Dr Thelma Ngwenya is an engineer in the Catalysis Group, Advanced Materials Division. She completed her PhD in Chemical Engineering at the University of the Witwatersrand in Johannesburg, focussing on environmental catalysis. She has presented her research work in various international and national technical conferences. In 2018, she was a mentor and Judge for the SAASTA Science and Technology debate for matriculants, event held in Limpopo. She was also featured as a Woman in Engineering in 2019 for the HySA Public Awareness and in the 2021 Daily News SA Women’s month podcast. She firmly believes in encouraging young women to pursue studies in engineering courses. Currently, her work is focussed on the development of advanced fuel cell catalysts under the HySA Catalysis and a catalytic air pollution control project.