A brighter future from the ground up

TRONOX KZN SANDS

INVESTS IN EDUCATIONCorporate citizenship is part of our business...

Somopho Community Crèche

Tronox Mineral Sands (Pty) Ltd is a division of Tronox Ltd a leading international pigment company based in the United States, with Tronox KZN Sands operating as a business unit of the Mineral Sands division.

At Tronox, corporate citizenship is an integral part of our global business.  We believe that our business can and should play a leadership role in improving the quality of life in the communities in which we operate.  All around the world we are continually challenging ourselves to promote sustainable growth, invest in green technologies, be transparent in all our business operations,

and make positive contributions in the communities where we live and work.

Local socio-economic development reflects the commitment by Tronox KZN Sands to local and provincial government to create sustainable communities with a positive growth future in the areas where the company is operational. These communities should continue to be self-sustainable regardless of the continued operation of Tronox KZN Sands in the area. One of the objectives of the company is to leave a legacy in the areas of operation through empowering communities with knowledge

and skills to become sustainable.Focus areas: formal education; skills

development; enterprise development; infrastructure development and environmental awareness. When LED projects are identified, needs analysis with the traditional authorities and alignment with the applicable IDP of the municipality are critical.

Education forms an integral part of the projects that Tronox develops with the main focus on math and science improvement and environmental awareness through different projects.

The need for pre-school children to get the necessary exposure to develop hand and eye co-ordination and other skills needed to be accepted at any primary school, was identified by the Somopho Traditional Authority in ward 8. Rural toddlers need to develop hand and eye co-ordination and other basic skills to be ready for

primary schools.A crèche was constructed, teachers

from the local areas were identified

and trained and the crèche was registered with the local education department and social welfare. This facility filled a great need in the immediate local area, where families are very poor and transport is a luxury. Toddlers from 3 months to grade 0 now have a place where they can be developed and taken care of.

The crèche was handed over to the local community and Somopho Traditional Authority to run after three years of active participation from Tronox.

Learn

ers le

arn more about different shapes

Proud Grade 0 students show off their drawings

Rural schools in general do not have the luxury of having their own libraries. Gobandlovu Primary neighbouring the Hillendale Mine is such a school with a large attendance of local learners with a limited access to the Esikhawini Library.

Tronox donated a fully equipped container comprising of enough shelves and working stations to allow learners to access information for projects and to look up information that they need. The container is also equipped with air

conditioners and an office for the teacher on duty. Tronox delivers new books on an ongoing basis to the library.

Rural schools in general do not have the luxury of having their own libraries. Gobandlovu Primary neighbouring the Hillendale Mine is such a school with a

delivers new books on an ongoing basis to the library.

Tronox Science Academy

Tronox supports science improvement in schools over decades

The company has supported math and science education programmes since as early as 1999, when the first micro science kits were handed over to 20 rural high schools.

Tronox established a science academy in partnership with Grantleigh. Over a six year period, learners who achieved in math and science were selected from 8 rural schools in neighbouring communities in grade 10 to become part of the academy over a three year period until they wrote grade 12.

The learners were transported to Grantleigh where weekly tutoring

and state-of-the-art laboratories and equipment assisted them to improve their marks in math and science.

Over the six year period 64 learners matriculated with much improved results in math and science. Many of the learners received exemption to go to university to pursue their dreams to study further, and even qualified for bursaries.

Today, after some of them already completed their university degrees and or were employed at Tronox, they come back and report on what they have achieved and thank Tronox for assisting them.

Grade 12 students of the science academy

preparing for their year

end science exam

A brighter future from the ground up

Primary school garden project

Student sourcing material for a project from the shelves of library books

Student & teacher

reading in the library

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Informal classrooms are a sad feature in South Africa. But when they take the form of food gardens, the learning can yield an unexpected harvest.

The Sustainable Development Department at Tronox KZN Sands helped two new primary schools close to Hillendale Mine to establish food gardens. This brings to 10 the number of school gardens started with the company’s inputs. Although food production for especially child-headed households is one of the main aims, it’s not the only one.

The objective of the programme is

to teach the teachers and learners to plant and fertilise correctly to ensure that their crops are a success. The programme further includes lessons of erosion and the importance of taking care of the soil. Then, when harvest time comes, the company assists them with marketing their products, to generate an income for the school. The entrepreneurship training is a cornerstone of the

programnme and focuses on inspiring the learners to start their own businesses.

One of the main customers of the food gardens at the Mandlankala and Gobandlovu primary schools is the Department of Social Welfare. The department runs feeding schemes at these schools. If the quality of the vegetables grown is acceptable, the department buys what it needs from

the school to prepare the meals for the school. You don’t get fresher food than that. The money they earn is used by the schools to support learners who cannot afford uniforms, books and school fees. One of the major successes of this project is that some of the children have taken their knowledge home and started gardens with their families.

GOBANDLOVU PRIMARY LIBRARY

Isinyabusi science students will no longer only read about science in text books, they will touch it, hear it, see it and smell it as well

A brighter future from the ground up

Experiments are easy to transport and durable.

Science teachers from 12 different

schools received training in the

equipment and manuals before the project commenced

at the schools.

A new and exciting world for learners at rural high

schools opened up in studying science

Students of all ages learn best when they experience something. Knowing that this is particularly true for science subjects, Tronox KZN Sands decided to equip schools in their area of operation without laboratories, with mobile science equipment.

