three years committed to supporting development initiatives that unlock the potential of youth and vision a resilient future.