The Ōtaki campus of Te Wānanga o Raukawa features the region’s first “Living Building Challenge” certified structure.
The building generates its own energy, manages all water on site, and uses sustainable materials.
The project emphasises cultural values, waste reduction, and the restoration of natural environments.
The Drawing Board tonightexplores the intersection of architecture and sustainability through a Māori lens, highlighting how modern design is transforming spaces in harmony with cultural values.
This episode focuses on the development of a groundbreaking building at the Ōtaki campus of Te Wānanga o Raukawa, which is the first certified “Living Building Challenge” structure in the region.
Inside the Ōtaki campus of Te Wānanga o Raukawa.
The Living Building Challenge is the world’s most rigorous sustainability certification, encompassing seven performance areas: site, water, energy, health, materials, equity and beauty.
As Rawiri Richmond, leader of Te Whare Manaaki Whenua, explains, the goal of the new building was to create better spaces for students and staff, with a focus on sustainability.
“We wanted a new campus or part of campus. We needed some facilities that were better suited to looking after our students and looking after our staff.”
The old buildings were costly to maintain and inefficient, making the Living Building Challenge the perfect fit for their values of kaitiakitanga (guardianship).
Māori architect Derek Kawiti.
Architect Ewan Brown of Tennent Brown Architects describes the immense significance of this project.
“The Living Building Challenge is an international system. It’s the highest rating system for buildings in the world for sustainability. There’s only 32 buildings in the world at this level.”
To meet the challenge’s stringent criteria, the building had to generate its own energy, manage all water on site, and use sustainable materials.
Brown elaborates on the multifaceted approach.
“We have to generate enough power to run all the buildings without any extra energy coming to site ... we have to collect all the roof water, and manage all water on site.”
The design also had to prioritise health and wellbeing, ensuring the building was free of harmful chemicals.
“We have to look at volatile organic compounds, all the gasses, off-gas things,” says Brown.
Moreover, beauty was a key focus, with a biophilic plan that connects the building with the natural world.
Derek Kawiti and one of the team who worked on the Ōtaki campus of Te Wānanga o Raukawa.
Nicole Thompson, landscape architect, emphasises the significance of the land’s history in shaping the project. The site had once been a wetland, and Thompson’s design aimed to restore this natural environment.
“We understood that it had previously been a wetland. And so the idea that we might create a landscape over which all the buildings floated.”
She highlights the vital role of wetlands in managing water quality and habitat, with all campus landscapes designed to both treat and attenuate water.
Waste reduction was another critical component, with a goal of diverting at least 90% of construction waste from landfills.
The finished campus is entirely self-sufficient, with on-site wastewater treatment and rainwater storage systems.
The campus now stands as a beacon of sustainable architecture, where 99% of the construction materials are sustainably sourced, and nearly all waste is diverted from landfills.
For students, the environment provides more than just a space to learn; it’s a living, breathing example of how design can nurture both people and the planet.
The Te Wānanga o Raukawa campus is a remarkable testament to the power of design, culture, and sustainability working together – an inspiring model for the future of architecture.
