Ze-ev Krein Brett Morris Brett Morris, the executive chairperson of the Nahana Group, the first majority black-owned global advertising agency network in the world, has been creating convincing stories since he was a little boy. This stood him in good stead for years as group chief executive of FCB Africa, now the Nahana Group. It also worked well in allowing him to pursue his dream of making a feature film, Just Now Jeffrey, which he wrote, directed, and co-produced, and released this year. Telling a Jewish South African story, the film has already been nominated for the Beverley Hills and Toronto Jewish film festivals. It was also picked up by Amazon Prime Video in the United States and United Kingdom. During his tenure as chief executive, FCB won more awards than ever before in its 95-year history, including Africa’s firstever Cannes Grand Prix; One Show Best of Show; and Best Foreign Film at ONE Screen. Morris, an alumnus of King David Victory Park and the University of the Witwatersrand, stumbled into a career in advertising, which, he said, “exposed me to a whole other world of creativity and diversity that broadened and deepened my understanding of South Africa and its people”. Morris believes creativity has the power to change the world for good. “I’ve supported individuals and organisations who are making an impact by using creativity to help them achieve more than they thought possible. As the chief executive of a communications group, I established the Nahana Foundation to leverage the group’s rich creative experience to maximise non-profit clients’ marketing efforts to influence positive change in South Africa. 24 Colonel Ze-ev Krein works in life-or-death situations. A section commander of the South African Narcotics Enforcement Bureau at the Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation (DPCI), known as the Hawks, Krein also spends his time “investigating criminals who have performed horrific actions and who seek to manipulate and lie in order to achieve their nefarious objectives. Nonetheless, I still seek to see the best in all people and remain empathetic.” Krein, a University of Cape Town class medallist with various degrees, has been responsible for the conviction of violent criminals, the combatting and dismantling of transnational serious organised crime, and the seizure of tons of harmful drugs such as cocaine. This 44-year-old Herzlia alumnus has also acted to help remove South Africa from greylisting, designing a global drug strategy to reduce the demand and supply of illicit drugs, and implementing advanced technology to better combat crime and drug trafficking. Krein believes he has inspired others in the past few years by, among other things, representing South Africa at structures such as the United Nations (UN) Office of Drugs and Crime, as well as seizing and forensically processing the largest methamphetamine clandestine laboratories in Africa’s history. One of his greatest achievements includes designing more than 20 novel compounds during his research to develop new drugs for HIV and malaria. His biggest challenge has been corruption at various levels of state. “This is an ongoing process, but it requires building a network of individuals you can trust who are courageous enough to expose corrupt and dangerous individuals at all levels of government and state,” he says. This past year, Krein has taught topics such as open-source intelligence, cryptocurrency, and narcotics to local and foreign law enforcement. He also recently formed collaborations between various law enforcement agencies and global structures at the UN. “This has resulted in an unprecedented sharing of information, knowledge, and skills,” he says. A life-changing moment for Krein was “taking my position at the DPCI and truly feeling I was part of an organisation that could make a fundamentally positive impact on this country. I realised I was surrounded by people who were motivated to fix the ills of the country.” He would advise a young person in his profession not to be afraid to step up. “If you think you are the best person for the job, don’t sit back quietly, show everyone your actions.” Krein, a keen stargazer who used to run a community open-mic event at Arts on Main in Maboneng, says that at a time when there are “very serious threats from community to global level” with rising antisemitism, “every person needs to step up and take accountability for the impact they make. I hope to leverage this recognition to inspire every one of us to take courageous steps to do whatever they are able to do to counter the hatred and division.” “Through our broad-based partner, the Maharishi Institute, we have to date funded more than 200 young black women with a full, four-year business degree through the dividends from their shareholding.” Morris’s biggest career challenge was leading a diverse communication group of seven companies in three cities through the COVID-19 pandemic. “We focused on the mental well-being of our staff, protecting as many jobs as possible by reducing executive salaries for a period.” Morris’s impact in his industry is clear. He has been voted the most admired business leader for five years in a row by his peers in the annual MarkLives poll. He was also ranked as one of the top five creative directors in South Africa by his peers. And he was awarded a Financial Mail AdFocus Award for Industry Leader of the Year in 2016. This movie enthusiast, one of only two King David Victory Park rugby players to make the second round of Craven Week school trials, balances his time by trying to “leave my work at the door. This allows me to create space for family, friends, and the community.” Photojournalist Ilan Ossendryver uses his camera as a tool for social activism, helping to improve lives in communities such as Kliptown and Mountain View in Soweto. He has helped to develop vegetable gardens to create a food source for various communities, and has assisted the Future Angels Day Care Centre in Kliptown to become an environment that helps children have a bright future. “I helped upgrade teachers with a course on how to teach reading, built a kitchen, and constantly supply educational materials, all through guests I have taken there,” Ossendryver said. “During the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown, with the help of the South African Jewish community, we provided about 175 000 meals to the community. Kliptown has been flooded several times since I began working there, and each time, I have facilitated aid and food. I have helped several families repair their homes. I have helped the elderly get to hospitals. I bring people to experience the drummers and guitarists of Kliptown, whom I fund and promote. We introduced an art project in which children in the community, who previously begged for money, are encouraged to draw and paint to sell their artwork. They have moved from begging to earning money through creativity,” he said. Ossendryver’s actions have inspired others to do good. “A photographer from Washington, D.C. was so inspired, he built a kitchen for the Future Angels Day Care Centre.” Not only has Ossendryver’s photojournalism helped him to uplift communities, it has also enabled him to “see everything in life”. “I had the privilege of photographing Nelson Mandela on his first few days of freedom. In more than 20 years of being a photojournalist in Israel, I have witnessed the country at her best and most devastated. I photographed the peace treaty between Israel and Jordan. I accompanied Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin when he met Hosni Mubarak and Yasser Arafat publicly for the first time at Mubarak’s palace in Egypt.” Some life-changing events for Ossendryver were covering the assassination of Rabin, many suicide bombings, the Gulf War, and the Intifada. “But nothing prepared me for the brutality of 7 October. My images of post 7 October have affected me greatly, and I hope they will be used to make sure that it will never happen again. “I’m also proud that I have promoted Israel among the people of Soweto. People there are continually telling me that they are praying for me and for Israel. Today, I’m considered one of the community, their madala [elder], which is such an honour.” He said that in the past few years, he had become “more passionate and more sensitive to the plight of people that our government has failed. I’m also proud of the good that the Jewish community does, and the impact that it has had on the lives of so many South Africans.” Ilan Ossendryver Absa Professional Excellence Award Nominees
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