Sanibonani. I am Mpumelelo Zamokuhle Zulu: a dedicated social scientist, scholar-activist, and artist working to bridge the gap between research and advocacy to improve the lives of gender and sexually diverse people in Africa. I am interested in exploring gender, sexuality, and violence in Africa through queer, feminist, health, psychological, indigenous knowledges and pleasure-centred paradigms. Navigating the world as a black bisexual Zulu man, I commit to being a "trouble-maker"—challenging established norms and empowering marginalised communities through transformative research, activism, and teaching.

My academic journey has grounded me in a rich, multidisciplinary foundation, equipping me to challenge traditional perspectives and bring critical insight to the diverse professional roles I embrace. Currently, I am completing doctoral research at the University of Cape Town, where I intricately weave together my interests in Psychology and African Feminist Studies. My research explores the intersections of human sexuality, identity construction, cultural dynamics, and violence, all interrogated through a theoretical lens I conceptualised as the "Isintu-Oriented Decolonial Queer" approach, which is grounded in Indigenous African cultural insights.

Born and raised in a long lineage of indigenous healing practitioners and monarchs, "home" for me has always been the community's place of refuge and healthcare centre. Servitude to my community, standing for truth, bringing hope, and restoring justice, yifundiso engayincela ebeleni, are values that hold together the very fabric of who I am. These manifest in my passion for social justice, teaching, healing, and imagining new worlds into existence. I know I come from a long line of leaders and healers who were living pillars for their communities through difficult moments, and I hope to be at least half the giants they were when the baton is passed to me.

Justice and knowledge-sharing are the backbone of my scholarship; hence, you may have seen me in the public sphere through podcasts, national television appearances, webinars, community dialogues, and academic publications. I am simply trying to make the world a better place.

Beyond the work, Zamo is an old soul who writes poetry, paints, and performs rituals to reestablish harmony with the natural world.