Cape Town nearly ran out of water. Turns out, some of the culprits were trees

Boundless & SAB create “Day Zero” Watershed Film spotlighting water stewardship in the Western Cape.

Johannesburg / Cape Town / Not Day Zero

There was a moment when Cape Town almost ran out of water. They called it Day Zero. Which, in hindsight, feels like a name that didn’t quite capture the panic of wondering whether your taps might just stop working forever.

While everyone was cutting back, timing showers, and aggressively judging anyone watering a potted cactus, something else was quietly making things worse. Plants. Not the nice, local, mind-your-own-business kind. The invasive, thirsty, out-of-town kind. The kind that overwhelms the fynbos.

And worse, the alien species that drink up to 60% of the water meant for the ecosystem and the surrounding catchment areas. Trees that grow faster than they should and generally behave as if they’ve never paid a municipal bill in their lives.

For SAB, this was a real wake-up call. Water is, after all, their number one ingredient. It matters to them as a business, as a responsible corporate citizen, and as a committed South African. So, they decided to do something about it.

Fix The Source Not The Symptom

SAB did something refreshingly practical. Together with partners like The Nature Conservancy and WWF, they got involved in clearing invasive species like wattle, blue gum, and pine from critical water catchment areas.

Which is a long way of saying: They started literally removing the problem so the water could flow again. But that’s just the solution. The real story is who’s doing the work.

Marsha Kumire, Brand Director: SAB Corporate, explains:

“Water is fundamental to everything we do, but more importantly, to the communities and ecosystems we’re part of. What makes this initiative powerful is that it moves beyond awareness into real, tangible impact. By restoring these landscapes, we’re not only helping to secure water for the future, we’re supporting jobs, communities, and the natural systems that sustain us all. This film is a way of making that work visible, and of recognising the people who are doing it every day.”

Enter The Real Heroes No Capes Just Ropes

SAB asked us to help tell the story of the people behind this effort. The film is theirs. Especially the women leading clearing teams in some of the toughest terrain in the Western Cape.

Climbing. Cutting. Restoring. Slowly, tenaciously, restoring and releasing water back into the system. Because when you remove the invaders, the water flows again. Not in a poetic, “spirit of water” kind of way. In a very real, very measurable way.

Over 3.3 billion litres of water returned to where it belongs since 2015. Which is the difference between “we’re fine” and “we’re having emergency meetings about buckets.”

And Behind The Camera More Women Shaping The Story

This film is also the result of a remarkable group of women bringing it to life.

Roanna Williams, Chief Creative Officer of Boundless, commented:

"This project felt special from the start. Having a strong group of women shaping it all the way through brought a real sense of care and detail to everything. Darling Fling put so much thought into every part of the production. Director Alexa Wilson captured the vastness of the landscape as well as intimate human moments. And having Marsha Kumire’s partnership and trust on the client side meant we were all aligned in doing the story justice.”

This Is Not A Brand Story Pretending To Care

Water is SAB’s most important ingredient. Which means this isn’t a CSR side hustle. It’s survival. For the business. For the communities it serves. For the ecosystems that make all of it possible.

So yes, this is about beer. But it’s also about the slightly bigger issue of whether there’s enough water left for anything at all.

From Day Zero To Doing Something About It

This undertaking is part of SAB’s Cheers to Nature platform. The film is about water. It’s also about SAB’s commitment to nature, their communities, and a nation. And its proof that where there’s will, water will find a way.

Watch the full story here: https://youtu.be/OmUbvGOTxOc?si=TbzfcciTKbK9xHeX

About Boundless

Boundless is an agency composed entirely of experts, making the World’s Most-Loved IdeasTM. We bring about change through Heartfelt Creativity, making work that isn’t just seen, but deeply felt. Creating lasting impacts on people, communities, and markets.

For Further Information

For further information or access to interviews and higher-resolution images, please contact: Paul Jackson, CEO – Boundless, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

For more information, follow the Boundless social media channels or visit:

Website: https://www.boundless.global/LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/BoundlessZAInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/BoundlessZAX: https://twitter.com/BoundlessZAYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@BoundlessZA