Future communities research

We are engineers, architects, artists, activists, designers, urbanists, academics, and in our research and practice imagining, cultivating and supporting Aotearoa’s future communities we work with and alongside tamariki, rangatahi, councils, iwi, NGOs, social enterprsies, industry and business communities.

We work across social-spatial systems including foodscapes, sustainable building, the reduction of waste, smart buildings and technologies, community wellbeing, adaptive re-use of buildings, urban resilience and regeneration. Our work encompasses kaupapa Māori, and we focus on mauri ora (wellbeing) in relation to the climate and biodiversity emergency, colonial, racial, gender and institutional injustices.

Our members regularly collaborate with and support national agencies such as New Zealand’s National Science Challenge ‘Building Better Homes, Towns and Cities’, Kainga Ora, District Health Boards, and the New Zealand Ministry of Health’s Healthy Families programme.

Prior successful funding included:

  • Auckland Council, Flotilla Whau river-based community project. $29,000
  • Future Islands: New Zealand Exhibition, Venice Architecture Biennale. $150,000
  • Auckland District Health Board Circulation and Movement in the Grafton Precinct: A design research project with the Auckland District Health Board. $6000
  • Auckland Council, Make Believe: Imagining a new park for New Lynn. $15,000
  • National Science Challenge, Building Better Homes Towns and Cities. Tranche 2. Urban Wellbeing Programme. $3.7 million
  • National Science Challenge, Building Better Homes Towns and Cities. Mauri Ora and Urban Wellbeing – applied research for urban transformation. $88,739
  • Practice-led research funding. Creative New Zealand. New Zealand National Exhibition, Prague Quadrennial. $45,000
  • Waghorn, K. E, Fonna Forman and Teddy Cruz, (2021) Visualizing the political: Teddy Cruz and Fonna Forman, in conversation with Kathy Waghorn, in Di Raimo, Lehmann & Melis (eds.), Informality through sustainability: Urban informality now, Taylor and Francis.
  • Aigwi, I. E., Filippova, O., Ingham, J., & Phipps, R. (2020). Unintended consequences of the earthquake-prone building legislation: An evaluation of two city centre regeneration strategies in New Zealand's provincial areas. International Journal of Disaster Risk Reduction, 49, 101644. doi:10.1016/j.ijdrr.2020.101644
  • Kelly, N., Sosa R., Evans, R. and Gero, J. (2020) Design framing: definitions, representations, and possibilities. Design Studies, forthcoming.
  • Mahesh Babu, P., Seadon, J. (2020, November). A critical review of the system-wide in the construction industry: Paper presented at Imaginable Futures: Design Thinking, and the Scientific Method -The 54th International Conference of the Architectural Science Association (ANZAScA) 2020, Virtual Conference, 26 & 27 November 2020, Auckland, New Zealand.
  • Montiel M, Sosa R, Hocking D. (2020) Activity Scenario Modelling: an emerging method for examining human-artefact interaction. The Design Research Society 2020 International Conference 2020. Editor: Stella Boess. Brisbane, Aug 2020.
  • Moradi P, Sosa R, Hunting A. (2020) The Social Aspects of Companion Robots. The Design Research Society 2020 International Conference 2020. Editor: Stella Boess. Brisbane, Aug 2020.
  • Sosa R. (2020) What the Popol Vuh can teach design. Service Design Conference ServDes 2020, Editors: Akama, Yoko. Melbourne, Australia.
  • Sosa R. (2020) Indigenous Worldviews to Inform Participatory Creativity. Participatory Design Conference PDC2020, Editors: Parra, C.. Manizales, Colombia.
  • Sosa R. and Grocott L. (2020) The creative translation of design methods into social research, in Researching in The Age of Covid-19. Volume 3: Creativity and Ethics. Editor(s): Kara, Helen and Khoo, Su-ming. Policy Press, Bristol.
  • Waghorn, K. E. (2020). Practising Place: Tactical modes of practice at the intersection of art and architecture. In Bean, J., Dickinson, S., & Ida, A., (Eds.), The Unexamined, Critical Practices in Architecture and Place Making, Cambridge Scholars Series.
  • Waghorn, K. E. & Sarjent, N., (2020), The City as a School. Drawing On; Journal of Architectural Research by Design, University of Edinburgh.
  • Aigwi, I. E., Egbelakin, T., Ingham, J., Phipps, R., Rotimi, J., & Filippova, O. (2019). A performance-based framework to prioritise underutilised historical buildings for adaptive reuse interventions in New Zealand. Sustainable Cities and Society, 48, 101547. doi:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scs.2019.101547
