News
Ageing Well is proud to reveal what we have been working on behind the scenes this year — our new website.
We sought to rework the Ageing Well website into something that felt fresh and aligned with our future direction, and that also incorporated improved functionality, particularly in our research section.
In order to do this, we embarked on a journey of exploration about our organisation and our future direction. From these high-level conversations we were able to arrive at a point where we had a clarified and detailed understanding of our intended path. From there, we assembled a team of experts to help us achieve our vision.
Our kōwhaiwhai
The new kōwhaiwhai and tohu that you see represented on our new website and in our other branding was created by Taane Flanagan of Ariki Creative, a kaupapa Māori design agency.
Central to the design process was a series of kōrero with Taane and an Ageing Well team consisting of our kaumātua Koro Hata Temo, Director Associate Professor Louise Parr-Brownlie, and Communications Advisor Rebecca Richardson.
In the kōrero, the team from Ageing Well explained what we do, discussed the research we have funded, and our impact on how New Zealanders can age well. From these discussions, Taane developed some ideas that were refined with further kōrero.
We are delighted to be able to share this mahi with you.
“The mahi that we undertook as an organisation was an inclusive process where we asked ourselves many questions about the work we do and how we seek to effect change in our communities,” said Associate Professor Louise Parr-Brownlie.
“It has been a collaborative effort and one that has culminated bringing to life a new identity for Ageing Well,” she said.
We recategorised our research into four overarching themes that span the two phases of funding:
- Hāpori | Community
- Kaumātuatanga | Age friendly
- Tātai Hono | Connection
- Tinana | Wellbeing
Each of these research themes have their own kōwhaiwhai and tohu.
Elements of all four of the these research themes were then incorporated into a kōwhaiwhai called Kōtahitanga | Togetherness. This kōwhaiwhai and tohu represents the combined knowledge of Ageing Well research. This is the kōwhaiwhai that features prominently on our homepage and also in the new design of our newsletter.
Explanations of each of the kōwhaiwhai can be found in the images below.
As an organisation, Ageing Well has come an incredibly long way since our inception in 2014, though it was felt that our branding and website were not reflective of this journey and our learnings.
“Eight years on, we are able to reflect on our voyage and have a clearer understanding of where were are heading. Part of this was engaging in more bicultural messaging that represents our work in addressing issues of inequity and in becoming a better Tiriti partner,” said Professor David Baxter, Co-Director of Ageing Well.
“I am really proud of the work previously done by Ageing Well and the work we are fortunate to continue to do,” he added.
In November, Koro Hata Temo performed a karakia and blessing of our new kōwhaiwhai, tohu, and website with the Ageing Well team. We acknowledged the mahi done by the group and our collaborators, and celebrated the new elements aligning with our vision for the future direction of Ageing Well.
Acknowledgements
The team at Ageing Well wishes to thank Taane Flanagan at Ariki Creative for the mahi producing our Kōwhaiwhai and tohu, and to Carl and Jason at Digital Mates for the fresh design and building of the site. Each of these pieces of work was pivotal in helping us tell the story of Ageing Well.
We also wish to thank our Kaumātua, Koro Hata Temo, who was influential in our discussions. His sage advice and guidance helped influence the kaupapa Māori creative work done by Ariki.
We’d love to hear your feedback about the site, too!
Please email any thoughts or feedback through to our Communications Advisor, Rebecca Richardson.