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Although I am pleased to note the positive tone of your news and views article by Alan Morris discussing the scientific merit of our recent papers, I would like to address some misconceptions regarding the composition of the Malapa team. These misconceptions are best summarised by the statements that, 'palaeoanthropology still lags behind the transformation of South African society in general', and that, 'only a few [authors] are South African and even fewer are from previously disadvantaged South African groups'. While I agree that this is, in general, true of our and other sciences in this country, it is perhaps unfair to use my team and these authors as illustrative of this apparently widespread social issue. It is true that of the 21 authors only 4 are South African citizens (2 of whom are Black people), while 1 other hails from another African country, but 6 of the authors hold full-time positions and a further 3 are former students and/or faculty members at South African universities. An additional 5 of the 21 authors are officially affiliated with South African institutions of higher learning. Of the authors having no South African affiliation, 6 were brought onto the project because they possess highly specialised training, laboratories and equipment not presently available in South Africa (e.g. the European Synchrotron Radiation Facility in Grenoble, France). Importantly, in terms of leadership, two of the lead authors of the five recent papers are South African citizens while one is Kenyan. From a gender equity perspective, five of the authors are women, two of whom are lead authors on these papers. An additional aspect is that of the 21 authors, 16 are under the age of 45. The international nature of the Malapa team is also important, for we must vigorously encourage the best and brightest scientists to collaborate with us, bringing South Africa to the forefront of the international scientific community.

Building a nation one project at a time: Reply to ‘On human evolution, <i>Australopithecus sediba</i> and nation building’