Joanne Brink – Yidan Prize Nomination | Transforming Futures Through Digital Access

Описание: Across rural and under-resourced communities in South Africa, millions of young people are excluded from the digital economy — not because of a lack of potential, but because of a lack of access, opportunity, and belief.

Joanne Brink, founder of TechWays Foundation, is changing that.

Her work reimagines what education can look like for young people who have been left out of traditional systems. By combining practical digital skills, mentorship, and real pathways to income, Joanne’s model helps youth move from digital exclusion to economic participation — building websites, creating digital products, freelancing, and launching micro-enterprises in their own communities.

But the impact goes deeper than skills. Joanne’s approach restores confidence, agency, and long-term possibility. Learners who once doubted their future now build portfolios, serve paying clients, and see themselves as contributors to the global digital economy.

Her vision is not only to run programmes, but to build a scalable, community-embedded model that can be replicated across regions facing high youth unemployment and limited access to technology-based education. By strengthening local facilitators, alumni networks, and real market linkages, Joanne is creating sustainable pathways from learning to earning.

This nomination recognises her commitment to inclusive, future-focused education — education that meets young people where they are and equips them to shape their own futures.

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