About the project
Winning a global prize worth US$1 million in 2022 was just the beginning of three years hard mahi for two Council teams.
Smart Council and the Climate Change Response team joined forces to secure the prestigious award in the Bloomberg Global Mayors Challenge. Their goal was to further develop an innovative digital community engagement tool to raise awareness about localised climate impacts and explore ways to prepare for climate disruption in the years ahead.
Since then, the teams have continued to work together to develop an interactive touchscreen experience to take Wellingtonians on a journey through the past, present and future. This incorporates the latest climate science data provided by NIWA, GNS, Wellington Water and other agencies, alongside te ao Māori perspectives.
The project leverages the powerful data-driven visual storytelling capability of the digital city model, a lifelike digital representation of our city that allows us to visualise complex information in a meaningful way. It provides accessible, engaging experiences for people to explore the changing shape of Wellington, and supports the Council’s Climate Adaptation Community Engagement Roadmap.
This mahi is the start of the Council’s community conversations about climate adaptation planning – Phase 2 of the six-phase roadmap. Phase 3 is beginning this year, engaging with Wellingtonians on the design of the community planning processes ahead of consultation starting in 2025/26.
Our Changing City experience
Presented as part of a pop-up interactive experience called Our Changing City, the touchscreen tool and supporting information is a hands-on, engaging way to learn more about climate disruptions like floods, landslides and sea level rise in Pōneke. It provides examples of the many ways we can plan for the changes ahead we may experience at home, at work and across the capital.
Our Changing City focuses on the Motukairangi | Eastern Ward and is a pilot for how we might work with other communities to plan for the impacts of climate change across the capital. None of the risk information in Our Changing City is new – it’s just being presented in a new way. This data is already available in the District Plan and online maps.
Our Changing City is being hosted by Wellington venues and community centres during 2025. It’s free, and anyone can visit during normal opening hours or listed event times. Venues such as Te Papa, Wellington Zoo, Zealandia and Victoria University of Wellington will be hosting the installation, with more to be confirmed. Check out our Let's Talk page for the latest event updates and venues, in addition to finding out how to get involved with climate adaptation planning.
In addition to iconic host venues, we have also been working on an online web version of the content. This is a great way to experience and share the information and resources to friends and whanau who may not be able to visit the physical installation.
View the online experience on the Our Changing City website.
Next steps
The external funding for this project ends in July 2025, but the teams at Wellington City Council are preparing for its long-term installation for community use.
In the future, other cities will be able to learn from our project and progress to help them develop similar engagement opportunities in their own areas.
To learn more about the Council’s ongoing work on climate change adaptation and to have your say, visit Community Climate Adaptation Planning Programme on the Let's Talk website.