Deep Sea Mining Banned in Hawaiʻi
400+ Books Published in Olelo Niihau
Students and staff at Ke Kula Niihau O Kekaha (KKNOK) have written and published more than 400 books in olelo Niihau (the Niihau “dialect” of olelo Hawaii). This effort aims to perpetuate the language and provide students with literature in their own language.
KKNOK is the only language immersion school in Hawaii that provides olelo Niihau medium instruction. Their path to publishing began six years ago and in that time the school has created a vibrant literary legacy.
KKNOK Poo Tumu (principal) Tia Koerte notes that “there were zero materials published in our language.” Koerte said that this resource deficit led the school to partner with Hamline University in Minnesota to create books that would resonate with its students.
Every year, each student in preschool through grade 12 authors at least one book. Koerte and her administrative team have a new theme each year, selecting a specific genre and topic for their students to focus on when writing their stories.
“It is important to see our language written in different forms, not only to challenge our students in writing in different forms, but also to hoopaa (make firm) that and make sure that as time passes on, and people pass on, it is now kept – malama ia, in all of these books that are published,” Koerte said.
The school’s goal is to publish 1,000 books in olelo Niihau, ensuring that the language will continue to thrive for generations to come.
Olelo Niihau does not utilize diacritical markings so in deference to that, they have not been used in this story. Watch the full story.
OHA Leaders Visit Kauaʻi
Navy Returns 400 Acres to Honolulu County
The Navy and National Park Service (NPS) conveyed 400 acres of land to the City and County of Honolulu in a ceremony on the steps of Honolulu Hale on June 13.
Assistant Secretary of the Navy for Energy, Installations and the Environment and Chief Sustainability Officer Meredith Berger met with Mayor Rick Blangiardi and NPS representative Tom Leatherman, to formalize the land transition.
The land, located in the Kalaeloa, represents the culmination of collaborative efforts between the Navy Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) Office and the Department of the Interior/NPS, and the City of Honolulu and will be used for recreational activities, pending final NPS approval.
In 2023, the Navy announced a commitment of $6 million to Kalaeloa and continues to work with community partners on its commitment of funding to modernize the electrical grid supplying the community.
Kalaeloa, in West Oʻahu, is the site of the former Barbers Point Naval Air Station that was active from 1942 until 1999.
A Call to Cancel RIMPAC
On June 24, Protect Oceania, a coalition of leaders and organizations from across 25 Pacific nations released a joint statement opposing the 27th Rim of the Pacific military exercises (RIMPAC) in Hawaiian waters that began on June 27 and will conclude August 1.
The coalition includes many Hawaiʻi-based organizations including: Hawaiʻi Peace & Justice, Hui Aloha ʻĀina, Kanaeokana, Kaʻohewai, KAHEA, ʻĀina Momona, ʻĀina Aloha Economic Futures, Hawaiʻi People’s Fund, Hoʻaka Mana and others.
They assert that RIMPAC is a threat to the sovereignty of Oceania, the health of its lands and oceans, and that overt militarism causes untold harm to people around the world: “We oppose turning Hawaiʻi’s lands and waters into training grounds for imperial and genocidal regimes that will engage in ocean, ground, and amphibious assaults. We stand against the violence RIMPAC will bring to the islands as well as the imperial violence it has and will continue to promote and naturalize around the world.
“We who love and value life oppose these exercises without equivocation and for the sake of every oppressed community in every corner of the earth. We stand committed to a free and liberated Oceania and will remain steadfast in our commitment until these exercises cease to exist.”
Protecting Oceania is a coalition of Pacific Island government and community leaders and organizations who participated in the 13th Festival of Pacific Arts and Culture’s “Protecting Oceania Summit.”
Honolulu and Rarotonga are now “Sister Cities”
Youth Plaintiffs Prevail in Climate Lawsuit
On June 20, youth plaintiffs in the Navahine v. Hawaiʻi Department of Transportation (HDOT) joined HDOT Director Ed Sniffen and Gov. Josh Green to announce a settlement agreement resolving the case.
The settlement recognizes children’s constitutional rights to a life-sustaining climate and mobilizes Hawaiʻi DOT to plan and implement transformative changes to achieve zero emissions in all ground transportation, and interisland sea and air transportation, by 2045. The court will retain jurisdiction to enforce the agreement for the next 21 years until its terms have been achieved.
This is the world’s first youth-led constitutional climate case addressing climate pollution from the transportation sector. Thirteen youth, many of whom are Native Hawaiian and already experiencing climate change impacts in their communities, brought the case in June 2022.
It’s also the first agreement in which government has decided to resolve a constitutional climate case in partnership with youth plaintiffs, committing to comprehensive changes and the systemic decarbonization of a state transportation system to reduce greenhouse gas pollution and fossil fuel dependence.
In this case, HDOT Director Ed Sniffen (who is also Native Hawaiian) stepped up to negotiate a resolution and embrace the government’s kuleana to lead the way on bold and broad climate action.
