ALMOST 150 Melburnians cycled through the city wearing only their helmets yesterday, stripping for what organisers called an ''all-purpose naked protest'' that ''exposed the vulnerability of cyclists on our roads''.

The World Naked Bike Ride was a family event, said organiser Heidi Hill, with counterparts in London, Rome, Paris, San Francisco, Vancouver and other cities around the world. She said people on the street had disrobed and joined the cyclists as they rode from Edinburgh Gardens in Fitzroy North, down Brunswick Street, up Lygon Street and back to the garden, painted with slogans about causes from pacifism to environmentalism: ''No emissions but my own'', ''Naked ambition'', ''Wish you were as free as me''.

The 10km bicycle ride was held in support of peace, sustainability and the rights of road cyclists. Credit:Joseph Feil

Other socially conscious Melburnians dined on the Sandridge Bridge at Southbank yesterday for the Taste of Reconciliation lunch, feasting on a four-course meal prepared and served by staff from Charcoal Lane restaurant. The Fitzroy eatery is a Mission Australia enterprise that employs indigenous youth. Guests at the Melbourne International Food and Wine Festival event tucked into modern Australian dishes such as pepper berry-seared kangaroo carpaccio with ponzu citrus sauce.