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| Hawai'i Tourism Authority's graduates of stewardship training for Punalu'u, which was contracted to Ka'u Ohana O Honu'apo and Hawai'i Wildlife Fund. Ceremonies were on Saturday. Photo by Julia Neal |
HAWAI'I TOURISM AUTHORITY'S PUNALU'U PROGRAM to train stewards to educate visitors and the public about protecting Punalu'u came to a close Saturday with graduation ceremonies for ten students. HTA funded the nonprofits Ka Ohana O Honu'apo and Hawai'i Wildlife Fund and other partners for their program titled Ka'ū Hoa Pili ʻĀina. Mentors included Nohea Ka'awa, John Replogle, Jodie Rosam and Megan Lamson.
Students said they learned about the natural resources and ongoing stewardship along the entire Kaʻū Coast and mauka into the native forest during the four month program. They also visited places outside Kaʻū including the native plant nursery inside Hawai'i Volcanoes National. Park.
HTA also chose Kealakekua Bay for a similar program and said that both Punalu'u and Kealakekua have become especially popular with visitors, resulting in overcrowding, congestion, natural and cultural resource degradation, and safety hazards.
When announcing the programs, Rachel Kaiama, Island of Hawai'i Visitors Bureau destination manager, said that “With the support of HTA and its emphasis on destination management, we are seeing more ways in which regenerative tourism on Hawai‘i Island is working through ‘āina- and placed-based community models. These programs will further assist in our collaborative efforts to care for the natural and cultural resources of sacred places with resident-community stewards taking the lead for Punalu‘u and Kealakekua."
HTA's invitation to the graduation ceremony said the program for Punalu'u focused on "pono practices at Punalu'u and other Kaʻū sites to share and engage with visitors." It invited the attendees to "Discuss the Ka'ū Hoa Pili ʻĀina effort with training program director Jodie Rosam of Ka' Ohana O Honu'apo" and with Kaiama from the Visitors Bureau.
Nine of the students made presentations, each showing a native or canoe plant that had meaning to them and explaining the impact of the program on their lives.
Aldin Wells, a Volcano resident who lived at Honu'apo for three years, presented the mountain naupaka plant and noted the other naupaka that grows by the ocean. He said they are symbolic of the 18 years in his life, living mauka and makai. He noted that Kaʻū is "one tight knit community" had living here has had a big impact on him.
He also talked about Hawai'i being the extinction capitol of the world, but also having hope, pointing out that through the program he was able to work on stewarding an area of land where all of the plants around him were native Hawaiian.
Christine Alley said she grew up here and through the program was able to visit places she didn't know existed, increasing her experience of everything Ka'u has to offer. She said there is need for more
stewardship programs to help raise appreciation for the place. She noted that many people are not
necessarily "proud of being from here," and thanked the mentors "who have impacted on me."
Neil Nevis, from Kahuku, presented a ti plant, which he explained to be a canoe plant brought by early Polynesians. He talked about restoring rock walls at Honu'apo and going to places he had never been, like Kaiholena in the mountains, as part of the classes and volunteer days.
Another student described learning about native plants and the surprise of learning of "our own cucumber" and "our own cranberry," The student also noted the stark contrast between 'ohia forest and a fenceline with pasture on the other side.
Coby Lund presented a popolo plant uses in Hawaiian medicine and for dyes. He expressed appreciation for the diverse experience of the training program saying he initially "thought we would be kicking out tourist from bothering the turtles" at Punalu'u.
Chelseae Kobzi, who was raised in Pahala, and is accomplished in hula, presented the Kalo plant, also called taro. She said the shoots remind her of 'ohana; the roots remind her of the ground "where you come from;" and the heart shaped leaves remind her of love.
She also noted talking a class on limu, seaweed, which was part of the program and said she now has her own dried, pressed limu collection. She said she appreciated time spent with the community in Miloli'i and said, "Hopefully, we can eventually have some strong hui out her, like them." She said, "You don't have to be Hawaiian to be aloha. It's your action."
She talked about Punalu'u where she saw nene flying by, butterflies and whales waving. She emphasized stewardship of South Point, which is also overrun with traffic and expressed "grief for the 'aina."
Ali Birnbour, originally from Connecticut, presented the naupaka plant from the seashore. She expressed gratitude for learning to "care of the land." She said she wants to encourage more volunteering along the Ka'u Coast and gave Miloli'i as a good example of a community working together. She noted that she helped gather pili grass for a hale there. She said "the heart of the program is going out and helping."
Jimmy Cocallas who lives on the border of Ka'u and South Kona presented a Ko plant, sugar cane and said he has his own juicer and goes to market with it. He noted the desecration of South Point.
In its announcement, HTA stated that "Under the direction of the non-profit Ka ʻOhana O Honu'apo, this program is part of HTAʻs community-driven approach to destination management as guided by the 2020-2025 Strategic Plan and Hawai'i Island Destination Management Action Plan.
KA'U YOUTH ARE INVITED TO APPLY FOR RANGE CAMP IN WAIMEA. The Hawai'i Range Camp is in its inaugural year and will welcome the first cohort of haumāna during Spring Break March 18-22 for a week-long, high-school-aged, environmental education camp focused on rangeland working landscapes. The home base will be Hanaipoe Cabin at Parker Ranch in Waimea.
The theme for this year's Hawaii Range Camp is He aliʻi ka ʻāina, he kauwā ke kanaka - "The land is chief, man is the servant". The goal of this program is to cultivate in participants a relationship with and grow understanding of and respect for these landscapes that humans occupy and that support communities and ways of life.
Camp sessions in this yearʻs program include: Natural History of Hawaii, Agricultural History of Hawaii. Parker Ranch History. Intro to Range and Natural Resource Management, Watershed function on working rangelands. Soils & geology, Climate, soils and grasslands, Botany/Plant ID, Animal Science: Herbivore anatomy and nutrition, Grass-based livestock production and Forage Nutrition and Management, Estimating forage production and forage allocation, Range Ecology, Rangeland Health and Grazing Management. and Wildlife and Range.
Nicole Glase will give a presentation and discussion on Contemporary Issues and Challenges Facing Rangelands.
The entire program is field based. Haumāna will learn practical skills including estimating available forage, plant identification, and soil texturing. Lessons also include digging and exploring a soil pit with application to describing soil horizons and understanding soil development processes and the way geology affects the soils we have.