In the 1990s she moved to higher education and worked at the University of the Witwatersrand in applied legal studies. She served as technical expert in the drafting of the Constitution before working in the Department of Justice, inter alia as Chief Director Transformation and Equity. She served as a full-time member of the South African Law Reform Commission from 2007 to 2009. In 2009 she was appointed as South Africa’s third Public Protector, her term ending on 14 October 2016.

Adv Madonsela holds honorary doctorates in law from the universities of Stellenbosch, Cape Town and Fort Hare and Rhodes University. She has also been the recipient of a number of prestigious awards such as the Law Society of South Africa’s inaugural Truth and Justice Award; the German Africa Foundation’s annual prize; Transparency International’s prestigious Integrity Award in 2014; and, also in 2014, she was listed as one of TIME Magazine’s top 100 most influential people in the world.

Advocate Thuli Madonsela is an Advocate of the High Court of South Africa and a lifelong activist on social justice, constitutionalism, human rights, good governance and the rule of law. Named one of TIME100 influential people, in 2014 and Forbes Africa Person of the Year 2016, Thuli Madonsela is one of the drafters of South Africa’s Constitution and co-architect of several laws that have sought to illuminate South Africa’s democracy.

Thuli Madonsela was South Africa’s Public Protector for 7 years and Coarchitect and Founding Chairperson of the African Ombudsman Research Centre. She has a global reputation for integrity and fearlessness in enforcing accountability and justice in the exercise of public power and use of public resources.

She has a history of highlighting the importance of social justice and general inclusive enjoyment of the fruits of democracy in the pursuit of peace. Currently resident at Harvard University as an Advanced Leadership Fellow, Thuli Madonsela has accepted the Chair of Social Justice at Stellenbosch University with effect from January 2018. She is a Paul Harris Fellow, Tallberg Global Leader, and the recipient of Transparency International’s Integrity Award, the German Africa Prize and the Commonwealth Lawyers Truth and Justice Award, among her innumerable accolades.