A few times a year, on a Sunday, a stretch of road in Cape Town is cut off to regular motorised traffic. For a few hours these urban paths of tar are transformed into a utopia for people on foot, bicycles, skateboards and even prams as they move freely and explore and experience the city in new ways.

Given the challenges of the social and spatial divides in Cape Town, not to mention increasing congestion on our roads, Open Streets offers a change from the norm and inspires citizens to imagine a different city where streets are not just for cars.

As part of the WWF water-wise hub at Open Streets, we got to interact with several of the city’s residents. It’s not just because they were drawn to our panda mascot, Chi-Chi; many residents were genuinely interested in sharing their water saving ideas.

Using our selfie frame as their canvas, the Open Streets goers shared a wide range tips from using grey water to reducing shower time and letting yellow mellow while flushing brown down (with grey water if you can).

These are true Water Heroes.

Well done to the organisers of Open Streets. They’ve created a space that has opened up conversations about space, mobility and our most precious natural resource: water.

Here’s looking forward to the next one on 25 March.