The CEO of Constitution Hill, in Johannesburg, South Africa, Dawn Robertson has led the museum to become a key destination for young people in the city through events and festivals and a fundamental belief in sharing power.
Constitution Hill, in essence, represents South Africa’s capacity for change. Once the site of a fort, the hill then became a prison complex. Now it is home to the guardian of the Constitution, the Constitutional Court. As a museum, it details the narrative of the country’s journey from colonisation, apartheid, to democracy. The museum section includes the Mandela Cell, where Nelson Mandela was housed when he was held there as a prisoner.
After starting her career as a lecturer in arts education, Robertson took on executive management roles both in national and provincial government in South Africa. One responsibility was the design, development and implementation of a multi-million project, CreateSA ,for the Department of Labour. This created fourteen entirely new qualifications in the creative industries. This initiative kick-started thousands of careers in the creative arts.
Robertson was also charged with coordinated the Gauteng 2010 FIFA 2010 World Cup Technical Task Team. She was then appointed Chief Executive Officer at the Gauteng Tourism Authority, the provincial destination marketing organisation. She held this role for five years before taking up her current position in 2016 as CEO of the Constitution Hill.