A year into her role, she said Moeraki was facing the same challenges as other runanga in keeping their population linked and keeping young ones engaged in their ancestral homes.‘‘The challenges for us is what every older generation faces — it’s making sure the younger generation is engaged.
"We’re very lucky we’ve got some who are really engaged, but obviously we always want more.
"What we need to do is see if we can use technology to reach out to whanau who are further out in every sense of the word, not just geographical."
Ms Coutts followed the footsteps of Te Runanga o Moeraki upoko [appointed traditional leader] David Higgins.
"I think it’s really important to acknowledge David, our upoko. He’s our spiritual leader there. He’s our head at Moeraki. He’s the one who lives out there and works hard."
She and alternative representative Stacey Gullen-Reynolds had been in their roles since May 2016.
"I’ve been working on making sure everybody is fully informed about what’s happening at the table and they have enough understanding they can express their views about it.
"At Moeraki, we’re achieving things like getting our kitchen replaced so it’s up to standard so we can hold larger hui. ‘‘We’re working hard on all of those things."
Ngai Tahu structure was created by its own legislation and the representatives come together as trustees for the whole iwi under that structure.
What she enjoyed the most in her time so far was the korero on the marae.
She is based in Wellington but she has whakapapa to Moeraki.
