Hlengiwe Msibi
Board member
Term of Office: 2025 - 2028
Hlengiwe is a seasoned environmental sustainability professional with over 14 years of experience in forestry, certification, water stewardship, and natural resource management.
She currently serves as Divisional Environmental Manager (HoD) at Sappi Southern Africa, where she leads sustainability initiatives and drives environmental operational excellence. In this role, she also oversees forest certification programmes, including support for smallholders to achieve certification, sustainable fibre supply, and efforts to strengthen Sappi’s position as a trusted supplier of certified wood products.
Previously, Hlengiwe worked with WWF South Africa, where she led forestry water stewardship initiatives, national industry partnerships, policy engagement, and multi-stakeholder projects aimed at improving landscape-level water security and responsible forest management.
She holds an MSc in Hydrology from the University of KwaZulu-Natal and a BSc in Forestry and Resource Management from Stellenbosch University, and is a registered Professional Natural Scientist.
In addition to her professional work, she serves as Chair of Forestry South Africa’s Environmental Management Committee and as a Board Member of the Pongola-uMzimkhulu Catchment Management Agency.
Combining deep technical expertise with strategic leadership and governance experience, Hlengiwe is dedicated to advancing sustainable forest management and strengthening global certification systems.