Monde Sitole was part of a group of the first African youngsters to attend school on board a tall ship: the SV. Concordia. This was part of the Class Afloat International School programme based in Nova Scotia, Canada.
The students covered hundreds of sea miles, attending classes and semesters literally afloat as they sailed between Cape Town, Namibia, St. Helena, Ascension Island, Fernando island, Brazil, Trinidad & Tobago, Bermuda Island, and London.
Sitole was later chosen to represent Africa in the Mike Horn Pangaea Young Explorers Camp in Château-d’Œx, Switzerland, where he met the seasoned and accomplished South African explorer Mike Horn. This, along with his exposure to leading enterprises such as Geberit, Officine, Panerai, Mayo Clinic, Daimler Group, and University of Munich further piqued Sitole’s interest in alternative energy solutions, our ecology, conservation philanthropy and responsible exploring.
With the Young Explorers Camp, he sailed to Lake Geneva and attended yachting training by Cust (école de régate de Lausanne) at Port of Ouchy. Following that, he completed a Competent Crew Certificate course with Goodhope Sailing Academy, and is now working towards becoming a Yachtmaster .
He completed his advanced mountain walker course at Ventureforth Mountaineering School.
Then came Dare2Dream Expedition: the trip he conceptualised that is to scale the highest peaks on each continent and to ski both south and north pole. He has so far succeeded with Mount Kilimanjaro (Africa), Mount Elbrus in Russia (Europe), and just returned from North America to scale Mount Denali, Alaska.
Sitole founded Desert Rose Adventure Club: an organisation whose mission it is to yield high altitude sportsmen, future Olympians, and compassionate beings.
He is a pioneer of the Next School Initiative, which is focused on improving the current education system into an education that truly means something. It is founded on the people – with an engaging, innovative, fun and impactful learning process. Through a range of strategies and initiatives they aim to make this a reality for South African youth in the near future.
Sitole has appeared in national print and international glossies alike, including British Monocle, Dutch NTR Broadcaster, Huffington Post USA, Die Welt (onAfrican innovators), and German Der Spiegel. He also appeared on the cover of City Press Lifestyle Magazine.
Sitole has also been featured in Pieces of a Dream, a book by Gillian Warren Brown, and in Suksestorries By Stellenbosch University’s Lizma van Zyl.
Accolades
One of “9 Bravest Men We Know” by Men’s Health Magazine, February 2012
SA Heart of Gold “Bravest Men We Know” by Klipdrift and Intrepid Explorer Magazine, 2013
Winner of the Honorary Award for Adventure at the City of Cape Town’s Khayelitsha Awards
Featured on Grade 10 to 12 exam papers since 2012
200 Young South Africans by Mail & Guardian
100 Young independents “Trailblazer” by Independent Newspapers
Superbalist 100 by Vitamin Water
Won “Bravery” award in the Presidential Awards, 2018
Featured on English textbook for Grade 5, Heinemann Publishers
BBC, Quartz, Manchester review, Reuters reviewed “Khazilma Adventurers” comic book about his life out.
