“Kia ora a Papatūānuku, Ka ora te tangata mō, ā, ka muri ake nei - If we heal Mother Earth, we heal the people, for us and our children after us.”
“Kia ora a Papatūānuku, Ka ora te tangata mō, ā, ka muri ake nei - If we heal Mother Earth, we heal the people, for us and our children after us.”
OUR VISION
Intergenerational by design
Our vision is grounded in a simple belief:
When whenua is listened to, people heal — and future generations thrive.
Kahu Creative Studio exists to support the long-term wellbeing of whenua and whānau by ensuring development decisions are made with care, clarity and cultural integrity.
We do not work for short-term outcomes. We work for intergenerational resilience, where whenua, wai, people and taiao are restored into balance.
Our vision extends beyond individual projects. It lives across the wider Kahu Creative Universe — an ecosystem of kaupapa Māori–led initiatives responding to the interconnected challenges facing people and the planet.
Image showing Waikato Awa + waka on the river bank of Tūrangawaewae Marae, Ngāruawāhia with the Hakarimata in the background.
“Mehemea ka moemoeā ahau, ko ahau anake.
Mehemea ka moemoeā tātou, ka taea e tātou”
“If I am to dream, I dream alone. If we all dream together then we will succeed”.
Our vision is not held by one person, one organisation, or one discipline.
It is shaped through collective dreaming — walking alongside whānau, hapū, iwi, communities, councils and collaborators to imagine futures that are grounded in whenua and guided by care.
Transformation does not happen in isolation.
It happens when people come together, listen deeply, and take responsibility for the places they shape.
This belief guides how we work, who we work with, and the futures we help bring into being.
— Te Puea Hērangi
Image showing Ngāti Haua + Ngāti Korokī Kahukura design wānanga with BECA + New Zealand Transport Agency for the Waikato Expressway Mahi-toi.
Our Values
Our values are the pou that hold the Kahu Creative Universe — guiding everything we design, create and nurture.
Each kaupapa — Studio, Kākahu (ORAIA + The Hokohoko Shop), Pātaka.World and Hauora
(My World + WERO-90) — is woven through the same threads:
love for Papatūānuku, care for our people, and the healing power of mahi-toi.
Together, they remind us that when design is guided by wairua, it becomes a living form of restoration.
Papatūānuku.
The heartbeat of everything we do.
We design, create and heal in service to Papatūānuku — the living source of our inspiration and wellbeing.
Through our Studio, we restore her mauri through whenua-led analysis, design guidance and spatial strategy.
Through Kākahu, we explore materials and products that come from the earth and return to it.
Through Pātaka.World, we support ecological systems, habitats and wai-based infrastructure.
Through Hauora, we guide whānau to live in rhythm with her cycles and seasons.
When we honour Papatūānuku, we remember who we are.
The People.
The reason for our mahi.
Our kaupapa exists to uplift whānau, hapū, iwi and communities — supporting connection, belonging and collective wellbeing.
Through our Studio, we co-design with iwi and communities to honour stories of place.
Through Kākahu, we create for whānau and home, supporting everyday wellbeing.
Through Hauora, we help people reconnect to their rhythms, routines and whakapapa with taiao.
When the people thrive, the land thrives with them.
Mahi-toi.
The expression of wairua through creation.
Mahi-toi is the thread that weaves our universe together.
It is not decoration — it is medicine, storytelling and transformation.
Through our Studio, mahi-toi is embedded into landscapes, buildings and public spaces as carriers of meaning.
Through Kākahu, it becomes texture, form and frequency in healing products.
Through Hauora, it shapes tools, practices and systems that restore harmony and joy.
Every act of creation is a form of healing.