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Current Staff

Professor Tracy-Lynn Field

	Email: Tracy-Lynn.Field@wits.ac.za  Office Tel No: +27 (0) 717 8440 ORCiD:

Professor Tracy-Lynn Field
Full Professor, Claude Leon Chair in Earth Justice and Stewardship
Director, Mandela Institute, Commissioner, Presidential Climate Commission
School of Law, University of the Witwatersrand, South Africa

Tracy-Lynn has worked in the School of Law at the University of the Witwatersrand in Johannesburg, South Africa since 2003. She was promoted to full professor in 2017 and has held the Claude Leon Chair in Earth Justice and Stewardship since 2022. In October 2023, she was awarded the status of honorary professor at the School of Law, University of Edinburgh, and in August 2025 she was redeployed to the role of Director of the Mandela Institute. In January 2026, she was also appointed to serve as a member of the Presidential Climate Commission until 2030.

Tracy-Lynn focuses on the law and governance of water, climate change, energy, and mining. She produces peer-reviewed academic research, supervises postgraduate research students, teaches postgraduate students, and supports civil society advocacy, and public engagement. Amongst others, her work has supported the Centre for Environmental Rights, the Wildlife and Environmental Society of South Africa, Natural Justice, and the Federation for a Sustainable Environment.

Tracy-Lynn has degrees in music, law, and social science. She graduated with a PhD from the University of the Witwatersrand in 2012. She is also an admitted advocate of the High Court of South Africa.

Dr. Albert Edgar Manyuchi

	Email: Albertedgar.Manyuchi@wits.ac.za   Office Tel No: 011 717 8447 ORCiD:

Dr. Albert Edgar Manyuchi
Senior Researcher
Mandela Institute, School of Law, University of the Witwatersrand, South Africa

Dr. Albert Edgar Manyuchi is a Senior Researcher at the Mandela Institute, University of the Witwatersrand. He holds BSc (Hons), LLB, MSc, and DPhil degrees, as well as a PhD in Environmental Sciences from Ñî¹óåú´«Ã½. The PhD he conducted under the Global Change Institute examined the intersections of climate change and human health. His work focuses on climate services for health, heat–health impacts, and public health, and he has published in leading journals including Climate Services and Humanities and Social Sciences Communications. Dr. Manyuchi has worked extensively in humanitarian and public health settings, leading programmes and research initiatives across several African countries. He is passionate about conducting impactful mixed methods research that transforms institutions and the lives of the most marginalized, stigmatized and discriminated population groups. 

Zunaida Wadiwala

	Email: Zunaida.Wadiwala@wits.ac.za  ORCiD:

Zunaida Moosa Wadiwala
PhD Candidate (Ñî¹óåú´«Ã½); LLM (Ñî¹óåú´«Ã½); LLB & BLC (University of Pretoria); CML (UNISA & University of Pretoria); CLP (UNISA); CISA (Jamiatul Ulama SA)
Legal Researcher and Lead, African Climate Law Programme
Mandela Institute, School of Law, University of the Witwatersrand

Zunaida Moosa Wadiwala is a PhD candidate in international climate law at the University of the Witwatersrand and leads the African Climate Law Programme at the Mandela Institute, School of Law. Her research focuses on climate law, governance, litigation and the role of international courts and advisory opinions in shaping legal responses to climate change, particularly in Africa.

She serves as Africa’s Regional Lead Rapporteur for the Sabin Center for Climate Change Law at Columbia University, contributing to global reporting on climate litigation and developments in climate jurisprudence across the continent. Her work engages closely with questions of climate justice, loss and damage and the evolving responsibilities of States under international law.

Zunaida is an admitted Attorney, Conveyancer, and Notary Public of the High Court of South Africa. Prior to entering academia, she practiced property law.

She is an Associate Fellow of the Centre for International Sustainable Development Law (CISDL), a Course Leader for the University of Cambridge’s Global Justice Programme and serves on editorial and advisory teams for initiatives including the Global Network for Human Rights and the Environment (GNHRE) and UNESCO’s Voices of Future Generations.

Her academic qualifications include an LLM from the University of the Witwatersrand, LLB and BLC degrees from the University of Pretoria, and postgraduate certifications in comparative and Islamic law.