In February 2013 Tronox KZN Sands launched a mobile science project at 12 high schools identified in the rural areas with the assistance of the traditional authorities of Somopho, Dube, Mkhwanazi, Ogagwini, Nzuza and Macambini that had no laboratories.Students in the senior grades had to write exams without the necessary exposure to experiments in their science syllabus.

The mobile science programme enables the teacher without a laboratory, to practice science to the full, including science experiments in a classroom situation. The aim of this

programme is

to improve the science marks, specially in the senior grades of the school.

On a recent visit to Isinyabusi Technical School in the Macambini traditional authority, excited students commented: “Science is now fun to do! We never knew it could be so interesting, and we now understand so much better.”

The programme includes a fully equipped mobile table for the teacher, and smaller equipped science boxes for the learners, and specially developed manuals for teachers and learners fully aligned with the new CAP syllabus for science. Other equipment such as microscopes with illuminator kits, Electrodynamics apparatus, Ripple tank with tuning fork

and slinky, Electricity kit (grade 10-12) with batteries,

periodic tables, Boyles’ Law apparatus, Force Board kit, Optic kits, Circuit Board kit and First Aid kits, Natural Science Kit (grade 7-9) and still some more are included in each package of each school.

Teachers received special product training in all the equipment provided including detailed information on teaching together with special work sheets for the learners.

Science marks of grades 10 -12 are monitored by Tronox through feedback from the teacher, and some marks in the June exam have already improved. The teachers are excited and feel encouraged to be able to now teach science with this much needed aid. Learners at Prince Zithume

use the periodic table for a science experiment

Taking science to rural learners

At many deep rural primary and high schools transport remains a problem, with families not always able to pay for learners to be transported to facilities like the UNIZUL science centre. In partnership with the

UNIZUL science centre unique science displays were developed that could easily be transported to the rural schools and learners could get exposure to science experiments.

Because of the simplicity and durability of the displays learners of any age

can play with it to start thinking on different levels to try to solve an experiment.

One of the main objectives is to encourage learners to think outside the box and see three dimensionally.

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Learners attempt to

solve different experiments

Water studies were a lot of fun

Four of the different coloured dustbins with each one having an individual message on it.

Tertiary education opens up a

new world to six students

More than 400 learners from seven local primary and high schools have visited the Twinstreams Educational Centre during 2013.

Tronox is concerned about environmental conservation and believes that young children should understand the importance of taking care of the environment. Twinstreams Educational Centre offers excellent environmental awareness programmes and as it is close to Fairbreeze Mine deposit, it makes sense to join forces, which means that Tronox sponsors 60 learners from each participating school to visit Twinstreams and study topical issues like water quality, alien weed identification and how human activities impact on the environment.

The learners also learn how to work together during their team building sessions at the centre and several letters were received from the schools and learners to express their appreciation for the experience they had at the centre.

In Mother Nature’s classroom

A brighter future from the ground up4

Alien weed identifi cation exe

rcise

Teamwork during an obstacle course

was very important

Teach learners the value of recycling and the value of a clean environment

A recycling project in partnership with the Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife was launched in eSikhaleni where 16 schools, 800 learners, participated. Each school received 5 dustbins in different colours and recycling messages on it, red for glass, blue for cans, black for general waste, green for paper and yellow for plastic.

A recycling station with information regarding recycling was also established at each school. During the launch

Dr Mkhize, CEO of Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife, encouraged the schools to make use of their recycling bins in the correct way and not to pollute their environment, but to take care of it. On the same day learners from the 16 schools participated in a clean-up exercise of eSikhaleni and 480 trees were planted that were provided by Wildlands Conservation Trust.

During follow-up visits to the schools more communication

Recycling stations were established at each school with

the necessary instructions

regarding the importance of recycling takes place and a competition is held to see which school is implementing the recycling system to the school’s best advantage and which school premises are the cleanest.

The schools are also enlightened to the fact that if they recycle properly and work together, they can make money out of the exercise.

A group of learners participating in the clean-up of eSikhaleni

Tronox came to the rescue of six young people who were selected to study at the University of Zululand with support from the provincial government, during the Operation Sukuma Sakhe with the aim of improving and fast tracking service delivery to citizens of the province, when they realized at the end of their first year that their fees have not been paid and that they could not return to start their second year. All the students were identified by the provincial government, because they were either orphans or could not afford to study at all.

Tronox agreed not only to settle their arrears, but also to sponsor the remainder of their 4 year studies. The financial assistance covers their tuition fees,

accommodation and text books from 2011 to 2014. The company also plays a mentoring role through continuous interaction and support. In addition the students gain practical experience at either the KZN Sands’ operations or community projects during their holidays.

Now being in their third year, they have grown into mature students, and their excellent results prove to be the correct choice of students, who all come from the rural areas neighbouring Tronox KZN Sands’ operations. After completing their 4 year education degree, all six students will return to their rural areas to take back what they have learned to their own community.

The head master of Isinyabusi Mr Lushozi and science teacher Ms Mbhele hand over a certificate of appreciation to Tronox -

Annalien Fouche & Nick Bulunga for their dedicated assistance in the rural schools to improve math and science

A group of learners pa

Students with a purpose. From left to right: Phumzile Ndwandwe; Phumelele Cele; Willowvale Mthethwa; Winile Thungo; Ganile Ndlovu and Samukelisiwe Nxumalo

Enabling people to empower others is real investment in the future