Seeing Through The Storm: Leading Crisis and Change

In a nation shaped by division and resistance, Dr. Olive Sono Shisana came of age determined to stand for justice. Raised in a rural South African village during the apartheid years, her activism led to exile and life as a refugee. Despite this, her early trials did not define her limits, but refined her resolve.From exile, she built a career that would take her to the highest levels of public health leadership. As Director-General of South Africa's Department of Health, Executive Director at the World Health Organization, and Chief Executive of the Human Sciences Research Council, Dr. Shisana shaped the policies and systems that affect millions of lives. She helped guide national and international responses to HIV and AIDS, advance maternal and women's health, confront gender-based violence, and contribute to global pandemic strategy during COVID-19, often in the face of fierce political opposition.But Seeing Through the Storm is more than a record of professional achievement. It is the story of what it costs to lead with integrity when the stakes are highest, and what it makes possible. Dr. Shisana writes with candor about the personal sacrifices, the institutional battles, and the moments of doubt that tested her along the way. She also writes about the people who shaped her: mentors, colleagues, and the communities whose lives gave her work its meaning.For anyone navigating their own storm - in public service, in health, in leadership, or in life - this memoir offers both a witness account and a guide. Seeing Through the Storm is a powerful reminder that ethical leadership is not only possible, but necessary, and that lasting change is built through courage, conviction, and service.