Fellow:Panashe Mangezi


Name Panashe Mangezi School (Cohort) University of Twente (Fall '21 cohort) Majoring in Mechanical Engineering Country The Netherlands Email Special:EmailUser/Panashemangezi

Bio

Panashe was born and raised in Zimbabwe, with brief periods spent living in South Africa and Eswatini. Since 2020, Panashe has been living in the Netherlands, pursuing a bachelor's degree in Mechanical Engineering with a keen interest in the energy transition and materials science. In her free time, Panashe enjoys bouldering and via ferratas, as well as cooking and baking, always on the lookout for new recipes to try.

Outside of academic pursuits, Panashe has been actively involved in several extracurricular activities. She chaired the sustainability association on campus, focusing on sustainability and environmental challenges through an intersectional lens to ensure that the most vulnerable are included in conversations about the climate crisis. Panashe also contributed to the creation of the first edition of the Green Guide Enschede, a resource for local and sustainable shops, restaurants, and natural areas. Additionally, as the External Affairs Officer for the Civil Engineering Symposium, Panashe helped organize an annual event for civil engineering students, which included lectures, seminars, and networking opportunities with industry professionals, all conducted in a hybrid manner due to the global pandemic.

UIF Projects

Panashe's involvement in University Innovation Fellows (UIF) projects has been extensive and impactful. She co-developed the "Meet and Greet Street" project to help students reconnect on campus after the pandemic, using conversation starter cards and hosting speed dating events. In June 2022, Panashe helped organize Pride 2022, aimed at educating and increasing allyship for the LGBTQ+ community through various events that included tosti talks by local advocates and a 'Who wants to be a millionaire?' style quize. She also served as team lead in the Leaders of Innovation and Impact/European Meetup 2022, which included workshops, seminars, a crisis simulation, and an excursion to Amsterdam. This took place in parallel to the first Faculty Innovation Fellows Summit, who joined and taught some of the sessions.

Collaborating with GreenHub Twente, Panashe co-designed the Sustainability Thinktank, guiding participants through the design thinking process to address the university's sustainability challenges. This initiative provided a platform for students to present their ideas to university leaders and further develop their winning solutions. In 2023, Panashe worked with the cohort from Hamburg University of Technology to co-create a 2-day Design Thinking program themed "The Digital Campus," which included intense sessions and closed off with social activities in Enschede's city center.

She served as Team Coordinator for UIF Twente fellows from September 2022 to April 2024.

Most recently, Panashe was involved in organizing the 2024 UIF Meetup at Twente, which brought 350 fellows to Enschede for four days of workshops, keynotes, and electric energy. This event was recognized with the highest sustainability award from the university for its efforts to reduce environmental impact.