New Zealand childcare centre scoops international award

A childcare centre in the small Northland town of Kawakawa has beaten more than 50 buildings across the Asia Pacific region to take top honours in the World Green Building Council’s regional leadership awards.

 Te Mirumiru, New Zealand’s first commercial earth bank building, was last night (subs: Weds 3 Sept) announced winner of the Leadership in Sustainable Design and Performance trophy, at a gala dinner in Singapore. Around 57 buildings were entered in the Award with eight shortlisted, including designs from China, Japan, Taiwan, Singapore and Malaysia.

 Te Mirumiru was designed by Phil Smith (RIBA) of Collingridge and Smith Architects, a UK / New Zealand practice. It is one of only three 6 Green Star buildings in New Zealand (denoting ‘world excellence’), and is the only Green Star rated childcare centre throughout Australasia.

 Owned by the Ngati Hine Health Trust, Te Mirumiru is home to bilingual education for around 100 children from birth to five years old. The building is covered by earth and grass on its roof and unglazed sides, integrating it with the landscape and paying homage to the tribe’s customs and history (‘Ngati Hine of a hundred hills’).

 NZ Green Building Council Chief Executive Alex Cutler said the award was a ‘stunning achievement’ for a New Zealand building.

‘These awards are hotly contested. Te Mirumiru was up against a wide international field, and has shone through. This is testament to the strong vision of its owners, and the technical skill of the architect and project team. I’d like to congratulate everyone involved in the project.”

 The World GBC Asia Pacific Awards also include a trophy for Business Leadership in Sustainability. This was won by three companies: City Developments (Singapore); ITC Ltd – Hotels Division (India) and Keppel Land Ltd (Singapore).