Blessing OHA’s New Maui Office
Last month, OHA celebrated the opening of its new Maui office in Wailuku with an office blessing officiated by ʻEkela Kaniaupio-Crozier, Hope Kahu (assistant pastor) of Ekalesia o Kupaianaha church in Wailuku. Top Photo (l-r): OHA Board Chair and Maui Trustee Carmen “Hulu” Lindsey, Kaniaupio-Crozier, and OHA Maui Beneficiary Services Agent Roy Newton. Bottom Photo (l-r): OHA trustees Brickwood Galuteria and Keoni Souza, OHA CEO Stacy Ferreira, trustees Hulu Lindsey, Kalei Akaka, Luana Alapa and Keliʻi Akina. – Photos: Joshua Koh
New Animated Short Film by Lacy
A new animated short film, The Queen’s Flowers, by Emmy-nominated ʻŌiwi filmmaker Ciara Leinaʻala Lacy is currently making the rounds on the international film festival circuit and being received with great enthusiasm.
Written and directed by Lacy, the film, set in 1915, tells the story of a little girl, Emma, and her gift to Queen Liliʻuokalani. Emma is a boarding student at St. Andrew’s Priory which is next door to the 77-year-old queen’s Honolulu residence, “Washington Place.”
The Queen’s Flowers premiered at the New York International Children’s Film Festival (NYICFF) this past March where it won the 2024 Audience Award, Ages 8+ and the 2024 Audience Award Grand Prize Short Film.
To date, the film has also been screened at the VC Film Festival in California, the Seattle International Film Festival in Washington, the Singapore International Children’s Film Festival, the Zlín Film Festival in the Czech Republic, the Atlanta Children’s Film Festival in Georgia, and at the Nantucket Film Festival in Massachusetts.
Unseen Films reviewer Steve Kopian writes, “This is glorious filmmaking and clearly the work of an artist who trusts their instincts.”
Among the many notable contributors to the film are Director of Animation Daniel Sousa and Executive Producer Dean Hamer, both of whom were part of the team that created the Oscar- nominated animated short, Kapaemahu, in 2021.
Hawaiʻi audiences will have to wait to watch The Queen’s Flowers; there are plans to screen the film this coming fall.
Caltech Observatory on Maunakea Dismantled
The Caltech Submillimeter Observatory was decommissioned and completely removed from the summit of Maunakea in July. The observatory began operations in 1987.
Throughout the decommissioning process, cultural observers were present to ensure that deconstruction was done respectfully. According to John De Fries, executive director of the Maunakea Stewardship Oversight Authority, the site was “restored to as near a pristine level” as can be expected.
Caltech came under fire when they, along with the University of California, proposed construction of the Thirty Meter Telescope (TMT) which resulted in a months-long occupation in 2019 as kiaʻi from across the pae ʻāina acted to protect Maunakea from further development.
The Caltech Submillimeter Observatory’s telescope will be relocated to the country of Chile with new, upgraded instruments, and will be renamed the Leighton Chajnantor Telescope.
Sunil Golwala, director of the observatory and a physics professor at Caltech, said that Caltech’s team learned from their experience on Maunakea. The Chile site is not considered sacred by the Indigenous community and is located further from population centers. Golwala said the new observatory will be constructed nearer other existing observatories to shrink its environmental footprint.
Removal of the Caltech Submillimeter Observatory follows the removal of a UH observatory a month earlier. There are still 11 telescopes on the mauna.
Clean Energy Testing at Kakaʻako Makai
Kakaʻako Makai will serve as a testing ground for Japanese clean energy technology.
It is the result of a partnership between the Hawaiʻi Community Development Authority (HCDA) and Kanoa Winds, a Hawaiʻi-based company founded by Dr. Kaname Takeya, who has developed a new type of wind energy technology called Vertical Coaxial Contra-Rotating Twin Blades (VCCT) wind turbines.
The compact VCCT turbines leave a much smaller footprint than the behemoth wind turbines that dominate the landscapes of Oʻahu’s north shore and the West Maui Mountains. VCCT turbines have been used successfully in Japan for more than 15 years near transportation hubs, industrial facilities and in densely populated residential mixed-use communities.
For this project, Kanoa Winds will install a 0.5 kW VCCT unit near the Hawaiʻi Technology Development Corporation Entrepreneur Sandbox. The unit is shorter than a typical streetlight and has a footprint of about 24 square feet.
VCCT turbines can generate power using a much wider range of wind speeds (7-134 mph) than traditional wind turbines that stop generating power at 44 mph. Additionally, VCCT wind turbines do not pose a threat to birds and bats as traditional horizontal-axis wind turbines do.
“VCCT wind turbines in Japan have been known to have birds nesting within the device, proving the safety and coexistence between the birds and the VCCT technology,” said Takeya.
A Win for Native Hawaiian Midwives
On July 24, a Hawaiʻi State court temporarily blocked part of the Midwifery Restriction Law which prevents pregnant people in Hawaiʻi from using traditional midwives. This was a result of a lawsuit filed by the Center for Reproductive Rights, the Native Hawaiian Legal Corporation (NHLC) and the law firm Perkins Coie.
The law went into effect a year ago. Last month’s ruling ensures that the threat of prison time and fines for utilizing traditional birthing practices is halted as the case continues.
In her ruling, Judge Shirley M. Kawamura wrote, “If Plaintiffs, especially student midwives, and other…practitioners, educators, and apprentices are not able to practice, teach, and learn, they will lose the opportunity to gain knowledge from the kūpuna [elders] to pass on to future generations.”
