Local Community Hero

Local Community Hero honoured in King's Birthday List 

Environmental hero and Glen Innes local Tara Moala says she is "humbled" to be made a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit (MNZM) in the King’s Birthday and Coronation Honours 2023.

Tara (Waikato-Tainui, Ngāti Māhanga Hourua, Ngāti Hine, Ngāti Paoa, Ngā Wairiki Ngāti Apa, Ngā Rauru) was honoured for her contribution to the community and the environment through 20 years of service.

“It is humbling to have been nominated by my community and to receive this prestigious honour, there are so many others in the community who work so hard for us all that are just as deserving,” Tara says. 

The māmā of three began work as a Youth and Social Worker, and founded Rākau Tautoko, which has supported 20 Community Development Practitioners over the years to engage and empower communities. She takes on the role as tuakana and ensures all community projects are for the community and remain within the community.  

She has worked on creating environmental projects including Hub Zero, supporting waste-based social enterprises and Tāmaki WRAP which now operates as an independent trust educating communities on ways to reduce waste.  

“I’m most proud of any project or activity that I can walk away from, where I helped create local leaders step up and lead for themselves,” she says. 

“It’s important to back the community to grow and hold their own, and to equip them with tools they need to thrive and succeed. Sometimes, people just need a small spark to help them get off the ground.” 

Tara was awarded an Atlantic Fellowship for Social Equity in 2022 and the 2018 Lifekeepers Award in 2018, and recently completed a Masters Degree in Social Change Leadership with a focus on indigenizing regeneration.  

As the Outcomes Manager here at Tāmaki Regeneration, she is using her mātauranga to push for equity outcomes for whānau Māori and Pasifika in Tāmaki. She designed a system for repurposing old housing stock destined for landfill and worked on building up local Māori and Pacific entities to create sustainable projects, products and services.  

Tara feels excited for what the future holds and is keen to continue building networks to create more opportunities for others.

“I’m really excited about TRC’s direction. We’re working on more ways to continue helping and supporting community members to run and lead their own initiatives."