About Us

We believe in possibility.

ahha is a team of values-led designers, makers and facilitators. As a social enterprise and multi-disciplinary practice, we work alongside clients, community and iwi to undertake projects of various forms and sizes. We work across architecture, design, education, experimentation and art to reimagine spaces, ideas and objects.

We strive to create places that delight, inspire, encourage connection and enhance wellbeing. We believe that built environments have deeper integrity when informed by the cultural landscape that is, was, and will be, so our process is one of collaborative creation.
Collaborating with end users and communities embeds us in their world: enabling us to be gifted knowledge, tease out untapped possibilities and craft a better, more sensitive design response. Actively pushing the needle forward, we actively seek opportunities beyond the typical procurement process, then employ them to drive more positive outcomes.

We’re passionate about helping people build better, smarter and more consciously – while ensuring the numbers still add up. But true progress cannot be made unless we’re benchmarking what's been done before. So we design through the ahha Impact Framework: a self-developed holistic approach that tangibly measures a project’s impact across six key domains, to implement all round better results.
A Certified B Corp

In early 2024, ahha became a certified B Corp and thereby joined a global community of purpose-led businesses that meet high standards of sustainability and social responsibility. ahha's mission of radically transforming the impact of our built environments means that we also want to be a force for positive change in how we work. As a Certified B Corp, it affirms our commitment to creating a future that’s better for everyone, where people and the planet can thrive.

B Corp Certification means that ahha has been verified as meeting B Lab’s high standards for social and environmental impact. These high standards span across five areas: Governance, Workers, Community, Environment, and Customers. ahha has made a legal commitment to stakeholder governance and is demonstrating accountability and transparency by disclosing this record of performance in a public B Corp profile.
We apply a holistic approach to how we run our business too. We are committed to creating a better world through the decisions we make within our business as well as the work we do. To do this, we are guided by the following memberships and certifications.

NZIA Practice 7254
Te Kāhui Whaihanga New Zealand Institute of Architects (NZIA) is a professional organisation that represents registered architects and promotes architecture in Aotearoa New Zealand.

NZGBC Member, Homestar Assessors & Greenstar Accredited Professionals (GSAP)
The New Zealand Green Building Council's vision is for all homes and buildings in Aotearoa to be green and sustainable, making healthier, happier New Zealanders. ahha is trained in the certification of housing and buildings through NZGBCs Greenstar & Homestar Accreditations.

Net Zero Carbon Lite Certification
ahha is proud to be certified Net Zero Carbon Lite Business with Ekos. We have measured and offset the carbon footprint of our business operations with certified carbon credits. Our certified carbon credits are sourced from projects that grow and protect forests in Aotearoa and the Pacific Islands and help to deliver climate resilience, waterways protection, erosion control, biodiversity conservation and community economic development.

Akina Impact Supplier
Akina Impact Suppliers are certified organisations that deliver a range of positive social, environmental, and cultural outcomes through selling their products and services.
Team
Tony Calder
  • Director
  • Carpenter
  • Circular Built Environment Specialist
  • LBP Design

I’m a carpenter and a designer. I’ve always been interested in how things work, and in making things work better. I appreciate the immense opportunity in making and designing: understanding human, environmental and technical needs, and combining build-ability and material knowledge to enable the best possible solutions.

Raphaela Rose
  • Director
  • Regenerative & Participatory Design Specialist
  • Registered Architect NZRAB

I love the particular point where elegant form and function meet. I’m passionate about projects that contribute meaningfully to the public, urban realm; that deliver robust design solutions, while positively impacting the community and surrounding environments.  

Jimmi O’Toole
  • Director
  • Carbon & Energy Modelling Specialist
  • Registered Architect NZRAB
  • Greenstar Accredited Professional
  • Homestar Assessor

I’ve always been driven to make places better. Throughout my decade of working in architecture, I’ve sought out ways – however small – to enhance lives, lighten footprints and make communities happier, healthier and stronger.

Campbell McNeill
  • Director
  • Ecology, Health & Well-being Specialist
  • Registered Architect NZRAB

I see architecture as an opportunity to not only shape the way people inhabit a space, but also to gather and share knowledge and understanding.