Julia Kihi-Coates is a descendant of Awanuiārangi, the eponymous ancestor of the Ngāti Awa tribe. She manages Ngā Āhuatanga o te Kai, an independent indigenous research institute based in the Eastern Bay of Plenty of New Zealand. Julia is also a nutritionist at Te Puna Ora o Mātaatua, a kaupapa Māori social and health service dedicated to community well-being through indigenous approaches to health. Her passion is all things food, with a particular interest in traditional food practices and culturally appropriate approaches to food security and sovereignty for Māori communities and whānau (families). At Mesa Refuge, she wrote about traditional infant foods within the Ngāti Awa tribal region as well as the protection of traditional food practices in a contemporary food system.