by Web Admin | Oct 25, 2025
Suntosh R. Pillay (he/him) is the chief clinical psychologist for the eThekwini District in the KZN Department of Health. He has over 15 years of experience in the public health sector and worked at various facilities, including King Dinuzulu Hospital Complex, in Durban. He affiliated to the Nelson R. Mandela School of Medicine, University of KwaZulu-Natal, as an adjunct researcher, and is a PHD candidate at UNISA. Suntosh’s work is centred around critical, community and decolonial psychologies, including setting up mental health support groups, advocacy structures, and grassroots projects. He is a core member of the African LGBTQIA+ Human Rights Project for over 10 years. In terms of academic citizenship, Suntosh is an Associate Editor for Psychology in Society (PINS) and on the editorial board of the South African Journal of Psychology (SAJP). In 2024, he was awarded the PsySSA prize for Service to Community. His publications are available on Google Scholar and Research Gate.
by PsySSA-Web Support | Oct 25, 2025
Geraldine Franciscus is a Counselling Psychologist, the Head of the Psychology Department and Senior Lecturer, at Cornerstone Institute. She has a special interest in Brain Working Recursive Therapy and Solution Focussed Brief Therapy and its application in the South African context. Geraldine enjoys being involved in collaborative research. Some of this research has resulted in a publication in the International Journal of Higher Education and Democracy: “Assessing the Impact of Outcomes-Based Education, Family Dynamics, and Psychosocial Stressors on Student Academic Adjustment in South Africa”. She is passionate about promoting community mental health and well-being. She is a past executive member of the Psychological Society of South Africa’s Counselling Psychology Division (SAACP), as the former Chair (2019-2021) and Vice Chair of the division (2017-2019). She runs a small part-time counselling private practice.
by PsySSA-Web Support | Oct 25, 2025
Avivit Cherrington is an educational psychologist with expertise in community development and system-level programmes for mental health and well-being.
She is currently an independent consultant and a Research Associate with Nelson Mandela University, supervising postgraduate students aligned to the Chair for Critical Studies in Higher Education Transformation (CriSHET). She was senior lecturer and BEdHonours Programme Co-ordinator at School of Education, STADIO Private Higher Education and has consulted to various private education institutions on curriculum reviews and research capacity development. Her research has focused on understanding and fostering well-being and hope from an Afrocentric lens, as well as promoting critical thinking and engaged humanising pedagogy in teacher education programmes to foster future teachers who are agents of transformative social change. She has served two consecutive terms as Chair of CaSP, as well as one term as Deputy Chair.
by PsySSA-Web Support | Oct 24, 2025
Dené Du Rand is a Clinical Psychologist and full-time lecturer in the Department of Psychology at the University of South Africa (UNISA), where she is also part of the clinical team who is responsible for the Masters in Clinical Psychology programme. In the Clinical programme, she teaches African Epistemologies, Ecosystemic theories and Ethics, Legislation, and Professional Psychological practice.
Her research interests include indigenous collective trauma, historical trauma, indigenous knowledge and healing systems, decolonial theories, community health and well-being.
by PsySSA-Web Support | Oct 23, 2025
Rivendri Govender is an Educational Psychologist in private practice at Japari Remedial School, with a Master of Social Sciences in Educational Psychology from the University of KwaZulu-Natal. She serves as a research supervisor to postgraduate psychology students at the IIE Varsity College and leads mental health advocacy initiatives through the KZN Mental Health Advocacy Group through her role as a Project Coordinator. Featured in national media for her work, Rivendri is passionate about autism support, inclusive education, and creating accessible, stigma-free mental health spaces across South Africa.
