When the city took their banners, they didn’t back down. They picked up their brooms and carried on cleaning. Better Fourways isn’t just fixing a suburb… they’re proving what happens when a community becomes unstoppable.
South Africa (01 June 2025) – Sometimes, the good news is not found in flashy headlines or viral trends but in the quiet, consistent actions of ordinary citizens doing extraordinary things.
That’s where Better Fourways comes in… a grassroots force of nature determined to restore our suburb, our streets and our sense of pride. Born from the brave realisation that “no one is coming to save us,” Better Fourways is what happens when active citizenship gets real. It’s not a political project. It’s not a marketing gimmick. It’s a community-led movement that’s saying: we care and we’re doing something about it. Spearheaded by Raffi Carnicelli, Susan Harwood and Pernille Martin, the initiative was inspired by successful models like Tidy Towns and Better Bedfordview.
These three Dainfern Golf Estate residents saw the neglect and deterioration in their area and decided enough was enough.
As Raffi puts it, “If we want to fix what is in our immediate suburb, we are going to have to do it ourselves. If we are going to wait, I am afraid that ship has sailed, has probably sunk. We are going to have to redeem ourselves. If you want to stay and be positive about South Africa then this is the message I think that we need to get out there: we need to do it ourselves… and we can… because there is power in numbers.”
What followed was a registered, apolitical, non-profit organisation that’s not just talking about change, they’re sweeping it off the pavements, trimming it back from the road signs and repainting it on every forgotten wall.
Funded by residents and supported by local businesses, Better Fourways has been actively transforming the area into a safer, cleaner, prouder place to live, work, play, shop, go to school and walk your dog.
“We are making it a suburb that we can all safely and happily enjoy and be proud of,” the team explains.
But sometimes, doing good gets you into trouble.
On the 24th of March 2025, the Johannesburg Metro Police arrived unannounced and confiscated Better Fourways’ banners and flags, accusing them of “advertising illegally” and demanding a payment for their return.
Most organisations might have been rattled. Some might have backed down. But Better Fourways is made of sturdier stuff.
“We won’t be intimidated. We won’t stop fighting for a cleaner, safer, better Fourways.”
Instead of paying to get their banners and flags back, they’re choosing to continue their work. Unbothered and unfazed. It’s this exact decision, the refusal to be shaken and the commitment to purpose over politics, that proves just how much heart this organisation has.
Better Fourways is a powerful reminder that real change doesn’t need permission. It needs passion.
Susan cements the sentiment: “I resonate with Gandhi’s ‘Be the change you want to see in the world.’”
Hope doesn’t always arrive with fanfare… sometimes, it looks like a small group of locals cleaning their streets, standing tall despite setbacks and quietly proving that change is possible. It’s not lofty or theoretical, it’s grounded in action, in persistence, in refusing to be discouraged when systems fail or rules get in the way. This is what hope looks like when it rolls up its sleeves and gets to work.
Not waiting for permission, just doing the work anyway.
Because the reality is that no one is coming to save us. But maybe (just maybe) we don’t need saving. Maybe we just need to roll up our sleeves, link arms with our neighbours and do the good work ourselves.
And Pernille sums this up perfectly: “If you can’t stand what’s going on, make a stand to make it change!”
To find out more about Better Fourways or to join their clean-up efforts, click here.
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