News & Media
The Jobs Crisis Is Real. The Target Is Wrong
𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐉𝐨𝐛𝐬 𝐂𝐫𝐢𝐬𝐢𝐬 𝐈𝐬 𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐥. 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐓𝐚𝐫𝐠𝐞𝐭 𝐈𝐬 𝐖𝐫𝐨𝐧𝐠 𝐁𝐲 𝐀𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐥𝐥𝐚𝐡 𝐑𝐨𝐬𝐞𝐧𝐛𝐞𝐫𝐠 Every July, during Mandela Month, South Africans are asked to give 67 minutes to something bigger than ourselves. This year, perhaps we should begin by giving a few minutes to something Mandela said...
Your Story, Your Draft
Your Story, Your Draft By Mikayla Brown We often hear the phrase, “You are the hero of your own story.” It sounds inspiring, but for the longest time, I saw it as just another comforting cliché adults used whenever life felt uncertain. When I was around sixteen,...
The Future Engineers of South Africa Are Already in the Room
𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐅𝐮𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞 𝐄𝐧𝐠𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐞𝐫𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐒𝐨𝐮𝐭𝐡 𝐀𝐟𝐫𝐢𝐜𝐚 𝐀𝐫𝐞 𝐀𝐥𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐲 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐑𝐨𝐨𝐦 By Deon Visser One of the most powerful moments of the Young Engineers Movement (YEM) Hackathon came when engineer Deon Visser addressed the 55 learners gathered at ORT South Africa. Speaking to learners...
The unfinished work of June 16
𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐮𝐧𝐟𝐢𝐧𝐢𝐬𝐡𝐞𝐝 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐤 𝐨𝐟 𝐉𝐮𝐧𝐞 𝟏𝟔 By Ariellah Rosenberg, CEO of ORT SA Every year, Youth Day asks South Africa to remember the courage of young people who stood against a system designed to limit their future. The young people of 1976 were not only protesting a language...
What 90 Years Has Taught Us About The Real Work of Education
𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝟗𝟎 𝐘𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐬 𝐇𝐚𝐬 𝐓𝐚𝐮𝐠𝐡𝐭 𝐔𝐬 𝐀𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐥 𝐖𝐨𝐫𝐤 𝐨𝐟 𝐄𝐝𝐮𝐜𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐅𝐫𝐨𝐦 𝐖𝐨𝐫𝐤𝐛𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐡𝐞𝐬 𝐭𝐨 𝐂𝐨𝐝𝐞: 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐉𝐨𝐛𝐬 𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐠𝐞𝐝. 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐌𝐢𝐬𝐬𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐃𝐢𝐝𝐧’𝐭. By Ariellah Rosenberg CEO of ORT SA There is a photograph in the World ORT archive that stops you in your tracks. Taken at King David School in...
What 90 Years Has Taught Us About the Real Work of Education
𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝟗𝟎 𝐘𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐬 𝐇𝐚𝐬 𝐓𝐚𝐮𝐠𝐡𝐭 𝐔𝐬 𝐀𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐥 𝐖𝐨𝐫𝐤 𝐨𝐟 𝐄𝐝𝐮𝐜𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐅𝐫𝐨𝐦 𝐖𝐨𝐫𝐤𝐛𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐡𝐞𝐬 𝐭𝐨 𝐂𝐨𝐝𝐞: 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐉𝐨𝐛𝐬 𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐠𝐞𝐝. 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐌𝐢𝐬𝐬𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐃𝐢𝐝𝐧’𝐭. There is a photograph in the World ORT archive that stops you in your tracks. Taken at King David School in Johannesburg in 1952, it shows...
Celebrating the Evolution of Women in STEM
𝐂𝐞𝐥𝐞𝐛𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐄𝐯𝐨𝐥𝐮𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐨𝐟 𝐖𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐧 𝐢𝐧 𝐒𝐓𝐄𝐌: 𝐁𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐁𝐚𝐫𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐫𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐞𝐧𝐠𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐌𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐥𝐝𝐚 𝐄𝐟𝐟𝐞𝐜𝐭 What innovations have we lost because a girl once heard the words, “Science isn’t for you”? As we commemorate the International Day of Women and Girls in Science on 11...
Forget Bezos, the future could be you
𝐖𝐡𝐲 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐧𝐞𝐱𝐭 𝐠𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐭 𝐒𝐨𝐮𝐭𝐡 𝐀𝐟𝐫𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐧 𝐬𝐮𝐜𝐜𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐲 𝐰𝐢𝐥𝐥 𝐛𝐞 𝐛𝐮𝐢𝐥𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐠𝐡 𝐠𝐫𝐢𝐭, 𝐟𝐚𝐢𝐥𝐮𝐫𝐞, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐩𝐮𝐫𝐩𝐨𝐬𝐞 You’ve just finished matric. After twelve years of tests, timetables, colours, badges, and report cards, the pressure has shifted. Now comes the bigger question: What are...
