SALO’s Clever Chikwanda awarded PhD

SALO’s Clever Chikwanda was officially awarded a PhD in Sport, Recreation and Exercise Science (SRES) at the University of the Western Cape on 17 September 2014. He studied with the Interdisciplinary Centre of Excellence for Sport Science and Development ICESSD. His thesis is entitled: “Combining sport and mediation skills for community healing: A multiple case study of two post-conflict communities in South Africa and Zimbabwe.”

Below is the citation by his supervisor- Professor Marion Keim Lees, on the occasion of his graduation:

“Clever Chikwanda’s thesis focuses on the powerful role of sport as a catalyst for community healing in Zimbabwe and South Africa. His study, based in Mfuleni outside CapeTown, and Highfield, outside Harare, examines the avenues through which sport and mediation can be combined for effective peace-building interventions for high school youth. His research is grounded within the framework of the Logic Model, and utilises Lederach’s Multi-Level Leadership Pyramid to locate and connect key actors and critical resources, vertically and horizontally. Examiners commented that the strengths of the thesis are the candidate’s contribution to capacity building for youth to enable them to deal with community conflicts, and his strong delivery of a comprehensive model of training interventions. The examiners also agreed that this is a pioneering study which advances knowledge and innovation in the sport and development field in Africa and globally.”