For nearly two decades, Thobile Zulu has been working to ensure that the health and wellbeing of students remain firmly on the agenda at the Durban University of Technology (DUT).
Born and raised in the rural KwaZulu-Natal communities of Mambulu and Maphumulo, Zulu has served as DUT’s Specialist HIV/AIDS Coordinator since 2006. Her work spans HIV prevention, care and support, health promotion, gender-based violence (GBV), sexual diversity and inclusion.
A commitment to social justice and public health took root during her Social Sciences studies at the University of KwaZulu-Natal. Her first practical experience came through peer education programmes at two rural high schools in KwaHlabisa, where she designed and implemented behavioural change interventions.
Working directly with young people showed her the difference that knowledge and practical skills could make to their attitudes and choices around HIV and health.
Her subsequent work at the South African Medical Research Council exposed her to HIV/AIDS as both a health and social crisis, particularly among young people. The experience convinced her that research alone was not enough; meaningful change also required sustained programmes in institutions where young people’s lives are shaped.
That thinking eventually brought her to DUT.
In her current role, Zulu oversees institution-wide health promotion programmes and works to ensure students have access to services that respond to their needs. She also plays a significant role in securing and managing funding, with more than R4 million secured through Higher Health and other partners to strengthen HIV/AIDS programming.
One of the most visible aspects of her work has been DUT’s response to GBV. Zulu helped build the University’s GBV awareness campaign from the ground up. Now entering its 12th year, the campaign has become an annual platform for keeping GBV visible and encouraging students and staff to confront the issue.
The health promotion programme has also expanded beyond its original focus, incorporating sexual diversity and inclusion and recognising a wider range of student experiences.
“Every year the campaign continues, it reaches a new cohort of students who might not otherwise have engaged with these conversations,” she says.
Academic achievement has been another important part of Zulu’s journey. In 2025, she completed her PhD in Sociology through UNISA, a milestone achieved while managing a demanding full-time role.
Balancing institution-wide programme oversight, grant management, postgraduate mentorship and doctoral research was one of the most difficult periods of her career.
She credits disciplined time management, mentors and supportive colleagues with helping her through it.
The experience has also shaped the advice she gives young women: build a strong academic foundation, but do not wait for perfect circumstances before pursuing further study. Practical experience matters just as much, she says, while mentors can provide crucial support during difficult periods.
Her understanding of leadership has been influenced by the academics and public health professionals she has worked with throughout her career. They taught her that effective leadership requires both evidence and compassion.
“You need the evidence and the methodology, but you also need to stay close to the human realities the data represents.”
That principle is particularly important in her work with students.
“Health is foundational to academic success; a student cannot perform well if their physical and psychosocial wellbeing is compromised.”
The programmes she coordinates are therefore not simply health interventions. They contribute to keeping students in the system, supporting them to complete their studies and creating an institutional environment in which they can succeed.
Beyond the reports, research and programmes is a personal concern for the young people she serves.
“Every HIV prevention session, every peer education engagement, and every student I support through our programmes is, for me, an investment in someone’s future, in the person they are becoming, not just in a statistic or an outcome.”
That commitment informs the legacy she hopes to leave at DUT.
She wants to see the University recognised as a leader in HIV and GBV programmes, while remaining a safe and inclusive space for everyone, irrespective of sexual orientation. More importantly, she wants the systems established through these programmes to continue beyond her own tenure.
The goal is a sustainably funded, research-informed institutional response supported by a new generation of peer educators who can carry the work forward.
Women’s Month provides an opportunity to reflect on the resilience behind women’s achievements, particularly in fields where women have had to claim space rather than simply inherit it.
“Women’s Month is a moment to reflect on the resilience of women who have built careers and led change in spaces that were not given to them, but that they had to fight for.”
Her message is also about making sure that the next generation has a place to lead.
“Keep claiming and holding the door open to the next generation of women who will need to lead.”
Zulu’s own journey is grounded in that same idea of opening doors. From rural KwaZulu-Natal to public health, research and nearly 20 years of institutional work at DUT, she has built a career around creating opportunities for young people to make informed decisions about their health and futures.
Her work is not always visible in the University’s most prominent spaces, but its impact is reflected in the programmes that continue year after year, the peer educators who carry the message forward and the students who receive support when they need it most.
The legacy she hopes to leave is therefore bigger than any single campaign: a DUT that is healthier, safer, more inclusive and equipped to keep the work going.
Pictured: Thobile Zulu, Specialist HIV/AIDS Coordinator at the Durban University of Technology.
Tiyani Mboweni
