From 14 to 17 March 2018, a group of 34 leading experts from academia and practice met at the “Centro Congressi Stefano Franscini” at Monte Verità in Ascona to discuss the future of urban water management (UWM). The workshop, facilitated by scholars from the strategic research program Wings at Eawag, was aimed at discussing the possibilities of transitioning toward a new paradigm in UWM which is based on adaptive, flexible and robust ‘non-grid’ water and sanitation solutions.