Māori to kōrero about high quality urban design
Media release: 12 June 2006
This Friday (16 June) over 40 Māori urban design professionals, iwi and local government representatives will participate in a workshop in Waitakere to address the way designers can incorporate Māori urban design concepts and needs into contemporary urban designs.
Hosted by the Ministry for the Environment, this workshop is the first national discussion about these issues and will cover topics such as; the role Māori can have in quality urban design, the uniqueness of Māori culture in NZ design, and provision of high quality design that incorporates Māori cultural values.
Workshop facilitator, Rau Hoskins, is a practitioner and educator in Māori architecture. He says people are coming together to discuss what constitutes quality urban design from a Maori perspective and to find ways and means to be more influential within urban design processes.
"With over 70% of Māori now living in towns and cities, it is essential that our urban environments better reflect wider Maori values and aspirations. There are many ways for modern design to include these needs in an urban setting," Rau Hoskins said. "Design considerations include the need to uncover, interpret and celebrate sites of significance to Maori as well as provide opportunities for a greater living Maori presence in urban areas.
"We will also discuss how important values and concepts, such as tapu and noa (sacred and common) and tohu (special symbols), can be meaningfully applied when developing urban housing," he said.
The Ministry for the Environment (MfE) launched the NZ Urban Design Protocol in 2005 (the Protocol) and this is increasing the quality and quantity of good urban design. It does this through public and private sector professionals and decision makers sharing their experiences, evaluating them and applying the results.
MfE Deputy Chief Executive Lindsay Gow says: "Our towns and cities are important expressions of New Zealand’s cultural identity and urban design needs to reflect and enhance elements of our unique Māori heritage. We are keen to map a way forward for how best to bring Māori design concepts and needs into our Urban Design Protocol programme."
For information about the Urban Design Protocol visit: http://www.mfe.govt.nz/publications/urban/design-protocol-mar05
