Located within the University’s marae complex, the three-storey facility includes a wharekai, student and teaching spaces, the School of Māori Studies, and the University Sustainability Office. It serves not just the University, but the wider community—offering a place for connection, learning, and intergenerational responsibility.
What is the Living Building Challenge 4.0?
The Living Building Challenge, by the International Living Future Institute (ILFI), is the world’s most rigorous sustainability standard. Unlike conventional green certifications, it requires buildings to demonstrate real-world performance across 12 months of occupancy and contribute positively to their environment and communities.
Version 4.0 of the Challenge is structured around seven performance areas, known as Petals:
- Place: The project is deeply rooted in the whenua (land), promoting ecological restoration and honouring traditional Māori values and narratives.
- Water: All water needs are met on-site through rainwater harvesting, filtration, and greywater treatment—creating a closed-loop system that avoids reliance on municipal infrastructure
- Energy: The building operates as a net-positive energy facility, powered by 202 rooftop photovoltaic panels.
- Health + Happiness: Prioritising natural daylight, fresh air, and low-toxicity materials, the design promotes wellbeing and comfort for all occupants.
- Materials: A strict Red List compliance and material transparency policy ensures that all products used are non-toxic, responsibly sourced, and disclosed.
- Equity: Designed for inclusivity and universal access, the building serves students, staff, and the wider community—extending the role of the marae.
- Beauty: With a striking timber structure, native planting, and cultural symbolism throughout, the project inspires pride, reflection, and connection.
Each design decision—down to the materials, construction practices, and energy systems—has been made with care to meet these rigorous criteria, while also upholding te ao Māori (a Māori world view).
Safetyline Jalousie’s Role in a Living, Breathing Building
As part of this visionary project, Safetyline Jalousie proudly contributed its high-performance, operable glass louvre systems to support the project’s passive design and biophilic goals.
Our louvres play a critical role in enabling natural ventilation across the building’s spaces, reducing the reliance on mechanical cooling and enhancing thermal comfort. With their expansive operability, the louvres also foster a strong visual and physical connection to the surrounding landscape—ensuring occupants remain connected to nature even indoors.
The systems were manufactured using Hydro Circal, a low-carbon aluminium made from a minimum of 75% post-consumer recycled content. All components were Red List Free and compliant with the Living Building Challenge’s strict material transparency requirements, helping ensure the project’s commitment to a toxin-free, future-focused building was upheld.
“The building breathes like any other organism. At its best, with the plants on the façade and the planting around it, you’ll feel like you’re in the forest.” —
This vision is exactly what the project delivers—a building that feels alive, rooted in its surroundings, and responsive to people and place.
Looking Ahead
Ngā Mokopuna proves that regenerative design grounded in cultural identity isn’t just aspirational—it’s achievable. It demonstrates how buildings can honour the past while shaping a sustainable future.
At Safetyline Jalousie, we’re proud to support projects like this, where performance, transparency, and connection to Country are key. If you’re pursuing Living Building Challenge certification, aiming for passive design, or simply looking for sustainable window solutions—we’re here to help.
Contact us to explore how Safetyline Jalousie’s louvre systems can support your next project.
Book a CPD Presentation on Designing for Country or Performance Louvres in Breathable Buildings to learn how glazing solutions can support cultural, environmental, and passive design outcomes.
