With over five hundred bedrooms, Tupuānuku is the University of Canterbury’s largest student accommodation facility. The building is named for the star in the Matariki cluster that represents the food and medicine grown in the earth. 

The design provides undergraduate students a safe and enriching environment from which to make the transition to independence. Wellbeing is central to the design, with opportunities to enhance a sense of community, such as shared study spaces, lounges, and exercise amenities across the ground floor level. 

Tupuānuku provides students the choice of catered and self-catered accommodation options, with a ​‘Masterchef’ style kitchen offering students the opportunity to cook independently or in small groups. A large dining area overlooking a landscaped courtyard facilitates a sharing of food, culture, and conversation, bringing students together.