At the heart of Oasis is a belief in inclusion which is why we have chosen to make our home in a community on the the north western outskirts of the City of Johannesburg.

This area, roughly demarcated by Beyers Naude and William Nicol Drives in the west and east and the N14 and Witkoppen Road in the north and south, is a showcase of both the best and the worst of South Africa.

The massive Diepsloot township was deliberately built on the margins of the city to exclude individuals, while living conditions in the surrounding informal settlements are even worse.

Our country is a mix of first and third world, with unbelievable levels of inequality. Extreme poverty exists within kilometers of luxury golf estates, shopping malls and corporate head quarters.

Life in these artificial communities can be pretty lonely and scary as well, hidden behind high walls and protected by armed security guards.

But, there’s hope! Both these contrasting worlds are filled with unique people created by a God who loves them unconditionally.  And many of them are keen to reach out and work together to bring about transformation – in all our communities. The new Cosmo City development in the middle of our focus area is perhaps the most powerful metaphor of this hope.

Cosmo City is one of the first new neighbourhood developments since 1994 and is a community with mixed income housing, bringing together very different people in one, new and exciting community.

Bringing people from different backgrounds together will be messy, for sure, but it also has the potential to change us all as we work with each other and God to create something new, something beautiful.

We promote social and economic inclusion in our communities through networking, resource sharing, advocacy, community events and being a catalyst for innovation.