Abstracts

  Ahlia-Mei Ta’ala

 

The Fires of Ambition: Te Awa Tupua 2040

Since the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi the Whanganui river has actively been destroyed through legislative acts by the Crown. The Highways and Watercourses Diversions Act 1858, the Wanganui River Trust Act 1891, and the Coal Mines Act amendment in 1891 have all undermined the Treaty and the ability for Whanganui uri (descendants of the river) to care, protect, manage and use the river. This has diminished the mauri of the river and resulted in the loss of ancestral knowledge around tīkanga towards the river. 

The Te Awa Tupua Act that was passed in 2017 represents a significant turning point. A point where we acknowledge the people who championed the longest running legal battle in New Zealand’s history, through imagining the future of the river and its people through their eyes. Now that the river is legislated as a legal person through Westminster law, Whanganui uri can shift efforts towards restoring the mauri of the awa and rebuilding their relationship with the river to be what it once was. 

This research follows a process of decolonisation towards re-indigenisation within Kaupapa Māori Rangahau, specifically through Whanganuitanga and Te Awa Tupua. Within landscape architecture, this research situates itself within the context of tūpuna (ancestral) landscape mapping - as the researcher is a descendent of the river, and the river is her tūpuna (ancestor). This follows a site investigative process of visualising the socio-cultural layers of histories of the site of Pākaitore and its context within the Whanganui river and to Whanganui uri, in order to reimagine the future of the urban site of Pākaitore to be a site that reflects its people and its history, through the rebuilding of the indigenous knowledges that reside within the landscape. 

E Tempest - MLA (Project) 2021 - PROPOSAL - Supervisor: Sue Wake, Unitec, Aotearoa

RESEARCH QUESTION: 

How can the social, cultural, physical and spiritual wellbeing of postpartum women be benefitted through connection to the natural world in Aotearoa New Zealand?  

WORKING TITLE: 

Wahine/Women: Embody postpartum wellbeing (through landscape) in Aotearoa New Zealand 

ABSTRACT: 

A loss of connection with Nature and disruption to sense of place impacts upon the postpartum health of women in Aotearoa.  The experience of postnatal depletion, post-natal depression and the inequalities that exist between culture, narratives and statistics have long-term implications for family and community. 

This research will examine knowledge and experience of belonging and culture, health and value embedded in place. It will identify and demonstrate the interconnectedness of health and place during postpartum experience, as paramount to design strategy and solutions in an Aotearoa context. Mātauranga Māori and Te Aranga design principles will underpin and guide commitment to research. Recognising these offer opportunity for improving postpartum care in Aotearoa is significant to the outcome of the research, especially for Maori postpartum women.  

Research will explore the concepts and practises of therapeutic landscapes, the interconnection of women’s health, place and belonging, ecopsychology, and ecofeminism.  Women’s participation through narrative will act as a credible reference for postpartum 

‘lived’ experiences. An applied arts process will contribute an immersive in-situ installation to express, represent and support women’s postpartum experience in the public realm. The research will adopt a Community-Up approach to help navigate findings by a non-Maori seeking specific benefits for postpartum Maori women and their whanau.  

The social, cultural, physical and spiritual wellbeing of postpartum women (during and beyond the first year following childbirth) in Aotearoa can be benefitted through connection to the natural world. This relationship and awareness can alleviate and mitigate experiences of postnatal depletion/depression and encourage intergenerational healing. 

Aachna Acchal

URBAN FLOOD ADAPTATION PLAN 

Abstract 

As Aotearoa moves into the era of climate change our urban landscape are becoming more vulnerable to flooding. Along with climate change aggravating the flooding; additionally, Aotearoa is short of housing (“45,000 dwellings” (Johnson et al., 2018)). The loss of land by flooding means the loss of potential to accommodate the housing needs of New Zealand. 

This project strives to develop a climate adaptive design method. This method includes two parts; firstly, to create a sites’ specific design strategy that is adaptive to flooding and secondly, to increase housing that will be climate proof.

The urban flood adaptation design methods will be tested and applied to a case study site using combination of Rob Regma’s methodology, Geodesign tools, community consultation, and scientific data (from NIWA, LINZ & Auckland Council).

This design method will provide a resilient water landscape site for its community. This method will help preserve the good qualities of the existing landscape and build a new landscape which will enhance community participation and ameliorate flooding. 

Wenwan Zhang

Abstract 

Due to the COVID-19 outbreak, to avoid the spreading of the virus (spreading by confirmed COVID-19 cases, the contact of mucus or body fluid.), "work from home" and "social distance" are claimed as an effective way to stop the virus (the high risk to stay in a poorly ventilated office and the high density of people gathering).  

"Social distance" still determines how public space is used in different countries. Simultaneously, the remotely working style will be an intense reason for peoples to change their living places. Families move to small towns away from major cities has become a trend, accelerated the population growth and urban expansion in the town. 

As an essential role in people's daily lives, public green space needs to develop. The design of environments positively facilitates human life and is more resilient to epidemiological crises in the future.