The agreement sets forth a framework positioning Hawaiʻi among states leading the move away from 20th-century transportation systems that depend on costly imported fossil fuels and, instead, offers an exemplary and replicable model for decarbonizing transportation systems around the world.
“Climate change is indisputable, burying our heads in the sand and making it the next generation’s problem is not pono,” Sniffen said.
2024 Prince Lot Hula Festival
Kānepō Returns to Hawaiʻi
After representing the western cardinal point of the Smithsonian’s National Museum of the American Indian (NMAI) on the National Mall for two decades, the pōhaku (rock), Kānepō, has returned home to Hawaiʻi Island.
In preparation for Kānepō’s departure, an ʻaha kīhoʻihoʻi (returning) ceremony was held on July 1 at the museum’s Potomac Atrium, led by Kumu Hula Kekuhi Kealiʻikanakaʻole, an educator, scholar and the founder of Hālau ʻŌhiʻa.
An integral element of the landscape in D.C., Kānepō has stood with three other cardinal markers to represent the vastness of the museum’s scope and the special inclusion of Native Hawaiians. The three remaining markers will remain in their locations on the museum grounds.
Kānepō was selected by a kūpuna consultation group for Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park.
The group, comprised of ʻŌiwi with lineal ties to Puna and Kaʻū along with retired park personnel, consults with the National Park Service staff on traditional practices.
In preparation for the return ceremony, ʻaha (coconut sennit) was brought to D.C., braided and tied around Kānepō and attached to a dowel placed in the ground next to him prior to the ceremony. The ʻaha represented Kānepō’s connection to the museum and, during the ceremony, it was severed by NMAI Director Cynthia Chavez Lamar (San Felipe Pueblo) to symbolically cut his ties and kuleana to NMAI in preparation for the journey home.
NMAI Associate Curator Halena Kapuni-Reynolds (who is also from Hawaiʻi Island) shared that, 20 years ago, when Kānepō first came to D.C., Kealiʻikanakaʻole brought a few ʻiliʻili (small stones) from Hawaiʻi to serve as companions to Kānepō while he was away from home. The ʻiliʻili were placed beneath him at his resting spot at NMAI. When Kānepō was moved, the ʻiliʻili were retrieved and placed in the crate with him, along with the severed ʻaha, to accompany him on his journey home.
On July 11, Kānepō was crated and trucked from D.C. to Los Angeles. From there, he was placed aboard a ship bound for Hilo. Kānepō will return to the Kaʻū Desert within Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park, from which he was removed 20 years ago. His homecoming ceremony and protocols will be conducted privately by the individuals and kūpuna who have been part of his journey.
Unlike the other three cardinal markers gifted to the American Indian Museum, Kānepō was loaned to the museum for 20 years with the expectation that he would be returned.
A new pōhaku has been selected to take his place and is scheduled to arrive at the museum in the fall. The new pōhaku also will also be named Kānepō and return to Hawaiʻi after 20 years.
Six ʻŌiwi From the Hospitality Industry Honored
The Pacific Business News “Pineapple Awards” recognize exemplary leaders in Hawaii’s hospitality industry – a list that includes hotel executives, business owners and other leaders in the sector. The 2024 honorees include six Native Hawaiians pictured: (top row) Monte McComber (Royal Hawaiian Center), Emily Reber Porter (MacNaughton Hospitality) and Jamie Shigeta (Hilton Grand Vacations). Bottom row: Moani Tolentino (Grand Hyatt Kauaʻi Resort & Spa), Leilani Kahoano (Waikikī Beach Marriott Resort & Spa) and Kanoa Kawai (Aulani Resort & Spa).
2024 List of “40 Under 40” Includes 13 Native Hawaiians
Hawaiʻi’s annual “40 Under 40” award recognizes emerging leaders from across the pae ʻāina for their notable career achievements and contributions to the community. This marks the 25th year of the award and, notably, nearly one-third of the “class of 2024” is Native Hawaiian. These 13 individuals were selected from a pool of 120 nominees by Pacific Business News. The Hawaiian honorees are (top to bottom and l-r in alpha order): Jacob Aki (Alaska Airlines); Evan Castro (Shifted Energy); Michelle Chapman (Case Lombardi); Patty Copperfield (Maui Economic Opportunity, Inc.); Noelani Hessler (Cultural Surveys Hawaiʻi, Inc.); Shelly Kaiaokamalie (Lānaʻi Culture & Heritage Center); Summer Kaiawe (Watanabe Ing LLP); Lono Kealoha (Bank of Hawaiʻi); Leinani Lozi (International Gemini Observatory/NOIRLAB); Kaulana McCabe (Kupu); Kehau Meyer (Hawaiʻi Community Foundation); Naki Sabas (Alakaʻina Foundation Family of Companies); Kekoa Tupua (Boys and Girls Club of Hawaiʻi).
