The Add IDEAS Podcast
by Bandile Mndebele
A conversation on designing for real people
About this podcast
Inclusion is the invite. Diversity brings the vibe. Equity sets the rules. Accessibility opens the door. Sustainability keeps the party going.
But what happens when we look beyond the obvious?
Hosted by Bandile Mndebele, The Add IDEAS Podcast explores the people, ideas and systems shaping how we work, lead and live together.
Through candid conversations with thinkers, practitioners, creators and changemakers, the show examines inclusion, belonging, leadership, technology, AI, sustainability and the future of work — without reducing complex questions to easy answers.
From institutional change and inclusive design to the human consequences of emerging technology, each conversation asks what is really happening beneath the surface, who gets included, who gets left out and what we might do differently.
Thoughtful when it needs to be. Funny when it can be. Always curious.
There is usually another way to look at it.
That is the idea behind The Add IDEAS Podcast.
Episodes
- A conversation on designing for real people · 56 min · Season 1 Episode 12“In order to help people, we need to understand them.” In this episode of The Add IDEAS Podcast, Bandile Mndebele sits down with South African disability rights advocate Bongani…
- How do we design a world that includes everyone? · 47 min · Season 1 Episode 11What happens when we stop designing for an imaginary “average” person? Bandile Mndebele speaks with disability rights advocate and inclusive innovation researcher Bongani…
- What does South Africa need to build better growth? · 1 h 9 min · Season 1 Episode 10What kind of economic growth actually creates opportunity? Bandile Mndebele speaks with entrepreneur Avelile Nontanda about entrepreneurship, digital business, branding, South…
- How do we build community with the trauma we carry? · 31 min · Season 1 Episode 9What does it mean to build community when everyone arrives carrying something? Bandile Mndebele speaks with speaker, consultant and author Annemarie Shrouder about belonging…
- What makes a startup ecosystem actually work? · 50 min · Season 1 Episode 8What does it take to build an entrepreneurial ecosystem outside the usual centres of power? Bandile Mndebele speaks with Hubspace founding director and venture scout Melilizwe…
- What rights do LGBTQ+ people have and what does freedom mean? · 42 min · Season 1 Episode 7Visibility is not the same thing as freedom. Bandile Mndebele speaks with creative, writer, performer and organiser Udoka Maya Okonkwo about LGBTQ+ identity, community, Pride…
- What does the debate around DEI mean for belonging? · 53 min · Season 1 Episode 6What happens when inclusion becomes contested? Bandile Mndebele speaks with DEI speaker and facilitator Roy Gluckman-John about the changing conversation around diversity…
- What can dating teach us about communication? · 1 h 13 min · Season 1 Episode 5What can a blind date teach us about communicating with confidence? Bandile Mndebele speaks with communications expert and storyteller Thabani Mtsi about finding your voice…
- Why does representation change what we believe is possible? · 49 min · Season 1 Episode 4Representation does more than reflect the world. It can change what people believe is possible for themselves. Bandile Mndebele speaks with Leonore van Wyk about representation…
- How can grief and resilience shape kind leadership? · 54 min · Season 1 Episode 3What can grief teach us about leadership? Bandile Mndebele speaks with education changemaker and ESG enthusiast Pumla Dlamini about grief, resilience, confidence, voice…
- How do we navigate change? · 35 min · Season 1 Episode 2Change can alter almost everything around us—but what happens to the way we understand ourselves when it does? Bandile Mndebele reflects on navigating change, redefining success…
- How do we create a sense of belonging? · 12 min · Season 1 Episode 1Change can alter almost everything around us—but what happens to the way we understand ourselves when it does? Bandile Mndebele reflects on navigating change, redefining success…
- Introducing The Add IDEAS Podcast · 2 min · Season 1 Episode 1What does it take to build a world where more people can belong, contribute and thrive? The Add IDEAS Podcast explores Inclusion, Diversity, Equity, Accessibility and…
