re.Order: Disassembling New Zealand Building Standards

Toxicity has become second nature in our built environment. Unfortunately, this comes at the expense of nature itself. Consequences of the prioritisation of toxic practices manifests in environmental and human health concerns.

To address this issue, there is a need to appreciate the significant benefits natural processes, such as decay, present for New Zealand’s sustainability ambitions. Cradle-to-cradle principles provide a foundational understanding of this.

This research aims bridge the gap between regenerative thinking and technical implementation through a critical design inquiry. Existing techniques for construction practice are examined against the objectives of Design for Disassembly. The purpose of this it to create a model for durable construction that doesn’t depend on, or create, toxicity.

This thesis concludes by proposing a series of morphological details that present further development potential. These details are tested at full scale through an installation that encapsulates the scope of possibilities.