Long before the development of tarmac, radicals and activists have taken to the streets to agitate against the man. Last week (Sept. 19 to be precise) this tradition was honored in the fifth-annual Park(ing) Day event, which unleashed pitchforks and rolls of sod in a cleverly executed takeover of 450+ parking spaces in more than 80 cities around the world. Protesting the domination of car-culture in cities from Amsterdam to Brisbane, Park(ing) Day-ers reclaimed parking spaces in the name of human habitat, creating temporary green spaces for urban dwellers.

The annual event was developed by the San Francisco design collective REBAR, who opened up this global design challenge with the question:

Feeding the meter of a parking space enables one to rent precious downtown real estate, typically on a 1/2 hour to 2 hour basis. What is the range of possible occupancy activities for this short-term lease?

Armed with pocket change and a desire to go barefoot during lunch hour, Park(ing) Day's guerrilla gardeners took back our automobile-clogged streets for one day, one hour at a time.