Mokgadi Miranda Hlongwane

• Lecturer, Department of Chemistry, Tshwane University of Technology

I am a Lecturer and Work-Integrated Learning Coordinator in the Department of Chemistry at Tshwane University of Technology. My research focuses on developing environmentally friendly rhizobia-based biofertilizers as sustainable alternatives to conventional chemical fertilizers. I am committed to advancing agricultural practices that promote soil health while improving crop productivity. My work explores how beneficial soil rhizobia, can naturally enhance nitrogen availability, reduce dependence on synthetic inputs, and support climate-resilient farming systems.

I employ multidisciplinary approach that combines biological nitrogen fixation, advanced analytical chemistry, and metabolomics to understand plant-microbe interactions under stress conditions such as drought and salinity. I am currently developing rhizobia-based bioinoculants for Lessertia frutescens, a medicinal plant of socioeconomic importance in South Africa. This work forms part of a project funded by the 2025 Elsevier Foundation Chemistry for Climate Action Challenge.

• –present Lecturer, Department of Chemistry, Tshwane University of Technology

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