Member Honours

Member honours – a running record

Recognition earned, year by year.

SAYAS members are recognised in national and international awards for research, leadership and public science. This page keeps the record, and grows as new honours are announced.

The honours roll

Members recognised, most recent first.

Each entry records the member, the award, and the body that made it. Where a member has been honoured more than once, every award is recorded on their entry.

2026Four members · six honours
Dr Avela Majavu

Winner2026

Dr Avela Majavu

Research and Development Chemist, Sibanye-Stillwater Precious Metals Refinery

Global Women of Influence Award

Precious metals refining

Prof. Muthumuni Managa with her NRF Research Excellence Award

Winner3 September 2026

Prof. Muthumuni Managa

Institute for Nanotechnology and Water Sustainability, UNISA

Research Excellence Award

NRF Awards · Early Career and Emerging Researchers

Nanotechnology for water sustainability

2 more honours in 2026
  • Raikes Medal, South African Chemical Institute.
  • South African Women in Science Awards, Distinguished Young Woman Researcher — Natural and Engineering Sciences, 2nd runner-up.
Dr Yaseera Ismail with her South African Women in Science Awards 2026 certificate

1st runner-up20 August 2026

Dr Yaseera Ismail

Physics, Stellenbosch University · QuPhotonics Lab

Distinguished Young Woman Researcher

South African Women in Science Awards · Natural and Engineering Sciences

Quantum communication and secure free-space optics

Dr Jairus Lamola at the Mail & Guardian 200 Young South Africans awards

Top 200August 2026

Dr Jairus Lamola

Research Scientist, Sasol Research and Technology

200 Young South Africans

Mail & Guardian · Technology and Innovation

Fischer–Tropsch catalysts and sustainable aviation fuel

Read the Mail & Guardian profile →

Keep the record complete

If a SAYAS member has been honoured, we want it on this page.

Send the award, the date, the awarding body and a photograph, and it will be added to the roll.