  • Mahesh Babu, P., Seadon, J., & Moore, D. (2019, March). Improving productivity and staff wellbeing at a manufacturing facility in India using integrated lean and humans factors/ergonomics: paper presented. ICEMSO 2019: 21st International Conference on Engineering, Manufacturing and Supply Operations, Sydney, Australia ,28 - 29 Mar 2019.
  • Shao D, Nagai Y, Sosa R. (2019) Design for sustainability and innovation: A kansei engineering evaluation of the adaptive reuse of old buildings. Proceedings of the Design Society: International Conference on Engineering Design, ICED. 1: 3221-3230.
  • Aigwi, I. E., Egbelakin, T., & Ingham, J. (2018). Efficacy of adaptive reuse for the redevelopment of underutilised historical buildings: Towards the regeneration of New Zealand’s provincial town centres. International journal of building pathology and adaptation, 36(4), 385-407.
  • Gerrard V. and Sosa R. (2018) Data Objects for Hasselt elections (Creative Work). Participatory Design Conference PDC18, Z33, Hasselt, Belgium. 20-24 August 2018.
  • Grocott, L. & Sosa, R. (2018) The Contribution of Design in Interdisciplinary Collaborations: A framework for amplifying project-grounded research. In J. Oliver (Ed.) Associations: Creative Practice and Research. Melbourne University Press, Melbourne. https://www.mup.com.au/books/9780522870312-associations
  • Sosa, R., Gerrard, V., Esparza, A., Torres, R. and Nappier, R. (2018) Data Objects: Design principles for data physicalisation, Proceedings of the DESIGN 2018 15th International Design Conference, Dubrovnik. 1685-1696. https://doi.org/10.21278/idc.2018.0125
  • Mahesh Babu, P., Seadon, J., & Moore, D. (2017, November). A critical review of the organisational waste in the construction industry: Paper presented at the 5th annual series of the New Zealand Built Environment Research Symposium (NZBERS) Oct -2017, AUT- Auckland, New Zealand.
  • Mahesh Babu, P., Seadon, J., & Moore, D. (2017, September). Improving productivity and staff well-being at a manufacturing facility in India using integrated Lean and HFE principles:  Paper Presented at HFESNZ conference September -2017, Wellington, New Zealand.
  • Mahesh Babu, P., Seadon, J., & Moore, D. (2017, September). Stress reduction through digital technology in manufacturing: poster presented at AUT post graduate research symposium, Auckland, 17 Aug 2017 - 18 Aug 2017. AUT university. 17 Aug 2017.
  • Mahesh Babu, P., Seadon, J., & Moore, D. (2017, May). Stress reduction through digital technology in manufacturing. Poster presented at MaD for the Future 2017: A National Conference for Innovation in Manufacturing and Design, Auckland, New Zealand.
  • Gerrard, V., & Sosa, R. (2014). Examining participation. In Proceedings of the 13th Participatory Design Conference, Volume 1, 111-120. Namibia. http://doi.org/10.1145/2661435.2661451
  • Waghorn, K. E., Suburban Floral Association (Redmond, M., & Ecclestone, T.), (2014, May 3). Park for a Day [installation]. Make Believe HQ, Merchant Quarter, New Lynn, funded by Auckland Council. Retrieved from https://www.hoop-la.nz/park-for-a-day
  • Waghorn, K. E., & Houghton, C. (2014, March 24). Come Join the Circus [A week-long workshop with primary school children] Make Believe HQ, Merchant Quarter, New Lynn, funded by Auckland Council. Retrieved from https://www.hoop-la.nz/come-join-the-circus
  • Longley, A., Fitzpatrick, K., Sunde, C., Ehlers, C., Martin, R., Brown, C., . . . Waghorn, K. (2013). Streams of writing from a fluid city. Qualitative Inquiry, 19(9), 736-740. doi:10.1177/1077800413500936
  • Waghorn, K. E., Cruz, T., Mecredy, E., & Patel, N. (2013, May 9). Muddy urbanism: Productive coastlines [Exhibition]. Auckland Art Gallery, Auckland, New Zealand.
  • Waghorn, K. E., & Mecredy, E. (2013, October 10). Here now: Re-imagining New Lynn (No. Of Pieces: 16 installations) New Lynn town center, funded by Auckland Council. Retrieved from https://www.hoop-la.nz/here-now.
  • Longley, A., Sunde, C., Brown, C., Waghorn, K. E., Ehlers, C., Fitzpatrick, K., . . . Wood, R. (2012). Fluid City [installation and performance]. Silo Park, The Wynyard Quarter, Auckland, New Zealand. Retrieved from http://www.fluidcity.auckland.ac.nz/
  • De Groot, C., Parfitt, B., Reeves, D., & Waghorn, K. E. (2010). Demonstrating New Possibilities for Playful Collaboration: Claystation [Making Auckland]. JEBE The Journal for Education in the Built Environment, 5(2), 65-84. Retrieved from http://www.cebe.heacademy.ac.uk/jebe/pdf/CrisdeGroot5%282%29.pdf
  • Waghorn, K. E., Reeves, D. E., & De Groot, C. (2008). Claystation [Making Auckland]. Gus Fisher Gallery, University of Auckland.

Researchers involved

Contact us

Associate Professor Ann Morrison
ann.morrison@aut.ac.nz

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