Meet your course instructors

Meet your course instructors: 

Katharina Gihring 

Katharina is the Chief Environmental Officer of the African Circular Economy Network (ACEN) and has a key role in further operationalising ACEN to grow the success of the network. She is a circular economy consultant working across sectors to accelerate the circular transition in Africa. A specialist in multisector collaboration, stakeholder convening, and project management, her work with ACEN and Circular South Africa is aimed at activating collective intelligence in the circular space. Working with the national government, diplomatic missions, NGOs, and the private sector, she is a vocal advocate for the role of a just circular economy transition in Africa.   

Mark Lamani 

Mark Lamani is the Community Engagement Manager at Circular South Africa, where he facilitates collaboration between communities, businesses, and partners to advance the circular economy in South Africa. His work focuses on stakeholder relationship management, social impact, and building partnerships that strengthen circular economy practice across sectors.  

Mark is also an entrepreneur and co-owner of Kefir Life, a business providing natural gut-health alternatives. As a business owner, he brings practical insight into circular business models and how value can be created through resource efficiency, reuse, and responsible production.  

Through Circular South Africa, Mark has worked closely with many of the organisations featured in this course. Several of the case studies were shared through the Circular Lunch Club, where he facilitated discussions and knowledge-sharing with founders and teams implementing circular solutions. In this course, Mark helps bring these real-world examples to life, offering learners grounded insights into how the circular economy is being applied in South Africa.  

Maré de Witt 

Maré de Witt is a circular economy consultant, educator, and systems thinker with a background in industrial engineering and economics. Her work focuses on applying circular economy principles through systems thinking, value chain analysis, and practical business strategy.  

Maré works at the intersection of sustainability and commercial decision-making, with a strong belief that environmental and social impact must be supported by financially viable business models. She is currently focused on designing and delivering training and learning programmes that make circular economy concepts accessible, practical, and relevant for real-world applications.  

She has contributed to circular economy initiatives and learning programmes through Circular South Africa and the African Circular Economy Network (ACEN), and has worked with Leyla Acaroglu, gaining exposure to global circular design thinking and systems-led approaches to sustainability education.  

In her courses, Maré combines global circular economy principles with South African case studies, helping learners build confidence as they begin applying circular thinking in practice.