Revive Knysna started when two friends, Gail Sofianos and Paula Wishart, decided to become active citizens and stand up for the estuary that sustains their town. It is now a registered non-profit organisation (NPO 272-700) with around 20 volunteers, six staff and more than 25 completed projects behind it.

Most of the work happens in public view: clearing and replanting verges, traffic islands and walkways with water-wise indigenous gardens, restoring heritage buildings and bus shelters, and keeping the town's streets and green spaces clean. Plant a Tree, Leave a Legacy has put 46 yellowoods along the railway line on Waterfront Drive and 20 wild plums along the Lagoon Edge Walkway.

Safer Spaces, run with Allsound Security, the Knysna CCTV project and local businesses, pairs beautification with safety on Grey Street: surveillance cameras, extra security patrols, cleared vegetation, new waste bins for the CBD and solar lighting. Grey Street is the pilot, with Main Street and Queen Street to follow.

Keep Knysna Clean is a branch of Revive Knysna, and donations made in its support are received and administered through the NPO. Qualifying donations to Revive Knysna are eligible for a Section 18A tax certificate.

The model has travelled along the coast: Revive Sedgefield and Revive Brenton have since joined the movement.