Can we plan our city around our water systems?

Ōtautahi Christchurch is a water city. Yet people’s relationship with water in this place, and how we manage or care for it, has changed over time.

From the kaitiakitanga (guardianship) approach of te ao Māori and mahinga kai (food and resource gathering) networks, we find ourselves paving over the waterways today to make way for our urban lives. But what if we planned our city around water as a source of life and culture? This talk will explore how we might design our infrastructure to adapt to the changing flows of water.

The water city under climate stress brings the Christchurch Conversations – Towards 2030 series to a close for the year. Christchurch Conversations is a series of free events presented by Te Pūtahi and supported by the Christchurch City Council’s Sustainability Fund to support community projects addressing climate change.

“This series of talks has been hugely popular and it’s been wonderful to see people from across the community coming together to be part of the climate action conversation,” says Tony Moore, Christchurch City Council Climate Resilience Lead.

“We’re wrapping up with a fascinating topic and an opportunity to learn about dramatic impacts that climate change is having on our water systems.”

“Our Towards 2030 series has brought a diverse range of thought provoking speakers and Christchurch communities together, and the final event for 2022 will be no exception. ‘The water city under climate stress’ invites us all to reconsider the relationship between our city and water, and how we might design for this in a rapidly changing climate,” says Jessica Halliday, Te Pūtahi Director.

Hear from local experts and passionate people working in this area, including Dr Matthew Bradbury, Associate Professor in the School of Architecture, Te Puukenga, Unitec; Dr John Reid (Ngāti Pikiao, Tainui, Tauiwi), Senior Research Fellow the Ngāi Tahu Centre, University of Canterbury; Frances Charters, Engineering, University of Canterbury and Ben Brown (Ngāti Mahuta, Ngāti Koroki, Ngāti Paoa), acclaimed poet and performer.

This event will be held in the TSB Space, Level 1 of Tūranga from 6 to 7.30pm, Tuesday 6 December. This is a free community event, but bookings are required. You can join us in person or online. If you have missed any Christchurch Conversations events they are available to view on Te Pūtahi website.

Christchurch Conversations is a partnership between Te Pūtahi, Christchurch City Council and Series Research Partner, The Building Better Homes Towns and Cities: National Science Challenge.