Diggers, dump trucks and graders have been preparing ground for new construction work at the Ōtaki campus of Te Wānanga o Raukawa. The overall plan is to redevelop the campus to be environmentally friendly following the seven performance areas of The Living Building Challenge: site, water, energy, health, materials, equity, and beauty.

The project will be monitored during and after construction, and then the carbon performance will be measured for a year following occupation of the buildings. Data and evidence of the work will be collected and shared with the International Living Future Institute, who operate The Living Building Challenge. The International Living Future Institute promote themselves as a global nonprofit organisation that inspires the greenest buildings for a healthy world. The Institute’s mission is to advance communities that are socially just, culturally rich, and ecologically restorative.

The Tumuaki (Chief Executive) of Te Wānanga o Raukawa, Mereana Selby, says about the new build and The Living Building Challenge.

“It was an easy decision to make because it fits with our kaupapa (values), particularly with kaitiakitanga (stewardship), and we look forward to the day when the standards of The Living Building Challenge become the norm for all new builds.”

Te Wānanga o Raukawa is a unique centre of higher learning devoted to the world of mātauranga Māori (Māori knowledge) with its main campus situated in Ōtaki on the Kāpiti Coast.

The main contractors are McMillan Lockwood and Pritchards Civil Engineers and part of the construction tender criteria included employing local and contributing to the Māori economy. They were also the contractors for the construction of Te Ara a Tāwhaki, currently the newest building on campus housing the library, a lecture theatre and the student hub. The induction training for the contractors included the kaupapa of Te Wānanga o Raukawa and pleasing to see was their appreciation of these and the benefits they bring to the project.

In phase 1, four new buildings, a car park and a courtyard will be built. One building is for management and administration staff, and the others will have classrooms and offices for teaching personnel. The campus will become pedestrianised, with a student centric central courtyard encouraging walking, cycling and other such modes of movement. The newer part of campus will produce 105% of daily energy needs via solar power, capture rainwater for all potable and non-potable needs, treat sewage on site, and have extensive planting of rongoā (medicinal native flora) and hua rākau (fruit trees). The result will be a purpose-built carbon positive site with green, resilient, and healthy buildings. The expectations are that the monetary costs to maintain the grounds and buildings will reduce significantly, and people will find the buildings and grounds beautiful and conducive to their creativity and wellbeing. The whole design is an expression of kaitiakitanga.

“We are aiming for Living Building certification so hopefully we will be number 24 in the world to meet this standard,” says Kaihautū of Te Whare Manaaki Whenua (Director, Facilities and Maintenance) for Te Wānanga o Raukawa, Rawiri Richmond. There are currently 115 certified projects underway around the world including this one.

Completion of phase 1 is due in March 2023 or thereabouts, and phase two is envisaged to begin in 2025.

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