Olivia Haddon is a Māori Design Specialist at Auckland Council.
She works with mana whenua to incorporate Māori design thinking into all of the council’s work.
“Last year I worked with Ngāti Manuhiri artists to design the Matariki lights projection on the Auckland Town Hall,” she says.
“It was incredibly special for me to watch how Aucklanders reacted to seeing this work in a public space.”
If you visit the council’s main office at 135 Albert Street you will hear another project Olivia worked on when you catch a lift – each floor is announced in te reo Māori as well as English.
“Initiatives like this are a small demonstration of how we can make sure that te reo Māori is valued, heard and spoken by our visitors and staff every day,” Olivia says.
