PSASA Johannesburg Chapter Meeting 18 June 2020

The voice of youth -inspiration and disruption

On Thursday 18th June 2020, the PSASA celebrated youth development month with two visionary young speakers. Our Chapter President, Nikki Bush, opened the evening by saying that young people are able to see things from a different perspective because they are not walking well-worn neurological pathways that older, more experienced people have created. This month’s PSASA Johannesburg Chapter meeting definitely introduced fresh thinking from young minds who challenged us to think out of the box as speakers, entrepreneurs and thought leaders. Nadav Ossendryver and Zanele Njapha were both outstanding.

Nadav Ossendryver

Arthur Goldstuck introduced Nadav Ossendryver, our first speaker, alluding to his legendary status and humility. Nadav shared the extraordinary story of how he combined his passion for wildlife with technology, starting from the age of 15 when he established a company called Latestsightings.com which went viral, leading to him becoming South Africa’s YouTube superstar with more than a billion views on Youtube and other platforms. Nadav believes his success is due, in part, to the fact that he has built a community of followers who share his passion for wildlife. He shares his YouTube earnings with his community, some of whom have earned over R200 000 for videos they have shared on the Latest Sightings app. Nadav’s journey symbolises manifestation in action: taking a passion, creating understanding, refining remarkable videos and using insight to create an incredible business model – turning his dream into a platform that celebrates wildlife, serves conservation, builds tourism, creates partnerships both within the reserves and outside, and leaves a legacy. At just 22 years of age, Nadav’s impact on the wildlife and conversation industries has earned him recognition and awards around the world. What an honour it was for the PSASA to hear this humble young man. It was telling to have Steve Johnson, one of the founders of Pilanesburg Nature Reserve pay tribute to Nadav.

Zanele Njapha

Our next speaker Zanele Njapha, is also the President of the KZN Chapter . At the age of 26 Zanele is the youngest chapter president in PSASA ever. She was eloquently introduced by Alex Granger, and presented a masterclass in the neuroscience of building trust and communication with an audience with interactive processes. While she was presenting virtually, it was as if she was standing in our living rooms, she was so engaging. Her message regarding Disruption and finding a New Normal, challenged us to unlearn our old patterns and ways of seeing the world.  Her eloquence and grace, her use of visuals, her simple but powerful content, interactive processes AND the personal journey she took us on, was riveting. Zanele encouraged us to disengage the inner critic so that we can unleash the full potential of our creativity. She used practical interactive exercises with coins that she had asked us to have on hand prior to the workshop, together with breakout rooms to disrupt us, both as individuals and as teams. She ended her remarkable presentation with a quote from Albert Einstein “You cannot solve a problem with the same thinking that created it”. There was not a person that came out of Zanele’s presentation that had NOT had their mindset challenged and disrupted. But above all we had all been inspired to be less fearful and more embracing of change. It was appropriate that Zanele, one of our youngest female professional members, was thanked by a visionary and remarkable veteran speaker and professional member, Lorraine Jenks. Lorraine recently received her 20th international award for her environmental activism in business. This moment of thanks was deeply symbolic of an evening where generations straddled wisdom, learning and “unlearning” in an unprecedented way. Nikki Bush summed up the meeting in her closing quote from Albert Einstein, “Learning is experience. Everything else is just information”.  Our June chapter meeting was one that will be remembered for a long time to come. Make sure you join us next time! Marketing team: Alison Weihe and Yoke van Dam

Feedback from members on Nadav’s presentation:

“Well,that was a very insightful presentation Nadav.” Chris Kaangundue “Heartwarming! Thank you for your service to my Namesake Park…”Terri Kruger “My favourite app – have many great pics because of it.  Delighted to know that you use it to do so much good too.  Thank-you!  can’t wait to be able to use it again.” Steph Vermeulen “I just love how Nadav uses his intuition in step with nature, to work out the next steps in his business development. Thank you this was amazing.” Mervyn Davidowitz “What an interesting story and journey – it just shows, follow you heart, follow your love and most importantly enjoy every minute of the journey which not only helps you, but others around you too by sharing along the way.  Well done Nadav – 2nd time I have heard your story, and still blows my mind and what you have been able to achieve.  You can be so proud of your achievement and who knows where your journey leads to – it can only be amazing.” Michele Thwaits

Feedback from members on Zanele’s presentation:

“Well Done Zanele!” Tyron Harding “Great session Zanele.” Alex Granger “Absolutely amazing presentation.” Unotida Nyoni “MEMORABLE!!! SO TIMELY ..LOTS OF FOOD FOR THOUGHT … loved it.” Hanlie Raath “An eloquent, articulate and graceful speaker.” Nikki Bush

 

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