Last month, students from the Planning 310 “Introduction to Planning” course at UH Mānoa traveled to Kona, Hawaiʻi Island, for a field experience.
Their instructor, Kepoʻo Keliʻipaʻakaua, is a doctoral student in the Department of Urban and Regional Planning who has been collaborating with the community-based organization Kahaluʻu Kūāhewa, located in Kahaluʻu within part of the Kona Field System. Jesse Kekoa and Kimberly Kahoʻonei are the limahana (employees) of this organization and envision the revitalization of the wahi kūpuna Kahaluʻu field systems as a traditional Hawaiian agricultural landscape, reconnecting kānaka to ʻāina.
Undergraduate students from different majors enroll in this course because of its writing-intensive designation. It is an introductory course covering urban and regional planning and contemporary planning practice.
Its primary objective is to provide an understanding of the context within which urban planning emerged, the different planning approaches, and the role of planners in envisioning the future of neighborhoods, cities, and regions. Major themes and case studies span different subfields of planning, such as land use, transportation, housing, community and economic development, environment and sustainability, smart growth, preservation, and urban design to understand why we plan, who plans, and how and what we plan.
This particular course includes perspectives and approaches from Indigenous planning that will be woven into the curriculum. It examines course content through Hawaiʻi-specific planning issues and includes a visit to a community- led ʻāina restoration site.
Students had a brief introduction to the limahana and the ʻāina before doing some hana (work). They began with protocol to ask permission to enter and walked a little further into the area where they were asked to kōkua. While learning about the future plans for this area, students transported mulch to one of the taro beds and helped clear logs.
This particular ʻāina is owned by Kamehameha Schools. It is agriculturally zoned land from Kailua-Kona to Kahaluʻu, Keauhou, and even as far as Kaināliu, Kona. For many of the students, it was their first trip to Hawaiʻi Island and, in particular, to the Kona area.
The students were very engaged and hands-on as well as quite inquisitive regarding current challenges and future planning considerations for this ahupuaʻa. Another visit is scheduled in May for the students to share their planning ideas and recommendations.
To learn more about the Kahaluʻu Kūāhewa go to: www.kahaluukuahewa.org/. To learn more about the Department of Urban and Regional Planning, visit durp.manoa.hawaii.edu.
