- Pou Kākoʻo Mālama Waiwai / Integrated Assets Manager
- Paia ʻĀina / Land division
- ʻEono makahiki ma OHA / 6 years at OHA
- From: Ponahawai Ahupuaʻa, Hilo Moku, Hawaiʻi Island
Education:
- Hilo High School
- UH Mānoa (BA Hawaiian Language and Doctorate in Architecture)
I loko o ko OHA ʻōlelo nuʻukia ʻo Mana i Mauli Ola, ʻo ka pilina o nā Kānaka Maoli i ka ʻāina ke kahua e paʻa pono ai ka lāhui Hawaiʻi. He aliʻi ka ʻāina, he kauwā ke kanaka. No laila, ʻo ka mālama ʻāina kekahi kuleana koʻikoʻi o OHA; a he kuleana ko kēlā me kēia lālā o ka hui ʻĀpana ʻĀina i ka ʻāina a i ka lāhui Hawaiʻi. He 30,000 ʻeka ʻāina ko kā OHA waihona ʻāina a puni ka paeʻāina pili i ka ʻoihana mahiʻai, ka ʻoihana kālepa, a me nā ʻāina maluō.
He aha kou kuleana ma OHA, a he aha nā papahana āu e hana nei i kēia manawa?
“Mālama a hoʻokele mākou i nā hana ma ko OHA mau kuleana ʻāina. I kēia manawa, ke loihape nei au i ka palapala hoʻokele no nā kuleana ʻāina a puni ʻo Kūkaniloko, ma Wahiawā.”
No ke aha ʻoe i koho ai e hana ma OHA, a he aha kāu mea punahele e pili ana i kāu hana?
“Ua koho au e hana ma OHA ma muli o ke kuleana e mālama i ko kākou mau ʻāina me ko kākou mau kaiāulu a puni ʻo Hawaiʻi. ʻO kaʻu mea punahele o kaʻu hana, ʻo ia hoʻi, ʻo ka ʻāina kā mākou kuleana mua, a pōmaikaʻi mākou i ka hiki ke hoʻokino maoli i ka manaʻo nui o ʻhe aliʻi ka ʻāina, he kauwā ke kanaka’ ma o kā mākou hana. Hoʻolono mai mākou i ko mākou mau wahi, a hana pū mākou me lākou i mea e mālama pono ai i nā kuleana ʻāina o mākou.”
He aha kekahi welo ou e ʻike ai?
“Mau nō koʻu aʻo mai ana, a e mau ana nō.”
ʻO wai kekahi meʻe ou?
“ʻO Jonathan Ching – koʻu palala, kaʻu kumu, koʻu hoa – no kona kūpaʻa mau i ke aloha, a me ke aloha ʻāina.”
He aha kekahi mea ʻakaʻaka loa o kāu ʻoihana?
“ʻO kēia nīnauele ʻia ʻana oʻu no Ka Wai Ola!”
He aha kahi mea āu e haliʻa ai no kāu hana ʻana ma OHA?
“Nā manawa a mākou i kanu ai i nā lāʻau.”
OHA’s Mana i Mauli Ola Strategic Plan recognizes the connection that Native Hawaiians have to the ʻāina as a foundational strength. For “the land is a chief; man its servant.” Therefore, mālama ʻāina is OHAʻs first beneficiary; each member of the Land Division team has deeply personal kuleana to Hawaiʻi and to the ʻāina. OHA’s ʻāina portfolio amasses approximately 30,000 acres throughout the pae ʻāina ranging from agricultural, commercial, and conservation assets.
What is your kuleana at OHA and what major project are you working on at the moment?
“We oversee and implement management activities on OHA’s landholdings. Currently, I am working on refining the master plan for our Wahiawā lands surrounding Kūkaniloko.”
Why did you choose to work at OHA and what is the best thing about your job?
“I chose to work here because of the kuleana – I get to serve our places and communities all across Hawaiʻi. The best thing about my job is that ʻāina is our primary beneficiary and we really get to embody ʻhe aliʻi ka ʻāina, he kauwā ke kanaka’ in our work. We listen to our places and work with our communities to interpret how best to mālama our lands.”
What is the most important thing for people to know about you?
“I am still and always learning.”
Who has been a role model to you?
“My brother, teacher, and friend, Jonathan Ching – for his dedication to aloha and aloha ʻāina.”
What is the funniest thing that has happened in your professional career?
“Being featured in Ka Wai Ola!”
What is your best memory at OHA?
Anytime we get to put plants in the ground.
