Each new Fellow of Tuia Pito Ora, the New Zealand Institute of Landscape Architecture, immediately joins an intersecting continuum of practitioners who span different, equally valued journeys, times and places.

One of Nik Kneale's reflections on becoming a Fellow this year was the intersection with Richard Bain.

"I was just starting my career at Isthmus," says Nik, "when I first met Richard on a trip for the New Plymouth Foreshore project. Richard was in full stride, running an established practice in Taranaki and excelling at it. Being made a Fellow this year at the same time as Richard felt a little unreal, but also all the more special".

In his humble and quiet manner, Nik is putting aside remnants of 'imposter syndrome' and acknowledging that becoming a Fellow is a "significant career moment".

Standing tall: Nik Kneale’s election as a NZILA Fellow took place at the President’s Function held at Peak House on the eve of the NZILA Firth Wānanga 2025 in May. A re(d)splendently bearded Nik is pictured above with David Irwin, NZILA President Debbie Tikao and Rachel de Lambert.

Receiving the unexpected honour in the presence of such supporting figures as David Irwin of Isthmus (acting in nominator Gavin Lister's place) and Rachel de Lambert of Boffa Miskell was especially humbling. It was also an affirmation of the belief and trust that has surrounded him.

Importantly Nik additionally acknowledged his personal debt to family for the emotional and mental capacity afforded to him, and the times where he was absent on project work.

Coming up to a milestone of 25 years of practising his chosen profession, Nik's career path has constituted a neatly formed 'sandwich' of experience at two of Aotearoa New Zealand's seminal landscape architecture practices - firstly through what he calls his "formative years" with Isthmus (2000-2008), twelve middle years with Boffa Miskell, and a return back to Isthmus in 2020.

Nik's NZILA Fellow citation summarises this well, noting that his first spell with the Isthmus Group began in its then fledgling Wellington studio.

Opportunities were opened up to develop skills on a variety of complex public projects, including mahi on the New Plymouth Foreshore and Oriental Bay. He played a leading role in the Kumutoto project on Wellington’s waterfront, before transferring to the Christchurch studio for the Christchurch City Mall project.

Nik’s eventful years at Boffa Miskell saw a heavy involvement in design projects that included work in collaboration with Perry Royal at Rāpaki Marae, the Christchurch Laneways Design Guide, Auckland Great Streets Guidelines and Napier Marine Parade with Jacob Scott.

In time he rose to be design lead of Boffa Miskell's Christchurch office where his insights, design, and collaboration skills were heavily called on in revisioning and rebuilding Ōtautahi following the earthquakes of 2011. This entailed work carried out collaboratively with Ngāi Tūāhuriri artists, scientists and designers through Matapopore, as well as collaborations with Landscape Architects from other practices, such as WSP, BDP and LandLab.

For other related projects see: Ōtākaro Avon River Precinct, the city’s waterfront (a NZILA George Malcolm Award winner in 2019); Victoria Square (a DINZ Best Design Awards finalist in 2019); the Metro Sports Facility, and redefined central city edge Rauora Park.

Nik returned to Isthmus studio mid-Covid Lockdowns in 2020, one of three energised to re-establish Isthmus' Te Waipounamu studio, integrally connected to the wider Isthmus studio while focused on the south. His design leadership on city centre master planning and public realm design in Invercargill is seeing significant shifts in the community’s attitude to its urban centre.

A deep value that Nik holds is that projects are only whole with the perspectives and contributions of the whole.

"Regardless of the project, understanding the place – the whenua, people and culture is number 1. This is the strongest foundation for the best outcomes, and frankly it's the only way to create solutions that the community will see themselves in. They see themselves in the solution because they helped create it. Local champions maintain the energy long after the consultants' work is done".

"Sitting back anonymously and watching people explore and use new spaces - sometimes as intended, sometimes in surprising ways - and listening to them talk about what we have created makes the months and sometimes years of design toil all worth it. It's my favourite time in the design process".

Nik's journey has seen him draw ever-closer parallels between Te Ao Māori perspectives and his own views of place. Over the years this has lead to consistent efforts to bridge these worlds, such as being a ‘kaupapa whānau’ member of Ngā Aho and embarking on a "long and bumpy" road to learning te reo Māori.

