Kūmara Awards - Call for Nominations

Placemaking is a practice that brings communities together to collectively reimagine, redesign, repurpose and reinvigorate the public spaces that they share. It is a collaborative process that highlights the connection between people and place, that finds value both in the outcome of collaborative work and the process of nurturing working relationships. 

The third, annual Kūmara Awards are back to honour the best placemaking projects in Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland over the last two years. The awards are hosted in Tāmaki Makaurau by Catalyse and will also be hosted in Te Panepane o Te Ika Greater Wellington Region including Wairarapa by Hutt City Council, and Ōtautahi Christchurch, Selwyn and Waimakariri by Gap Filler.

This year’s nominations were launched on September 12th at 8:00am and will close on October 10th at 5:00pm. 

In the spirit of the kūmara not speaking of its own sweetness, Placemaking Aotearoa asks people to nominate projects that have inspired them, and that speak to the values of good placemaking. This year's five nomination categories are: 

1. ​​Mā te haukāinga hei tūāpapa ki te ao tūroa: It Takes a Village, 

2. Ahakoa he iti, ko tōna painga ka puawaitia: From Little Things Big Things Grow, 

3. Kei tua atu i te kaupapa: Beyond the Brief, 

4. Ngā akoranga i muri, hei tūāpapa ki ngā mahi ki mua: Looking Back to Move Forward, and 

5. Tiakina te whenua, ka manaakitia te tangata: Caring For the Land, Caring For the People.

Past winners from Tāmaki Makaurau reflect the wide variety of placemaking happening all around us and including 2021 winners the Õtara Kai Village, Gear Up/ Play Portals, M2M: Te Atatū, The Pocket Park on Karangahape Road, Jesse Tonar Scout Reserve regeneration, and 2020 winners, O.M.G Organic Market Garden, Bayview Community Center, Smales Farm, the 312 Hub, and Ara Journeys. To learn more about past winners from all areas, you can follow this link for a celebratory video and this link for a list.

Entries will be judged by a panel of local placemakers. This year’s judging panel in Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland is confirmed and will be announced soon.

“The whole Kūmara Awards team is excited to see what projects are nominated this year! It’s the first year the Awards have run that has had no lockdowns in Tāmaki Makaurau and we know many more placemaking initiatives have taken place all over the city. Which ones have touched people the most, made a difference that matters, and enhanced local life for the better? We’d love to see nominations from far and wide - rural and urban, big budget and small, permanent and temporary, done by individuals or small groups as well as large organizations. Please share the word!”