“The court’s decision reaffirms the state’s constitutional duties to protect Native Hawaiian traditional and cultural practices and to ensure that such practices are not regulated out of existence,” said Kirsha Durante, NHLC Litigation Director.
The Midwifery Restriction Law penalizes anyone providing advice, information, or care, during pregnancy, birth, and postpartum without a specific state license. However, there are no education programs in Hawaiʻi that meet the law’s requirements, meaning that already- trained traditional midwives would need to travel thousands of miles to be re-educated through western programs.
The lawsuit was filed on behalf of plaintiffs Alex Amey, A. Ezinne Dawson, Makalani Franco-Francis, Kiʻinaniokalani Kahoʻohanohano, Kawehi Kuʻailani, Morea Mendoza, Kiana Rowley, Moriah Salado, and Piʻilani Schneider-Furuya. A full trial date has not been set.
Aiu Named Kīpuka Kuleana ED
Kīpuka Kuleana, a Kauaʻi community-based land trust, has named Tina Aiu its first-ever executive director. Kīpuka Kuleana was formed in 2016 in response to intensifying land-loss among local families on Kauaʻi – a result of rising land values, high taxes, speculative real estate and increasing pressure to sell their land. For its first eight years, the organization operated as a volunteer-run hui.
Raised in Wailua, Kauaʻi, Aiu is a graduate of Kamehameha Schools Kapālama and the William S. Richardson School of Law at UH Mānoa. She is the former Oʻahu director of the Hawaiʻi Land Trust where she managed multiple conservation easement projects and oversaw the purchase and permanent protection of Maunawila Heiau in Hauʻula. As program manager for Livable Hawaiʻi Kai Hui, she managed cultural programs at Hāwea Heiau Complex and the Keawāwā Wetland in Maunalua and led efforts to establish a community garden for families residing in Honolulu’s urban core.
Aiu has taught conservation transactions at the Richardson law school and history and economics at Island School on Kauaʻi. She and her husband, Franz Schmutzer, have co- produced and directed numerous films documenting stories of place and community resilience throughout Hawaiʻi.
“Having spent much of my career working on land conservation efforts on Oʻahu, I’m so grateful to bring my expertise home to Kauaʻi,” Aiu said.
Kīpuka Kuleana is working to perpetuate ahupuaʻa-based natural resource management and connection to place through protection of cultural landscapes and family lands on Kauaʻi.
Sai and Ryan to be Honored
Sisters Marlene Sai and Yvonne “Pee Wee” Ryan will be honored at the Prince Kūhiō Hawaiian Civic Club’s Kalanianaʻole Scholarship Gala Awards Ceremony and fundraiser in October.
Sai is known for her lifelong award-winning contributions to Hawaiian music and acting. In addition to her work in the music industry, she has had an extensive and varied business career, having worked in the travel industry, for Kamehameha Schools where she established the popular “Alumni Week,” and at the Hawaiʻi State Legislature. A member of the Prince Kūhiō Hawaiian Civic Club for decades, Sai has served as its pelekikena (president) and on its board.
Ryan retired as a member of the investment team at Kamehameha Schools, having served the organization for almost 30 years. Prior to that, she worked in the travel industry. She is also a decades-long member of the Prince Kūhiō Hawaiian Civic Club, serving in many capacities, including as pelekikena for several terms, and has worked in many different positions for the Oʻahu Council and the Association of Hawaiian Civic Clubs.
The event will be on October 19 at the Alohilani Resort in Waikīkī and will include a silent auction and live entertainment. Proceeds will be used to provide scholarships. For more information go to www.pkhcc.org or email info@pkhcc.org.
New Solar Project Proposed for Waikōloa
AES Hawaiʻi has proposed development of an 86 megawatt alternating current solar photovoltaic array and 344 megawatt hour Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) on about 525 acres of land ma uka of Waikōloa Village in West Hawaiʻi.
According to AES, its Keʻāmuku Solar + Storage project could generate 20% of Hawaiʻi Island’s energy needs, powering more than 35,000 homes at a fixed, low-cost under a 25-year power purchase agreement with Hawaiian Electric that has already been approved by the Public Utilities Commission.
The project would connect to the existing Hawaiʻi Electric grid via a proposed new Keʻāmoku substation that would be rebuilt on land 350-500 feet away from the existing Hawaiʻi Electric Keʻāmoku substation.
AES already owns the land targeted for the project and has stated on its website that it will “restore the land to its existing condition (or comparable) at the end of the project’s life.”
The company anticipates that over the project’s 25-year lifespan, it will prevent the consumption of some 8.4 million barrels of oil.
Powwow at Bishop Museum
Hoʻopili Tribal Council (formerly the Oʻahu Intertribal Council) is hosting its 48th Annual Honolulu Intertribal Powwow at Bishop Museum September 21-22.
This annual event offers Oʻahu residents an opportunity to experience the culture, music, flavor and spirit of the peoples of Turtle Island (i.e., the continent). For two days, Bishop Museum will be a gathering place for Indigenous people who live in Hawaiʻi, as well as visitors from the continent, including Alaska and Canada.
The event features Native American traditional and contemporary drumming, singing and dancing – including the dance styles of many Tribal Nations, such as grass dancers, fancy shawl, and jingle dress dancers. The powwow will also include Native American and Indigenous arts and crafts vendors, keiki crafts, educational booths, and food vendors including Navajo frybread and tacos.
Head Man dancer will be Baac Garcia (Tohono O’odham Nation) from Arizona, and Head Lady dancer will be Kat Warren (Diné) from Utah. Serving as emcee will be Clifton Goodwill (Ojibwe, Plains Cree, Lakota, Dakota) from Kansas. For more information go to: https://htchawaii.org/.
