Nkosikhona Swaartbooi

Nkosikhona Swartbooi, 32, is a community organiser bridging philanthropy and grassroots power. As a community liaison consultant at the Bertha Foundation, he helps youth groups, movements and community leaders access resources and shape campaigns rooted in justice. He coordinates the Movement for CARE, a platform reimagining politics through care. Nkosikhona facilitates community assemblies, helps residents analyse city budgets and amplifies voices often sidelined, especially black women, youth and informal settlement residents. A co-founder of Reclaim the City, he leads organising efforts for affordable housing in Cape Town’s inner city, challenging spatial apartheid through legal advocacy and public education. His activism began in Queenstown, where he matriculated. Though he started a law degree at Unisa, he chose to pursue grassroots organising full-time. In 2017, he completed a leadership course through the University of Pretoria. His contributions span legal reform, mutual aid and public mobilisation. He co-founded Cape Town Together, helped pioneer transitional housing, and authored tools like the Social Audit Guide.

Postgraduate certificate through the Leading in Public Life: Building Bridges course — a programme that deepened understanding of ethical leadership and care-based politics (2017)

• Featured in Mother City, a documentary exploring spatial injustice and resistance in Cape Town
• Co-founded Reclaim the City, a movement that transformed abandoned buildings into homes and catalysed projects such as Pickwick Street transitional housing
• Launched Cape Town Together, a mutual aid network that expanded across Southern Africa during the Covid-19 pandemic, fostering grassroots community support
• Co-authored the Social Audit Guide and co-founded the Social Audit Network, providing communities with tools to track public services and demand accountability

Axolile Notywala is a mentor, friend and fellow organiser who has significantly shaped my path. Collaborative work includes the Social Justice Coalition, Cape Town Together, the Movement for CARE, and Role Models NPC — all rooted in principles of justice, care and collective leadership. Whether responding to the Covid-19 pandemic or confronting systemic inequality, Axolile has consistently led with clarity, humility and purpose. His example underscores that politics should be rooted in community, not power. Influenced by Ada Colau’s municipalism, this work continues to advance forms of electoral politics centred on participation and care. Axolile serves as a reminder that real change is slow, but possible — when guided by courage and integrity.