19/08/2026
When people from different countries, generations and professional backgrounds come together to share insights about education, opportunity and inequality, the conversation becomes more than academic. It becomes a powerful cross-cultural exchange about how learning is experienced, supported and made meaningful across different contexts.
This was the spirit of CRET’s recent engagement with a cohort from Central Michigan University in the United States: academics and students pursuing their master’s qualifications. They joined CRET Executive Director Chantelle Oosthuizen and CRET alumni for a dialogue on Education, Social Justice and Youth Opportunity in South Africa.
The discussion brought different perspectives into conversation through a shared reflection on what it takes for people to access, remain in and succeed through education. The mix of academic, professional and lived experience in the room added depth to the exchange, showing that education is not a single journey, but a lifelong pursuit shaped by context, opportunity, and support.
CRET alumni Thami Gaizde, Samantha Luthuli, Noluthando Malindi, Thabang Vilakazi and Dr Sazi Nzama generously shared their education journeys, the barriers they overcame and the support that helped them reach their goals. As graduates and working professionals, their reflections offered practical insight into educational inequality, the hidden costs of higher education, diverse pathways into and through education, and the responsibility of those who have progressed to help create opportunities for others.
CRET extends appreciation to our CMU guests and to our alumni for sharing their experiences so generously, and for engaging with curiosity, openness and respect. Such cross-cultural exchanges deepen our shared understanding, challenge assumptions, and remind us that education is both a local reality and a global responsibility.