How ORT SA Helped Me Grow Personally and Professionally
Growth is rarely glamorous. It shows up in early mornings, uncomfortable learning curves, and the humility of asking questions you think you should already know. ORT South Africa’s programmes act as a mirror, reflecting both your weaknesses and your potential, and...
South African School ORT Youth Entrepreneurship Programme
𝗖𝗲𝗹𝗲𝗯𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗠𝗯𝗼𝗻𝗴𝗲𝗻𝗶 𝗠𝗴𝘂𝗴𝘂𝗱𝘂 𝗦𝗲𝗰𝗼𝗻𝗱𝗮𝗿𝘆 𝗦𝗰𝗵𝗼𝗼𝗹 & 𝗔𝗾𝘂𝗮𝗱𝗲𝗻𝗲 𝗦𝗲𝗰𝗼𝗻𝗱𝗮𝗿𝘆 𝗦𝗰𝗵𝗼𝗼𝗹 South Africa proudly stood out in this year’s World ORT Youth Entrepreneurship Programme (YEP) — a global competition featuring innovative learners from across the ORT network, including...
From Unemployment to Innovation
Thembeka always loved the ocean. After completing her Master’s degree in Marine Biology, she stepped into the world expecting to build a career in her field. Instead, she ran into a harsh reality: there were simply no jobs. Like many young South Africans, she found...
The Promise of Leadership
Our community recently celebrated the Investec Jewish Achievers Awards. It’s an energetic, high-profile event that puts a spotlight on leadership. But it also forces us to ask: what is leadership, really? After being nominated in the categories of Business Leadership...
Let Kidz Code Student Creates Award-Winning App
The future is digital; and learners in our South32 ORT SA Let Kidz Code program are proving just that! At this year’s Eskom Expo for Young Scientists, Grade 10 learner Melokuhle Ndlozi from Birdswood Secondary wowed the judges with his innovation: a mobile app called...
Breaking Barriers: Grade 6 Innovator Wins Silver at Eskom Expo
This Women’s Month, we celebrate the brilliance, determination, and potential of young girls who are shaping the future of science and technology. Meet Sheila Mawelele, a remarkable Grade 6 learner from Rebonwe Primary School, whose passion for innovation has already...
Empowering Learners Through Agriculture and Education
ORT SA CEO Ariellah Rosenberg Education and NGO Specialist, Head of Skills and Enterprise Development Ian Jacob, and Project Manager Christopher Dickie, together with members of the ORT SA team, recently visited the ORT SA AGT Foods Africa Mixed Farming Systems...
Turning Waste into Skills and Economic Growth
South Africa is facing a growing waste crisis. From overflowing landfills to rising e-waste, the environmental and social costs are becoming harder to ignore. But what if the solution to two of our biggest challenges—waste and unemployment—could actually be one and...
How AI Is Transforming Education
𝐑𝐞𝐰𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐑𝐮𝐥𝐞𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐂𝐥𝐚𝐬𝐬𝐫𝐨𝐨𝐦: 𝐇𝐨𝐰 𝐀𝐈 𝐈𝐬 𝐓𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐬𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐦𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐄𝐝𝐮𝐜𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 As a child, I sat at the front of the class—not out of ambition, but necessity. I couldn’t see the chalkboard from the back, and I struggled to focus. That challenge still exists in classrooms...
Remembering The Youth Of Yesterday
South Africa commemorated Youth Day; a time to reflect on the courage of those who came before us, and the boundless potential of those who are here now. At ORT SA, we want every young person to remember this: You have power. Power to choose. Power to change. Power to...
Digital is Daily: Why Digital Skills Are Now a Human Right
Not long ago, digital literacy was considered a bonus skill; something that gave you an edge in the job market or helped you send an email a little faster. But in today’s world, digital is no longer optional, it’s essential. From accessing basic services to finding a...
Job Hunting Feels Like A Dead-End? Lets Talk
Let’s be real: looking for a job right now feels overwhelmingly difficult. It’s like trying to win the lottery — blindfolded, in the dark, during a thunderstorm. And if you’re feeling like it’s just you, trust me, it’s not. Right now in South Africa, nearly 1 in 3...
