In 2017, we interviewed SALDRU’s founding director Francis Wilson on the unit’s early years and the challenges of researching inequality at the height of the apartheid era. In building on this interview, ACEIR’s Charmaine Smith sat down with former director Murray Leibbrandt to talk to him about his history with SALDRU, how he took forward what was put in place by Francis, and what stands out for him about SALDRU’s work over the past 50 years. Murray, who retires at the end of 2025, also talks about the unit’s history of leading initiatives to inform strategies to overcome poverty and inequality in South Africa (and abroad). He also discusses his views on the country’s progress in achieving the goal of equality and prosperity for all.