Welcome to Outside Hawai'i. As part of our Holomua Marine 30x30 series in partnership with the Hawaiʻi Department of Land and Natural Resources, we have more inspirational stories to share with you about the people who take care of our ocean and culture with the community always in mind. On this episode, we’ll go to Pepe'ekeo, on Hawai`i island, to meet with Ryan Okano of the Division of Aquatic Resources. We’ll join Ryan with his family and hear about his connection to the legendary Dr. Isabella Abbott. Then we’ll go to the moku of Wai`anae to learn about an amazing project led by scuptor and farmer, Sooriya Kumar, that ties art, environment, and culture in a big way! Mahalo nui loa to our segment sponsor, Harold K.L. Castle Foundation, and the many individuals and organizations that assisted in the production of this episode, including the Hawai'i Department of Land & Natural Resources, Division of Aquatic Resources, Scottie Kanda of Keawe Media, Matthew Nagato and Alexander Bocchieri of Lumos Media, and Sooriya Kumar. Outside Hawai'i is a program of Mālama Learning Center. Contact us at info@malamalearningcenter.org and follow us on Instagram (@outside_hawaii) and Facebook (@Outside Hawaii). Copyright 2022

This episode of Outside Hawai'i is part of a new series in partnership with the Hawaiʻi Department of Land and Natural Resources on marine management, specifically as part of Holomua Marine 30 by 30 – the statewide initiative that weaves scientific, cultural and community knowledge to ensure healthy and abundant nearshore waters for the people of Hawai‘i. We’ll go to the island of O`ahu with a team from DLNR’s Division of Aquatic Resources to see them in action, educating the community, restoring coral reefs, and removing invasive algae. Then we’ll go to Molokai for the annual Roi Roundup, a grassroots event to help keep invasive fish from overrunning their native reef ecosystem. Mahalo nui loa to our segment sponsors: Harold K.L. Castle Foundation and the Odom Corporation and the many organizations that assisted in the production of this episode, including the Hawai'i Department of Land & Natural Resources, Division of Aquatic Resources, Mālama Pūpūkea-Waimea, Molokai Roi Round-up Team, Wakeful State, and Matt Yamashita and Kelly Pauole. Outside Hawai'i is a program of Mālama Learning Center. Contact us at info@malamalearningcenter.org. Copyright 2022

While we emerge from the COVID pandemic, it’s important to recognize the acts of endurance that have pulled us through hard times. In this episode of Outside Hawai'i, we honor people and programs that shine as symbols of ola loa, or long life. We’ll visit with Meilin Vitale Vae of Missing Polynesia, who continues to thrive after 20 years in business. We’ll hear how teachers and students in Wai’anae have endured challenges to address issues like wildfire. And we’ll close with a story of building a community of limu practitioners that spans generations. Outside Hawai'i is a program of Mālama Learning Center. Copyright 2022

Climate Change are two words that we’re hearing more often every day. While sometimes controversial, it’s undeniable that our climate is changing faster than ever recorded in history. Here, we see it with sea level rise, we feel it in the heat, and we experience a lack of rain – or perhaps too much of it all at once. On this episode of Outside Hawai'i, we’ll learn how to become more resilient to the effects of climate change. We’ll see how communities are exploring strategies to become stronger as challenges grow. We’ll understand the increasing threat of wildfires and how to prevent them with advice from the Honolulu Fire Department, and we’ll visit with Paul Reppun of Waiahole who shows us how his family farm runs completely off the grid. Outside Hawai'i is a program of Mālama Learning Center. Copyright 2022.

As we gradually emerge from the long pandemic, we are grateful to those who have kept us safe and helped us build strength and resilience. Even in times of isolation, we saw the power and beauty of building pilina, or relationships. This episode is dedicated to all the educators who have developed pilina with their students – and even with each other – through their love for `āina, which connects us all. On this episode, we’ll see what teachers have discovered through a curriculum project tied to `āina in the `Ewa O`ahu region. We’ll visit with Dean Wilhelm at Ho`okua`āina who shares about growing youth through growing kalo. We’ll sail aboard Mānaiakalani with youth from Maui, and we’ll learn how the Mālama Learning Center builds pilina through `āina based education. Outside Hawai'i is a program of Mālama Learning Center. Copyright 2022

For those not used to living on islands, being surrounded by water can be unsettling. But for those of us who call the Pacific our home, the ocean is less a barrier and more a connector. It reminds us as islanders of our ancestral ties and shared reliance for the future. On this episode of Outside Hawai'i, we’ll dive deep into Pacific cultures, starting with an exploration of the Kumulipo, which is foundational to the Hawaiian culture. Then we’ll look at how our relationship with niu, or coconuts, is re-emerging through renewed cultural traditions. We’ll learn about an environmental scientist in the Cook Islands who took bold steps to protect her nation’s ocean territory. And we’ll close with the next major voyage of Hōkūle`a that will circumnavigate the Pacific in a race to heal the earth. Outside Hawai'i airs on Spectrum OC16 and is a program of Mālama Learning Center. Copyright 2022

The Hawaiʻi State Legislature designated 2022 as the Year of the Limu. Also known as seaweed or marine algae, limu is a critical part of a healthy and productive reef system. It is the base of our nearshore marine food chain and key indicator of environmental health. Unfortunately, there’s been a steep decline of limu throughout Hawaiʻi as well as a loss of knowledge. On this episode, we honor cultural practitioners and scientists who help us take better care of our ocean. We’ll hear from the late Dr. Isabella Abbott, arguably one of the most influential contributors to knowledge of limu in modern history. We’ll visit with scientists learning about the health of Maunalua Bay. We’ll go to the island of Kauaʻi to visit with the Koʻolau Limu Hui, and we’ll hear Uncle Mac Poepoe, a respected kupuna on Molokai, share his perspectives on gathering responsibly. Outside Hawai'i is produced by Mālama Learning Center. Copyright 2022.

Hawaii’s native forests are diverse, unique, and home to plants and animals only found in these islands. They’re also places that foster spiritual and cultural connection. On this episode, we’ll explore forests in ways that few people have experienced. We’ll go to the slopes of Mauna Kea at Hakalau forest to see how decades of dedication have brought the forest back. We’ll learn how Laka is revered in the Hawaiian culture as the forest. And then we’ll go to Wai'anae to understand the impact of wildfires on dryland forests found nowhere else in the world. This episode is made possible through support from American Forests, Salesforce, Hālāwai, Ltd, Hawaiian Electric, and Ke Ala Naʻauao Native Hawaiian Education Act Federal Grant. Outside Hawai'i is a program of Mālama Learning Center. Copyright 2022. Contact Mālama Learning Center at info@malamalearningcenter.org.

On this episode of Outside Hawai'i, we’ll see how non-profit groups are working with communities to restore abundance to `āina. We’ll go to Olowalu, Maui, where kalo and native plants are returning, and then explore the rich `āina of Kīpahulu. We’ll go to Kuhiawaho, a cultural kīpuka in urban Honolulu. And we’ll journey to Molokai where fishponds and generational wisdom abound. Outside Hawai'i on Spectrum OC16 is produced by Malama Learning Center. Copyright 2022