New Zealand’s heritage is about our nation’s stories both past and future. Our cultural heritage defines and shapes us as a nation. Identifying, conserving, interpreting, and protecting our heritage, as expressed through our unique built environment, is fundamental to our understanding of who we are, and to the development of a sense of national identity.
Our heritage buildings are an important visual and historical presence in our landscapes. For many New Zealanders, identity and cultural well-being are connected to physical places of significance. It is only in New Zealand that the shared cultures of Maori and European combine in a Pacific context, to produce an architecture unique to this country.
Conserving and creating future heritage is therefore about preserving the dignity and meaning of our architecture, telling the stories of our past, and creating new stories for our future.
From Oxbridge to Arts Centre
