This month marks 30 years since the state has utilized private prisons on the continent to house inmates from Hawaiʻi

Ka Wai Ola | Vol. 42 No. 12 | December 2025 Issue of Ka Wai Ola

Public Notice | December 2025 Issue of Ka Wai Ola

Hānai – the traditional practice where someone other than the natural parents assumes kuleana for a child’s upbringing – is well-established in Hawaiian culture and common in kupuna–moʻopuna relationships.

As the year draws to a close, most resonant is how our OHA ʻohana has moved through a period of transition with clarity, urgency, and a steadfast commitment to our beneficiaries.

Aloha kākou e nā hoa makamaka e heluhelu nei i ia ʻāpana pepa. Welina!

At our November Board of Trustees meeting, the trustees made a significant and unified decision that reflects both confidence in our direction and our commitment to advancing opportunities for our lāhui.

Remembering and Honoring Some of Those We Lost This Year

Where are you, kāmakahala flower? I suppose it depends what your search entails. Hawaiʻi is home to 19 lāʻau kāmakahala ʻāpaʻakuma, viny shrubby, with pointy-petaled small yellow pua.

As court rulings begin to roll in against the Trump administration, as thousands of troops arrive on massive warships in the waters off Venezuela, as immigrants continue to be detained and deported without trial, as masked federal agents kidnap our innocent neighbors and friends, as wild and illegal tariffs are imposed and withdrawn, and as the president personally collects millions in bribes, let us call it what it is: a coup.

On December 4, 2024, I was entrusted by my colleagues to lead the Office of Hawaiian Affairs (OHA) as its chairperson.

Mākeke | The Marketplace | December 2025 Issue of Ka Wai Ola

For Kānaka Maoli, leadership has always been rooted in kuleana – responsibility to our ea, ʻāina, kūpuna, and lāhui. It is about carrying forward ancestral kuleana while adapting to the challenges of the present moment.

News Briefs - December 2025 Issue of Ka Wai Ola

“We have to fight for our rights. We have to fight our best and we have fight smart,” said ʻIlima Long, testifying before the Office of Hawaiian Affairs (OHA) Board of Trustees (BOT) on November 13.

E Kumu, you will always be the creative and inspirational source (and force) behind each of us “Mokihana” and our entire Hālau ka Lei Mokihana o Leināʻala, from the youngest keiki to the eldest kupuna.

Any Hawaiian would feel right at home in Japan or South Korea, where rice is served at nearly every meal. Yet despite white rice being a daily staple, people in these countries have some of the lowest obesity rates in the world, about 4% in Japan and 6% in South Korea.

The Office of Hawaiian Affairs (OHA) has partnered with ʻŌlelo Community Media (ʻŌlelo) to broadcast and stream the organization’s Standing Committee and Board of Trustees meetings, significantly expanding community access between OHA and the Native Hawaiian Communities it serves.

Haliʻa Aloha | December 2025 Issue of Ka Wai Ola

With deep federal budget cuts looming, many Native Hawaiian education programs at the University of Hawaiʻi are at risk of losing critical funding.