Mouse-Free Marion Project Patrons
International Patrons of the MFM Project help raise awareness and credibility of the Project by sharing their reputation and visibility. They lend their names to the project by their endorsements, by helping to raise publicity and, when possible, by attending fund-raising and other events held by the project.
Dr Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka
Dr Mlambo-Ngcuka was appointed Deputy President of South Africa in 2005, following her term as the Minister of Minerals and Energy. She was the Executive Director of the United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and Empowerment of Women (UN Women) and a United Nations Under-Secretary-General, from 2013 to 2021. She is the founder and leader of the Umlambo Foundation, which is dedicated to the improvement of education and digital literacy training for educators, and sits on various Boards. She is currently Chancellor of South Africa’s University of Johannesburg.
Professor Steven Chown
Professor Steven Chown is a distinguished scientist of international repute and is currently the Director of Securing Antarctica’s Environmental Future, an Australian Research Council (ARC) Special Research Initiative in Excellence in Antarctic Science, based at Monash University in Melbourne, Australia, where he is also a Professor of Biological Sciences. Steven was the founding Director of the DST-NRF Centre for Invasion Biology at Stellenbosch University, South Africa and has spent the majority of his career studying biological processes at Marion Island.
Gloria Serobe
Gloria Serobe is a founding member and the Chief Executive Officer of WIPHOLD. She has previously held positions at the Exxon Corporation in the USA, Munich Reinsurance Company of SA, the Premier Group and Standard Corporate and Merchant Bank. She has also served as the Executive Director – Finance, at Transnet Limited, and as a member of the Transnet Board and its major subsidiaries.
His Royal Highness the Duke of Edinburgh
The Duke of Edinburgh is His Majesty The King’s brother and the youngest child of Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh. He dedicates much of his time as a full-time working member of the Royal Family to championing young people and promoting the benefits of non-formal education across the world.
Peter Harrison
Peter is an author and illustrator of several seabird identification guides including the critically acclaimed Seabirds: An Identification Guide, published in 1983. Peter is the co-founder of global travel company, Apex Expeditions. In recognition of his work in natural history and his global conservation efforts, Peter was made a Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) in the Queen’s Honours list in 1994.
Christel Takigawa
Christel started her career as a freelance newscaster after serving as anchor-woman of the Japanese news TV program FNN News Japan between 2002 and 2009. She is an advisor of WWF Japan and goodwill ambassador of Medecins du Monde. In 2013, she was awarded Chevalier of the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres from the Government of France.
