F E AT U R E : W I T S I E 4 G O O D
COMMUNIT Y SIMON SIZWE MAYSON SAYS WE NEED NOT BE SO AFRAID OF AREAS OUTSIDE OUR COMFORT ZONES. B Y
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hen Simon Sizwe Mayson (MSc DP 2014) slips between the various community projects he has helped initiate it can make him seem a little invisible. But his light touch is actually a super power enabling him to be a “changemaker” who connects people and initiatives. He believes it gives people space to find their own leadership potential; and encourages them to take greater responsibility and ownership of projects. It’s an approach that’s made all the difference this winter as COVID-19 lockdowns hit hard in the community Mayson has called home for the past two years. Lorentzville is one of the Johannesburg East suburbs on the slope and rise of a valley that flanks the inner city; and it’s where Mayson, a PhD candidate in the Wits School of Architecture and Urban Planning, lives. Lockdown rapidly turned to job losses and food insecurity for many families and small business owners in these vulnerable and easily overlooked communities. Thanks to networks that Mayson helped strengthen over the past two years, however, the community was able to
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respond to help themselves and each other. Mayson managed to be part of a team that set up an emergency food response project before heading to family in Cape Town for the lower levels of lockdown. That he hasn’t been in Joburg overseeing the project the entire time speaks directly to his point that it’s not about topheavy leadership, but more about bonds, established over time. So many people working together means expertise can be pooled to maximum effect. These “many people” are part of Makers Valley Partners (MVP), a community from Bez Valley to Bertrams, Lorentzville, Judith’s Paarl, Troyeville and New Doornfontein. They are a collective of local artists, crafters, urban gardeners, designers, waste reclaimers, metal and wood workers as well as owners of all sizes and kinds of businesses. Knowing each other better means more opportunities for collaboration, sharing and learning. It also means buying local and using local expertise, local suppliers, creators, labour and artisans. It enhances wellbeing and raises the economic status of more people. The MVP network kicked in as hunger and
