80 | Making a ‘better future’ The ahha team - sharing a new vision for architecture. ahha 2024 T T Virginia Wright ARCHITECTURE ahha is the brainchild of four architects who were all working overseas at the time, one in Amsterdam, two in London , and the fourth, in New York. Raphaela Rose, Tony Calder, Jimmi O’Toole, and Campbell McNeill had all known each other socially in the broader architectural circle of Auckland. Their work abroad exposed them to progressive and sustainably driven forms of architecture such as collective housing, co-housing, off-the-grid housing and so on. Not long before they all coincidentally were heading back to New Zealand they found a common cause in their desire to do better in the built environment. “For us that meant being able to look through the lens of delivering for social and environmental impact. “When we boiled that down and figured out what it actually meant we decided to focus on regenerative architecture, projects that are able to go beyond sustainability and start to regenerate the planet, both from a social and ecological lens,” explains Jimmi O’Toole. They developed the ‘ahha’ impact framework which they derived from the UN Sustainable Development Goals that guides the way they look at every project regardless of size “whether it’s a small piece of artwork or if it’s a five-storey apartment building or a community building we always take it through our framework to figure out what are all the opportunities that lie beyond the brief and enable this project to be the very best that it can be,” says Jimmi. As a collective driven by impactful ideas they chose the name ‘ahha’ to reflect their underlying ethos rather than them as individuals. “No matter the size of the project, we have the opportunity to create meaningful change through projects that change the way we think about the built environment. ,” says Jimmi. They knew they wanted their work to be regenerative both ecologically and socially. “Given that the construction industry equates to 40% of carbon emissions, there’s a huge amount to do in this space, but socially, we wanted to help regenerate local communities, and local neighbourhoods to really thrive and build community wealth,” explains Jimmi. Their goal to make the future better for everyone can be seen through their project “The Art Deco Hall”. As their numbers dwindled the Otago Pioneer Women’s Association decided that if they were to ever sell their art-deco, Heritage 1 listed building, which was in serious need of seismic and building code upgrade, they would use the proceeds to establish a scholarship for a woman to go to university. Instead they accepted ‘ahha’s proposal to transfer the building into a Community Land Trust for $1 with view to continuing the Otago Women Pioneer Women’s Society’s legacy of providing an affordable, fit-for-purpose contemporary, community facility and social infrastructure. Moving beyond the traditional architectural role, ahha facilitated project funding, democratic ownership structures, community participation and design, in the creation of a community resource. The project has just received Resource consent and will be moving into the next stage of design development. The Hall is a catalyst project for The Community Land Trust to create perpetually affordable housing and community buildings. They’re hoping the project will be the first of many as they pursue their impact agenda along with their regenerative goals, working to achieve more affordable, socially driven architecture in housing projects and beyond. Natural Solid Wood Products Nothing Beats Real Timber PRODUCT RANGE Timber Flooring – Solid & Engineered Timber Cladding Timber Decking Stairs and Benchtops Interior Finishing Timber Landscape Timber and Sleepers Sawn Timber and Beams Natural Oils & Waxes TALK TO OUR TIMBER EXPERTS 03 365 3253 sales@timbers.co.nz
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