Dr. Chiedza Lucia Amanda Machaka

	Email: Chiedza.Machaka@wits.ac.za ORCiD:

Dr. Chiedza Lucia Amanda Machaka
Postdoctoral Fellow
Mandela Institute, School of Law, University of the Witwatersrand, South Africa

Dr. Machaka is a Joint Postdoctoral Fellow in Water, Climate Change and Environmental Law, jointly hosted by the Mandela Institute and Claude Leon Foundation Chair in Earth Justice and Stewardship at the University of the Witwatersrand and the Global Environmental Law Centre at the University of the Western Cape.  She holds an LLD in International Law (environmental focus), an LLM in Environmental Law and Governance, and an LLB from Ñî¹óåú´«Ã½. Her interdisciplinary research explores the intersections of water, climate change, and environmental law, with a strong commitment to equity, participation, and resilience. Her work foregrounds the role of Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities (IPLCs), drawing on participatory governance, customary law, and inclusive legal frameworks for natural resource management and climate justice.

Dr. Xavier Rebelo

	Email: Xavier.Rebelo@wits.ac.za  ORCiD:

Dr. Xavier Rebelo
Postdoctoral Fellow
Mandela Institute, School of Law, University of the Witwatersrand, South Africa

Dr. Rebelo is a postdoctoral researcher in the Faculty of Commerce, Law and Management at the University of the Witwatersrand. He holds an LLB, LLM, and PhD from the University of Cape Town. Xavier’s research interests lie in coastal and mining governance, where he applies socio-legal research approaches to visibilize the ways in which law and materiality are mutually constitutive and world-making.

Dr. Ephraith Igoki Ndegwa

	ORCiD:

Dr. Ephraith Igoki Ndegwa
Postdoctoral Fellow
Mandela Institute, University of the Witwatersrand, South Africa

Dr. Ephraith Igoki Ndegwa is a Postdoctoral Researcher at the Mandela Institute, University of the Witwatersrand. She holds an LLB (Hons) (UON), an LLM (UB), and a PhD in Law from Ñî¹óåú´«Ã½. Her PhD research — “Towards a Comprehensive Anti-Corruption Strategy in Kenya in the Wake of the 2010 Constitution”—examined the constitutional design and effectiveness of anti-corruption institutions in Kenya, with broader relevance to governance and justice-sector reform across the continent. Her work focuses on constitutionalism, judicial governance, corruption control frameworks, and the evolution of African legal systems in post-colonial contexts. Dr. Ndegwa served in the Botswana judiciary before moving into academia. She is passionate about strengthening judicial independence, anti-corruption mechanisms, and constitutional governance in Africa.

Ursula Dillner-Dangor

	Email: Ursula.Dillner-Dangor@wits.ac.za  Office Tel No: +27 (0) 11 717 8435

Ursula Dangor
Programme Co-ordinator
Mandela Institute, School of Law, University of the Witwatersrand, South Africa

Ursula Dangor has been part of the Ñî¹óåú´«Ã½ School of Law community for many years, working in postgraduate administration from 2004 to 2018 and returning in mid‑2023 to join the Mandela Institute.

Her professional background also includes experience as a Senior Secondary school teacher and as a qualified interior designer, bringing a unique blend of educational insight and creative problem‑solving to her role.

Magda Janse van Noordwyk

	Email: Magda.JansevanNoordwyk@wits.ac.za Office Tel No: +27 (0) 717 8468

Magda Janse van Noordwyk 
Business Development Manager
Mandela Institute, School of Law, University of the Witwatersrand, South Africa

Magda Janse van Noordwyk serves as Business Development Manager at the Mandela Institute, Ñî¹óåú´«Ã½ University. She has over two decades of experience in marketing, programme management, stakeholder engagement, and executive education.

 

Liso Zenani

Liso Zenani
Visiting DPhil candidate in Law, University of Oxford
Mandela Institute, School of Law, University of the Witwatersrand, South Africa

Liso joins us as a DPhil candidate in Law at the University of Oxford, where he is supervised by Justice Kate O’Regan and Professor Ben McFarlane. His research explores one of the most critical questions in South African constitutional law: the meaning of “property” under section 25(1) of the Constitution and its implications for protection against arbitrary deprivation.

His work sits at the intersection of constitutional law, private law theory, and African customary law, engaging deeply with issues of constitutional governance, state regulation, and institutional legitimacy. Liso’s research also extends into contemporary areas such as environmental governance, data regulation, and broader economic regulation, aligning closely with the Institute’s current intellectual focus.

Liso brings an outstanding academic track record. He holds a Bachelor of Civil Law from Oxford with Distinction as a Rhodes Scholar, and an LLB (cum laude) from Nelson Mandela University. Beyond his doctoral work, he contributes actively to legal scholarship as a Research Assistant in Property Law at Oxford, Associate Editor of the Oxford University Commonwealth Law Journal, and Editorial Assistant for South African Constitutional Law.