ABOUT FLAG ACADEMY
Too many people are walking around in fear when they have every right to feel safe.
Why FLAG Academy exists
Safety cannot be an afterthought
South Africa is a country of strength, resilience and beauty. It is also a place where many people carry an underlying sense of risk through their daily lives.
Hijackings, harassment, bullying, gender-based violence and toxic workplaces are not rare events here. I saw the impact of that early in this work with people hesitating in situations where they needed to act, staying silent when speaking up would have changed things, carrying fear into places where they had every right to feel safe.
FLAG Academy exists because safety cannot be an afterthought.
I started this work because people were being expected to cope without the tools to recognise danger, set boundaries, or respond under pressure. What began as a self-defense program has grown into something much broader.
Today, FLAG Academy delivers practical training, coaching and consultancy across physical, psychological and organisational safety.
That includes self-defense for individuals, schools and corporate teams, anti-hijacking, GBV Agency & Empowerment and anti-bullying workshops for students and educators.
It also includes leadership and human performance consultancy for organisations that want to build the conditions for clear thinking, accountability and performance under pressure, and personal safety coaching for individuals working through the fears, beliefs or patterns that stop them from speaking up, setting boundaries or trusting their own judgement.
Across all of it, the aim is the same. To help people recognise risk earlier, respond more effectively, and create environments where fear is not dictating behaviour.
When people feel safer, they think more clearly, communicate more honestly and engage more fully. That applies in boardrooms, classrooms and everyday life.
human behaviour and performance specialist.
Ann du Plessis
Ann du Plessis is a human behaviour and performance specialist.
With a decade in self-defense, GBV prevention and anti-bullying work, she works with organisations, schools and individuals on the practical skills that determine how people communicate, make decisions and act when they are under pressure.
She holds a black belt in Goju Ryu Karate, is a first responder, and has a background in trauma-informed coaching, stress management and post-incident debriefing.
Ann's work starts at the physiological layer. When a person feels genuinely threatened, the nervous system takes over, thinking narrows and behaviour changes.
Understanding that response, and building the capacity to manage it, is what sits underneath every program she runs.
She is also a survivor of sexual assault, emotional abuse, bullying and workplace harassment.
That lived experience shapes this work as a professional lens, not a personal statement.
It is the reason her approach is grounded in what fear actually does to the body, to judgement and to behaviour.
WHAT THIS WORK LOOKS LIKE
Whether the room is a boardroom, a school hall or a one-on-one session, the aim is always the same: to help people feel safe enough to think clearly, speak up, and perform at their best.
For Organisations
Psychological safety, conflict and pressure management, GBV prevention, anti-hijacking and personal safety training for staff in high-risk environments.The focus is on identifying issues earlier and building teams that stay functional when things get difficult.
For Schools
Anti-bullying programs and self-defense training for high school and primary school students, with separate sessions for staff and educators.
The work is grounded in actual threat behaviour, power dynamics and early intervention.
For Individuals
Personal safety coaching for people working through the fears, beliefs or patterns that stop them feeling safe or performing at their best.
Private self-defence training and an online course for those who prefer to work at their own pace.
Imagine a world where fear doesn’t win. That’s the world we’re building - one school, one workplace, one person at a time