Prof Mary Scholes, a graduate of the University of the Witwatersrand, is currently a full professor in the School of Animal, Plant and Environmental Sciences, where she holds a Research Chair in Systems Analysis. Her research activities focus on systems analysis in a variety of disciplines including, soil fertility, food security and biogeochemistry in savannas, plantation forests and croplands. Her research funds are mostly sourced from government and industry, she is currently actively involved in monitoring water pollution, food security, forestry and climate change and policy implementation in South Africa. Her publication record is extensive; she has mentored over 85 postgraduate students and she teaches at postgraduate level and undergraduate levels at the University. She has been awarded the Vice-Chancellors Teaching, Research and Academic Citizen Awards. She is a fellow of the Royal Society of South Africa, the South African Academy of Science, the World Academy of Sciences and the African Academy of Sciences. She is the recipient of several national and international awards including being elected as a foreign member of the Royal Swedish Academy of Agriculture and Forestry. She has served on Senate at Wits for over 25 years and has served on Council for three terms. She is married to Bob Scholes, a systems ecologist, and they have a 23-year-old son.