A Pacific housing project has been celebrated at one of the world’s most prestigious universities.
In April 2026, Central Pacific Collective (CPC) presented at Harvard University's Graduate School of Design (GSD) on the Our Whare Our Fale project, a community-led housing initiative supporting affordable home ownership for Pacific families in Porirua. CPC leads this innovative project, in partnership with Te Rūnanga o Toa Rangatira and the Ministry for Pacific Peoples.
The team presented on how partnership and cultural-led design can bring better housing outcomes for communities.
Presenting at Harvard, the team from CPC laid the challenge that the solution to the world's housing crisis has been held by Pacific communities for generations.
This idea is illustrated by the malae – the communal heart of the traditional Pacific village – which is central to the design of the Our Whare Our Fale builds.
Following the presentation, Havard GSD praised the project, saying CPC “made clear how values of kinship and repair can guide contemporary housing projects, and how design, governance, and cultural identity can be aligned in the service of thriving communities.”
The representatives said that Our Whare Our Fale is exactly the kind of work they hope the Druker Traveling Fellowship can enable, grounded yet transformative.
Danilo Coelho de Almeida, Deputy Secretary, Corporate & Support Services at the Ministry for Pacific Peoples says, “ensuring that affordable, good quality homes are available to our Pacific communities is a key priority for us. Initiatives like Our Whare Our Fale bring us a step closer to providing this to our communities.”
The second and third stages of Our Whare Our Fale are now underway, with CPC working towards building up to 300 homes for Pacific peoples in Porirua. A further 32 more homes are set be completed by late 2026.
