Dr Kennedy Ngwira is a Senior Lecturer at the University of the Witwatersrand having joined the institution as a Lecturer in December 2017. He completed his PhD in synthetic organic chemistry from the University of Witwatersrand in February 2017 and then proceeded to undertake a short postdoc at the Johannes Gutenberg University in Mainz, Germany under Prof Dr Till Opatz. Kennedy's research interests are in three categories namely; green or sustainable chemistry, synthesis of small molecules with interesting biological activities, and finally structure elucidation of compounds isolated from plants or marine organisms. In sustainable chemistry, the focus is on the valorization of bio-waste materials to unravel chemical building blocks that can be utilized in the synthesis of functional organic molecules. Examples of targeted functional molecules include those with an application as pharmaceuticals, UV absorbers, liquid crystals, and rechargeable organic batteries.
