Biography
Ms. Charity Maepa
Communications Officer and co-founder
University of Pretoria: Laboratory for microscopy and microanalysis (LMM)
Charity Maepa is a Microscopist at the Laboratory for microscopy and microanalysis (LMM), University of Pretoria since 2019 to date. As a microscopist, she actively supports both life and material science researchers to answer various research questions through various microscopy techniques (light, laser and electron microscopes). In 2008 she joined the Council of Science and Industrial Research (CSIR) straight from her undergrad until early 2019. This is where she discovered and grew her passion for microscopy while perusing her postgraduate studies part time. To her, microscopy is a fundamental tool for solving many of societal challenges and has over the years used, microscopy as a research tool on various fields of science, from polymers, clays, carbon nanostructures, noble nanoparticles, metals, plants and zoonotic and infectious diseases. Currently, her research and collaborations focuses on the characterization of nuclear material silicon carbide and glassy carbon for nuclear reactors and nuclear waste management.
Charity has an active interest in microscopy science communication and training. To this effect, she is the communication officer and co-founder of the African Inclusive Microscopy- Network, an executive committee member of the Microscopy Society of Southern Africa (MSSA) as well as the local organizing committee of the MSSA 57th chapter for 2022. While at the CSIR, Charity was nominated as a youth ambassador to promote science as a career, by giving TV and radio interviews as well as keynote address. To her, science communication should be normalized in the society to the same level as music and she addresses this through various social media platforms @InMicroscopy.
Education
- M Tech, Environmental management: Tshwane University of Technology, Department of Environmental, Water and Earth Sciences in the Faculty of Science, 2018
- B Tech, Chemistry: Tshwane University of Technology, 2012
- Major Subjects: Physical Chemistry, Analytical Chemistry, Organic Chemistry and Inorganic Chemistry
Microscopy Techniques
- HR Transmission Electron Microscopy
- HR Scanning Electron Microscopy
- Spectroscopy:
- Energy Dispersive X-Ray (EDS) (TEM and SEM)
- X-Ray Diffraction (XRD)
- Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM)
- Light Microscopy (LM)
- Laser Scanning Confocal Microscopy (LCSM)
- Fourier Transformed Infrared (FTIR) Microscopy (FTIR)
Microscopy Activities
- African Inclusive Microscopy, EA Microscopy 2021 Workshop – Organiser
- African Inclusive Microscopy, EA Microscopy 2021 Workshop – Presenter
- African Inclusive Microscopy, SA Microscopy 2020 Workshop – Organiser
- JEOL UK, HR TEM and HR SEM Training 2019 – Attendee, Funding received from the NRF (KIC Funding Instrument)
- JEOL UK, Thermofisher Scientific EDS Training 2019 – Attendee, Funding received from the NRF (KIC Funding Instrument)
- University of Cape Town, Cryo –Electron Microscopy, sample preparation, imaging and processing Workshop 2019- Attendee
- Microscopy in Material Science 2018 Workshop – Organiser
- CSIR In-house Microscopy Training 2016-2019 – Presenter
- MSSA 2022 Organizing committee