Our Board members

Heidi Newton-King

Fired up by Spier’s intention to build a powerful values based culture and sustainable business practices, Heidi signed up to the team in 1998. She has been the lynchpin for many of Spier’s community partnerships and has brokered several successful collaborations. She is convinced that a sea change is possible if we all do small things differently, every day. Heidi is strategically responsible for the Human Resources and Sustainability portfolio of the Spier group of Companies. She transitioned into the Sustainability portfolio after a five-year stint running the Leisure operations at Spier in 2013. She has over twenty years Human Resources and Business experience largely in the financial services and tourism industries. Prior to Spier, Heidi was with the Hollard Insurance Company for seven years. She completed her Masters in Sustainability with Ashridge Business School in the United Kingdom in 2016.

Jess Schulschenk

Jess is passionate about the role of transformative learning to support the transition to just and generative futures. Much of her work, as co-director for the Sustainability Institute, unfolds within Lynedoch Ecovillage in Stellenbosch, South Africa where we have been working for the past twenty years to realise social justice and ecological restoration through our learning programmes that span from early childhood development through to lifelong learning.

Kerri Savin

Kerri Savin is part of the team leading sustainability at Nedbank. She specialises in strategy development and implementation, impact investment, reporting and stakeholder engagement. Responsibilities, in addition to the integration of sustainability into Nedbank’s strategy, include managing the Nedbank Legacy Trust as well as managing the group’s relationship with prominent NGO partners such as the WWF to protect some of SAs most prominent water source areas. Before joining Nedbank Group she headed the Communication Practice at Alexander Forbes Financial Services. Qualifications include a PGDip in Sustainable Development from Stellenbosch University and Marketing Management from IMM.

Grant Prince

Grant is Head of SME portfolios at Fetola, where his focus is to help businesses grow by getting them ready for investments and opening opportunities through market access. Fetola is focused on empowering and mentoring SMEs across the African continent.

As a board member, Grant is part of the finance committee and provides valuable insights into the financial aspects of the Sustainability Institute, in line with our strategic focus areas.

Rosaline van Niekerk

Ross is a registered Assessor and Facilitator. She holds a NQF level 4 and NQF level 5 Diploma in Early Childhood Development. She is the epitome of someone who practices what she believes, due to her practical experience of working with children. Every person working with children must realise the important role they play in a child’s life, because we are the people who help build a holistic developed child.

Shaun Dunn

Shaun is Durban born and relocated to the Western Cape in 2021. Community is important to him. Knowing where he comes from, keeps him grounded and allows him connection to others in heart-felt ways. Professionally, he finds that youth have been the group that he has worked with for most of his life. A wise mentor once said to him, if you want to remain young, ensure you learn from the children. She was in her 80’s and in her eyes, youth were children. Being a trustee, he hopes to bring that spirit of community with that reminder to learn from children and youth, and sharing ideas that are hopefully wholesome, fresh and relevant.

Stefano Semprini

Stefano enjoys rock climbing and slow conversation. He trained (at an undergraduate level) in mechatronic engineering, at Stellenbosch University. After a few years of work in mechanical design and renewable energy, he escaped on a life-learning travel adventure. While traveling, he also engaged in self-directed study of biomimicry and systems thinking. Now, back in a slightly more settled existence, he is discovering ways to play his role in the artful creation of “the more beautiful world our hearts know is possible.”