Christchurch Earthquakes Inspire New School Designs

Christchurch Earthquakes Inspire New School Designs

The extensive damage suffered by schools in the Christchurch earthquakes has drawn international experts to a conference in Auckland, where opportunities for better educational facility design are being explored.

The Council of Educational Facilities Planners International (CEFPI)is holding its annual Australasian conference in New Zealand for the first time. Built around the theme of ‘Disruption’, the conference focuses on innovation in response to change, with the Christchurch earthquakes as a major catalyst for rethinking how space design can support student learning.

Associate Minister of Education Nikki Kaye, speaking to the 385 delegates from New Zealand and around the world, commended the focus on schooling design for the future.

Two principals from Christchurch schools devastated in the earthquakes, Mike Anderson and John Leonard, talked powerfully about the effects of the destruction of their schools on students, teachers and their communities. Their experiences prompted a rethink about the impacts of space on learning.

Conference Chair Helen Anderson, Academic Director at Bay of Plenty Polytechnic, said “The appalling human cost of disaster events must give rise to new, better ways of learning. When facilities have to be refurbished or replaced, everyone involved has an obligation to ensure that the new spaces are better and not a clone of the past.”

Internationally respected speakers in the conference line up include Julia Aitken, Mark Treadwell, Stephen Harris and Christian Long. Delegates will visit some of New Zealand’s most innovative facilities including Ormiston Senior College, Hingaia Peninsula School, Kia Aroha College, The University of Auckland Business School, the AUT Sir Paul Reeves building and many more.

ENDS

© Scoop Media