NSF CBIKS Pacific Islands Research Hub

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The Pacific Islands Research Hub of NSF CBIKS is co-led by Huliauapaʻa of Hawaiʻi and Mātangireia Waka Trust of Aotearoa. Connected by our inherent and innate relationship to Te Moana nui a Kiwa/Moananuiākea (the Pacific Ocean)—a relationship ingrained in our genealogy as Pacific Islanders—our hub’s work is rooted in the traditions of voyaging and the preservation of our lands and wahi kūpuna (ancestral places). During our first year as members of NSF CBIKS, our hub has been supported by the program to carry out many initiatives, activities, and research that have uplifted our communities.  

Year 1 Place-Based Study

As part of our Year 1 Place-Based Study, we had the opportunity to highlight the ʻāina (land) of Kahaluʻu Kūāhewa, located in Kona, Hawaiʻi. We partnered with Kahaluʻu Kūāhewa stewards Jesse Kekoa and Kimberly Kahoonei to tailor a study to address the needs and interests of their work. The study was driven by four major goals:

1. Conduct in-depth planning and implementation of the restorative reuse of the wahi kūpuna traditional agricultural system portion of the Kahaluʻu Agricultural Field System of Kahaluʻu Kūāhewa.
2. Investigate and encourage a modern model for food sovereignty and food security that incorporates Indigenous agricultural systems and modern resources into wahi kūpuna stewardship and overall ʻāina land management through place-based research and Hawaiian Indigenous knowledge.
3. Thoroughly study the biocultural landscape of Kahaluʻu Kūāhewa—inclusive of its water systems—to determine its potential function in our current Hawaiian cultural setting.
4. Build stronger relationships of kānaka to ʻāina (people to place and resources), adapting to current climate conditions and mitigation of future climate changes by responsibly managing water in these ʻāina maloʻo (“dry-land”) and encouraging native growth and regenerative agricultural practices. 
    

Primary Research Questions

Our hub also conducted research to gain a deeper understanding of kalo (taro) production unique to the area in order to answer three primary research questions: 

1. What mea ʻai Hawaiʻi (Hawaiian foods) are the most beneficial for hāpai (pregnant) and nursing mothers?
2. How many of these mea ʻai Hawaiʻi that are beneficial for hāpai and nursing mothers were produced in Kahaluʻu Kūāhewa during ancestral times?
3. How many of these mea ʻai Hawaiʻi are being produced in Kahaluʻu Kūāhewa today?

A comprehensive analysis of the history of the area, staple crop yields, oral interviews, relationship building, and development of a first-of-its-kind Wahi Kūpuna Stewardship Plan Template were among some of the outcomes of our hub’s work for this study.
 

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Progress to Date

From October 25–27, 2024, our hub convened for a three-day gathering in Kohala, Hawaiʻi. Our time together was spent cultivating relationships among our hub, community partners, and ʻohana (families) throughout the various islands in Hawaiʻi and Aotearoa. The purpose of this gathering was to strengthen and grow our relationships with one another, visit significant sites in Mahukona, connect with voyaging practitioners (Nā Kālai Waʻa), participate in a food preservation workshop, and indulge in important conversations regarding planning for our larger gathering in Aotearoa next year. Our hub met with Captain and Pwo Navigator Chadd Paishon and visited the navigational koʻa heiau Holomoana. Offering pule (prayers), hoʻokupu (offerings), and our time, we were able to reengage with this space and share our connections to these wahi kūpuna and the practices regarding them. We visited Pololū Valley to conduct morning protocols, and thereafter, we spent the rest of the day participating in a food preservation workshop led by Keala Kahuanui.

Workforce Development

Through the support of NSF CBIKS, we were able to host an intern who was mentored under the guidance of our Huliauapaʻa staff and was able to engage, lead, and support initiatives during her time as intern, including a Wahi Kūpuna Community Workshop Series in Keālia, Hawaiʻi, Huliauapaʻa’s Wahi Kūpuna Internship Program (WKIP) 2024 cohort, and the Place-Based Study in Kahaluʻu Kūāhewa. 

Our intern, Wailana Medeiros, whose genealogy is tied to Keālia, shared reflections on the work she was able to drive during this time: 

"This past year as Huliauapa‘a’s NSF CBIKS intern, I had the amazing opportunity to kōkua both Huliauapa‘a and my own kaiāulu of Keālia by compiling research for this year’s WKIP. Some of the kuleana given to me as an intern included researching Māhele documents pertaining to Keālia, compiling information on each Māhele parcel in relation to what it looked like in this time period (approximately 1853) to help the students and my community understand what was planted in the area, and how the land was used. I was also tasked with ethnohistorical research: compiling different historical documents that would support student research during the internship. Some examples include previous oral histories of community members in the area, including maps. I was also able to apply my own expertise in conducting ethnographies and oral histories to create a transcription activity for the students, meant to help them better understand the work that goes into conducting and transcribing oral history interviews. I learned quite a lot about community and maintaining relationships; this internship was special because most of the community members that I, the students, and Huliauapa‘a staff interacted with were my family members, so learning how to navigate this kind of work while involving my family really helped me even more so to carefully navigate those pilina. I was also able to meet with other NSF CBIKS interns across Turtle Island through different network sessions, where I learned about their stewardship efforts in their own respective communities. As interns who are all passionate about wahi kūpuna stewardship, we bonded through our similar goals to steward our homelands and uplift our communities. Learning about different movements across the world, we were able to see how our stewardship efforts pour into one another, and by staying connected, we maintain the collective solidarity needed to reach the goals we set for ourselves within our communities."
 

Planning for the Future

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The culmination of the Pacific Islands Hub’s work achieved in 2024 will guide our momentum into 2025 as our hub will participate in a wānanga, a traditional Māori learning hui, in Aotearoa. This wānanga, focusing on food security, will explore the growing and harvesting of local foods from both land and ocean, along with the use of modern canning techniques to preserve them. It aims to create a supportive and collaborative Indigenous space for discussions among Oceanic communities, with an emphasis on sharing knowledge, resources, and education to restore food security and preservation practices. The wānanga will feature thought leader panels, facilitated discussions, unique local excursions, and hands-on food preservation activities designed to inspire direct action. The wānanga will continue to support our hub work in our Place-Based Study as we recognize the adverse human-induced climate change impacts and the importance of reclaiming the preservation of sustainable foods and Indigenous knowledge. As part of the hub, Mātangireia Waka Trust will support voyaging communities and two Māori communities in Aotearoa by learning and reintroducing Indigenous sustainability and preserving traditional foodways. Leveraging modern technologies, paired with our own Indigenous knowledge and ancestral insights, our work is dedicated to enhancing food preservation methods and promoting food security within communities, ensuring the continuation of rich cultural heritage and sustainable practices for future generations.