19 May 2026 Volume :14 Issue :18
PhD Graduate Promotes Underutilised Crops and Science Communication
Dr Anne Chisa is carving a career in research and science communication.Dr Anne Chisa is celebrating the
culmination of a PhD journey that has not only filled research gaps on a climate-smart
indigenous crop species, but also launched an entire online science
communication platform which promotes African science and innovation.
Born in Malawi, Chisa has lived
in Pietermaritzburg most of her life after her family relocated so her father
could pursue his studies at the University of KwaZulu-Natal (UKZN), an institution
that has featured strongly in her life and her number one choice after
matriculating from Pietermaritzburg Girls’ High School, thanks to the
Institution’s renowned agricultural sciences offering.
On the advice of a family friend
in agricultural engineering, who recognised Chisa’s love of biology and
geography, she explored how agriculture encompasses both. Despite being a
reluctant gardening assistant to her mother as a child, her exposure to working
with plants prepared her to enter the field of crop science.
Completing her entire academic
journey at UKZN, Chisa appreciated its supportive research environment and felt
encouraged and supported by staff throughout. Being one of the few universities
that offer fee remission for master’s and PhD study was also attractive, and
Chisa highlighted the privilege this affords, particularly for students lacking
financial resources.
Her PhD study, titled:
‘Characterisation of Underutilised Legumes for Climate-Smart Agriculture under
Water Stress’, promotes underutilised, climate-smart legumes for food and
nutritional security under drought conditions. Chisa examined root
architecture, seed coat traits and seed priming strategies to improve drought
tolerance and early seedling establishment for Bambara groundnut. This
naturally resilient crop is under-researched and underutilised and improving
understanding of its physiological and morphological traits could contribute to
climate-smart agriculture, enhance crop diversification, and support food
security in drought-prone regions of sub-Saharan Africa.
Chisa found significant
variations among Bambara groundnut landraces in drought tolerance, root traits
and seed coat characteristics. Some landraces showed strong early establishment
and drought resilience, highlighting their potential for breeding and climate
adaptation strategies. She also observed the trade-off between seed protection
and rapid germination. Certain seed coat traits enhanced protection but slowed
emergence, while others promoted faster establishment, important insights for
breeding and crop improvement programmes.
The PhD journey included regular
setbacks with experimental failure, needing to restart projects and faing
moments of doubt that tested her resolve.
Chisa values the community of
friends and colleagues she made at UKZN, and thanked her supervisors, Professor
Paramu Mafongoya and Professor Alfred Odindo, for their guidance, support and
funding. She also thanked Dr Takudzwa Mandizvo for his instrumental
collaboration, UKZN and everyone who contributed to her work, including the
science and science communication community, who are a source of inspiration.
Chisa credited her family,
particularly her parents, for the foundational role they played in her life,
and called her younger sister, Tapiwa, her biggest motivation. She thanked her
fiancé for his faithful support and said that God had given her the grace to
pursue her studies and her passion for science communication as well as to grow
personally and professionally as a result.
In 2020, Chisa started the Root
of Science Podcast to amplify African perspectives on science, health and
innovation. This evolved into Root of Science Media, an online science
communication platform. Committing her efforts to this pursuit during her studies
required discipline, resilience and self-belief, and despite the challenge of
juggling this with her studies, it complemented her research, provided a source
of strength, sparked friendships and networking, inspired her to prioritise her
mental health while pursuing a PhD and improved her skill at communicating
science in an accessible way, strengthening her academic work.
Chisa is now working as a
technology transfer officer at Stellenbosch University, an exciting next step
in her career that marries her research, science communication, and
storytelling experience. She is helping researchers translate their work into
real-world impact, whether through intellectual property, commercialisation, or
innovation development.
“Through Root of Science
Media and [my] current role, my goal has always been to make science
meaningful and accessible, and now I get to do that on an even bigger scale,”
added Chisa.
Words: Christine Cuénod
Photograph: Sethu Dlamini
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