Tātānaki

Tātānaki is a community-led organisation and project dedicated to climate, cultural and relational mobility for island peoples in the Pacific.

The Hunga Ha’apai-Hunga Tonga volcanic eruption in January 2022 was among the largest eruptions in recorded history. Over 80% of the Tongan population was affected by the subsequent tsunami and a blanket of ashfall – hundreds of homes were destroyed or severely damaged. Sustainable, affordable, and climate-resilient housing exists and is urgently needed in the Pacific.

Tātānaki seeks to meet this housing need with improved access and education toward affordable, climate-safe options. This collaboration between traditional knowledge holders and a circular and carbon-negative building intervention will result in the delivery of 3 co-designed homes, online and offline peer-peer knowledge exchange, and a platform focused on inviting more regenerative solutions into remote regions.

It is working towards building carbon-negative, circular, transportable homes (inland, inter-island, or abroad) in the Kingdom of Tonga. It will do this by co-designing with a technical partner, who has already delivered successful case studies in the Netherlands, Uganda, and Mozambique.

A proposed pilot program of 3+ homes will widen access to and integrate culturally appropriate housing in Tonga and the Pacific.