The University of Auckland, in collaboration with Ako Aotearoa through a national project award, has just launched a two-year project titled Te Whaihanga: Preparing students to work with Māori.

Building on seed funding from the University of Auckland’s Te Whare Kura initiative, the project aims to develop a range of teaching resources specifically for students studying professionally accredited programmes in architecture, planning and engineering. 

The project will ensure that future generations of built environment professionals are better prepared to work with Māori professionals, iwi representatives and community and papakāinga developers in their day-to-day work.

Students from within the built environment field have been chosen because they shape the future spaces and places in which communities live, and it is envisaged the new teaching resources will ultimately be incorporated into teaching programmes for all first to third-year students.

Te Whaihanga: Preparing students to work with Māori involves academics from four tertiary institutions; the University of Auckland, Victoria University of Wellington, Auckland University of Technology and Unitec Institute of Technology. Supported by industry leaders, the initiative has been driven by research that indicates there is a lack of relevant material. 

Stage one of the project will involve a group of Māori specialists setting out the necessity for graduates in the built environment professions to be better equipped for the work environment in Aotearoa New Zealand. A reference group made up of prominent industry professionals will then help identify the kinds of situations where professionals need to be better prepared.

The project has received $150,000 from Ako Aotearoa and will involve matched funding in kind from the academic partners.

Project lead Professor Dory Reeves from the University of Auckland commented, “The launch demonstrated the depth and breadth of expertise Te Whaihanga has been able to draw together and we are all looking forward to working together over the next two years.”