Yoliswa Sikhosana

Yoliswa is a is a graduate of the University of KwaZulu-Natal where she is currently enrolled in a Master's degree in Public Policy. Her academic exposure to the field of International Relations during her undergraduate years have allowed her to view South Africa's domestic politics as inherently tethered to global politics, assisting her in getting a more wholistic understanding of governing policies.

Yoliswa is passionate about social justice and has written extensively about human rights violations in her academic research. Her Honours thesis was on the progressive policy of decriminalising sex work, arguing that not decriminalising it would be an affront to women's rights and  and to women's bodily autonomy.

She has also been involved in democratic processes through her involvement with the IEC, co-running a voting station in her capacity as a deputy presiding officer.

Alongside her involvement with ASRI, she is also currently doing work at the Impact Centre of the Human Sciences Research Council, measuring the impact of science in society. Working under the guidance of notable members of the research and policy space, Yoliswa has been exposed to big science projects such as the SKA Telescope, ATTRACT and LEAP-RE. She hopes to continue to do work that ties into social advancement, social equity, democracy, governance, research and academia and believes that ASRI Future Leaders Programme is a great opportunity to do just that.