Barbara Holtmann

Barbara Holtmann "leads crime and violence prevention research at the Council for Scientifc and Industrial Research. In this capacity she guides the development of tools and interventions aimed at improving safety standards in South Africa and beyond. Her team has developed and implemented local crime prevention and safety toolkits, facilitating their implementation through provincial and local government, and developing local safety strategies, in partnership with the police and other stakeholders.

"Barbara’s research provided the basis for and she is a founder member of the Action for a Safe South Africa initiative. She is Vice President of the Canadian based International Centre for Prevention of Crime.

"She has a Masters degree in Public and Development Management from WITS and is currently completing her doctoral thesis “A Strategy for a Safe South Africa” at the Da Vinci Institute for Technology Management.

"Her focus is on prevention of crime and violence and reduction of criminality and opportunity for crime. She has published and regularly presents her work both locally and internationally, aiming to influence a shift from security and punitive justice to an optimistic, achievable goal of a safe society in which all can play a role.

"Her position at the CSIR provides for innovative science-based approaches to achieving a safe South Africa.

"Barbara is committed to a South Africa in which all can live in peace, harmony and prosperity."


 * Former Director, Open Society Foundation of South Africa