Nik: "Through learning about others I've learnt a huge amount about myself and my place here in Aotearoa. My slow journey in te reo Māori has been core to helping to deepen that understanding. Ko te reo te taikura o te whakaao mārama - language is the key to understanding."

Like many of the other tauira (students) he has learnt with, Nik is careful to set the expectations that a qualification may raise against an understanding that learning te reo Māori has no finish line and that it's a journey that signifies intent and the need to be "comfortable in the uncomfortable".

"Stuttering, stumbling and doubting yourself are all signs that you care about getting it right. Why? - because you feel the need to do the right thing and because you love the language. The way I, and my colleagues, go about this currently is to incorporate te reo Māori as often as possible, be that at the beginning and end of meetings, through waiata or in our wider communities. You recognise the reason for the stutter, and you move forward".

There's a sense that the impact of the loss of place, and traces of place, wrought by the Canterbury earthquakes is ever-present for Nik and resurfaces regularly.

*To'osavili Nigel Bickle, Hastings District Council Chief Executive, speaking at the NZILA Firth Wānanga in May.*

At the recent NZILA Firth Wānanga in Heretaunga Hastings the opening session about the impacts of Cyclone Garbrielle resonated deeply.

Speaking reflectively, Nik was struck by the difference in the responses to Cyclone Gabrielle compared to the one-off 'command and control' era of the Christchurch earthquakes and the dominance of central government interventions in the recovery. "It was an approach of its time, with it's own pros and cons," says Nik.

"The goalposts have shifted. The way that To'osavili Nigel Bickle, the Hastings District Council Chief Executive, spoke about balancing needs and the value he placed in our profession and in mana whenua was impressive".

Nik: "Growing up, my life in Christchurch's eastern suburbs was always adjacent the river. Family homes, grandparents, schools, friends and clubs all involved engagement with the river in one way or another".

One creative way that Nik engaged with the "process of processing" the devastating changes in the red zone at a personal level dates back to a project with long-time friend and jeweller Jeremy Leeming 12 years ago.

"Together Jeremy and I took up a challenge to create a small artwork series we called 'Gonehaus', re-using reclaimed timber that a group called Rekindle, organised by Juliet Arnott, made available.

"Gonehaus entailed recreating imagination-based childhood memories of the outline of the floorplans of family homes I had lived in but that were demolished through the residential red-zoning process. I have one of these small artworks hanging on a wall at home, as does Jeremy. Coincidentally, the other pieces are with Rachel de Lambert and David Irwin".

"Fast forwarding to 2025 members of the Ōtautahi Isthmus studio, with our whanau and friends, have over a number of years worked with Christchurch City Council to advance the red zone’s evolution through our Mahia te Mahi programme. This is an annual ‘conservation day’ where we invest the Isthmus Environment Fund (IEF) staff time and resource in a day of environmental restoration and carbon sequestration".

An enduring commitment to landscape architecture

Becoming an NZILA Fellow signals an enduring commitment to landscape architecture in Aotearoa.

Nik speaks persuasively of his confidence in a bright future ahead for landscape architects; commenting on the key role that landscape architecture has to play in traversing upcoming challenges, including those "right in front of us right now".

"What keeps me engaged in Landscape Architecture is how we relate to our places now, and the positive relationships we can set up for the future. I believe our profession plays the long game. There might be sprints along the way, but future generations will be the ones to benefit most from our most valuable efforts.

"I'm glad to be part of an industry that keeps maturing and that is constantly acquiring more of a shared purpose. We've evolved significantly in the 25 years I've been in practice so far and we need to continue to do so".

Getting to know Nik

Place.Making. The bones of a talk given by Nik at the Design Assembly Spring Conversations series in 2023.

An upward trajectory. Nik reflects on the importance of acknowledging memory and connection to place.

View Nik’s video response to becoming a NZILA Felllow.

Outside of the studio two of Nik’s passions are cycling and photography. In 2024 he completed the Sounds to Sounds - a 1,500-kilometer bikepacking route stretching from Queen Charlotte Sound to Milford Sound. Three of Nik’s photos, from a large set, are:

A Fellow's journey: Nik Kneale

An enduring commitment to landscape architecture

Getting to know Nik