TRACEY SANDILANDS - chairperson

Newly returned to Gauteng, Tracey Sandilands is a former board member of Cape Town Pride Festival, and spent a year with the Cape-based LGBT community services organisation, Triangle Project, handling media and events. Currently the editor of South Africa’s largest property web-portal Property24, and serving on the board of Gays for Equitable Media, Tracey’s years of experience in events management stem from her time as a marketing specialist in Cape Town.

Email her on tracey@joburgpride.org.

BRUCE WALKER - sponsorship and funding

Bruce Walker is well known as a gay nightclub entrepreneur in Joburg. However, his involvement in other areas of the gay community has also been significant. He has been on many Pride committees over the years and was MC at Pride on three occasions. Bruce started working in gay clubs while still at school. He later opened The Embassy in Rosebank, which became the legendary Krypton. Bruce then moved on to the much-loved Pandora's. He is currently partners with Pieter Rossouw in Qc. The Qc parties have become one of the most popular monthly gay events in Joburg. Bruce recently opened Risqué Lounge, a new Gay bar in the north of the city.

Email him on bruce@joburgpride.org.

FULVIO DE STEFANIS - sponsorship and funding

Fulvio De Stefanis has a BSC Civil Engineering degree from WITS University. In addition to his role in the construction and property development industry, Fulvio has also been a leading dance event promoter for over a decade. He was a co-founder of The Mother of All Raves which commercialized the rave ‘scene’ in South Africa with events attracting over 16 000 people. He brought TRADE, London, to the country and produced the largest gay rave in South Africa, with Channel 4, BBC, Attitude Magazine and DJ International covering the event. Fulvio went on to open Bitch super-club in Johannesburg which operated with great success for a number of years before he opened Legends nightclub in Pretoria. He also has experience in publishing, having launched The Vibe Magazine, with an audited readership of 100 000, which he published for 24 issues.

Email him on fulvio@joburgpride.org.

IAN OLLIS - city council liaison

Ian Ollis is the councillor for ward 90 in Johannesburg. This area includes Rosebank, Hyde Park, Dunkeld, Sandhurst, Parkmore and most areas in between. Rosebank and Zoo Lake area have a long established connection with the Gay community. Ian is also an educator and training facilitator for tertiary educational institutions such as Wits, Tee College and for a number of property companies and his political party. He was formally a real estate agent and a clergyman. He speaks on subjects such as religion and sexuality, life orientation, real estate principles and is also a keen property investor. He has a MA degree from Wits, a Bth Degree from the University of Zululand and a Licentiate in Theology from The Baptist Theological college.

Email him on ian@joburgpride.org.

JENNI GREEN - events

Jenni Green obtained an Honours degree in marketing from RAU (University of Johannesburg), after completing a B Com in Communications and spending a six month working holiday in the U.S.A. Since then, Jenni has been involved in the marketing industry; importing and marketing an international nutrition brand from Italy. Jenni is currently also involved in event and project management across the sporting and cultural spectrum.

Email her on jenni@joburgpride.org.

LUIZ DEBARROS - marketing and communications

Luiz DeBarros is an award-winning filmmaker, writer, photographer and designer and was a founding partner and creative director in a leading multimedia agency for 12 years. His short films and documentaries have been screened at numerous local and international film festivals and broadcast on television internationally. He is a respected, multi-talented creative with considerable experience across multiple media – including print and Internet design. Luiz is currently publisher and editor of www.mambaonline.com – South Africa’s largest gay lifestyle website. Luiz has an Honours degree in Drama and Film and a degree in Psychology and English. He was on the marketing committee of the 2010 Joburg Gay Games Bid, and serves on the board of Gays for Equitable Media.

Email him on luiz@joburgpride.org.

RENIER COETZEE - community events

Renier Coetzee completed two years of a B Comm. Accounting degree at the University of Pretoria, before working as a Business Analyst in the motor industry. Further training and experience in IT saw him move to the position of IT manager for Imperial Fleet Services. He then became a partner in Parsley Studios - a media design and web implementation company - where he worked as the IT specialist and programmer. He is currently a freelance programmer for a number of corporate clients and is Technical Director for www.mambaonline.com and www.mambagirl.com - South Africa's largest gay and lesbian web sites. Renier was also keenly involved in the Johannesburg 2010 Gay Games Bid.

Email him on renier@joburgpride.org.

TANYA HARFORD - logistics

Tanya Harford founded Harford Sports Promotions – a leading sport management, events and media liaison company – in 1989 upon her retirement from the International Women’s Tennis Tour. Through the company, and as its managing director, she organises two of Johannesburg biggest sporting events namely the Pick ‘n Pay 94.7 Cycle Challenge and the Discovery 702 Walk The Talk. Tanya, who was the 1981 SA Singles Women’s Tennis Champion, was Co-chair of the 2010 Jo’burg Gay Games Bid Committee.

Email her on tanya@joburgpride.org.

THULI MADI - volunteers

Thuli Madi has been employed as director of Behind the Mask since 2003. Behind the Mask is a communicative initiative which reports on lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex (LGBTI) communities’ rights and affairs in Africa. She identifies as a lesbian and a human rights and mental health activist. Before joining Behind the Mask, she worked as a Community Development Worker at Wits Mental Health Society - now known as Gauteng Mental Health. Thuli holds a Bachelor of Social Sciences from the University of KwaZulu-Natal in Durban and is studying towards an Industrial Psychology Honours degree at UNISA.

Email her on thuli@joburgpride.org.

ZAKHELE MBHELE - youth

Zak Mbhele is an Honours student and Chairperson of ACTIVATE, the LGBT student society at the University of the Witwatersrand. His involvement in the LGBT sector also includes working as a part-time archivist at GALA (Gay and Lesbian Archives) and holding a seat on the Management Committee of the JWG (Joint Working Group), a national network of gay and lesbian organisations.

Email him on zak@joburgpride.org.

PAUL TILLY - non-executive

Paul Tilly is a native Zimbabwean with South African citizenship. He was a director and partner in a marketing and advertising agency for eight years servicing international brands. Paul served as secretary and chairman of the Gay and Lesbian Association of Zimbabwe (GALZ). His work in South Africa has included being media consultant for the Lesbian and Gay Equality Project. He was also the Johannesburg Pride Co-ordinator in 2005, served on the 2010 Johannesburg Gay Games Bid Committee and is on the board of Gays for Equitable Media. He is currently a marketing consultant for a listed South African company.

Email him on paul@joburgpride.org.