Established in 2011, Hanohano ʻO Kona (Honoring Kona), a monthly lecture series, was developed to deepen the community’s understanding of various cultural, historical, and educational topics related to Kona. The lecture series grew in popularity and regularly met at the Civic Center in Kailua. At the beginning of the pandemic, the lecture series was placed on hold.

The purpose of reestablishing the Hanohano ‘O Kona Program is to host a free community event that provides education, entertainment, and relationship building for our community, highlights unique aspects of different ahupuaʻa of Kona, features local cultural practitioners and experts, and connects people to Kona’s history and Kona Historical Society.

The lecture will remain the core component, with supporting activities: hula hālau, music, workshops by cultural practitioners, and local artisans.

featured presenters

“The presentation will touch on our 1-year anniversary and our hope to see other communities to take charge of caring for their places. The basis of our work is on traditional fish practices of the konohiki, who are the original stewards of natural resource management. The presentation is just a glimpse into the eyes of our community and how this has built a movement, not only creating a space but leading that call for more kanaka to be critical decision makers in their own lands.” Kaʻimi Kaupiko

Kaʻimi Kaupiko

Kaʻimi Namaielua Kaupiko is a keiki o ka ʻāina of Miloliʻi. A child of the land, Kaʻimi grew up learning the traditional fish practices of Miloliʻi. Miloliʻi remains one of Hawaiʻi’s last fishing villages, an isolated community that survives through subsistence fishing. For Kaʻimi, his foundation has always been built on education and culture. Mr. Kaupiko grew up learning from his kupuna about the value of hard work and about the need to take care of this place. Kaʻimi graduated from Konawaena high school, class of 2001. He then attended UH Mānoa and received a bachelor’s in business focusing on Marketing and Management Information Systems in 2005, an MBA in Management in 2012 from Wayland Baptist University, and a Certificate of Teaching from Kahoʻiwai in 2015. His true passion is to help provide a space for the future generations of his community and to neighboring areas of South Kona and Kaʻu. Kaʻimi is the Founder of Kalanihale, and is the current director of the organization. He has worked on the CBSFA for the past ten plus years and played an instrumental part in its creation, implementation, and execution.

Leillynne Kaupu

Leillynne Laila Kaupu is currently the outreach and monitoring coordinator for Kalanihale, the official organization in charge of co-managing the Miloliʻi CBSFA. Born in Omokaʻa, Laila is a strong kanaka versed in aloha ‘āina and lawaiʻa pono through her deep relationship with her own ahapuʻa and ʻohana that has shaped her world view. She has built a strong sense of place through her work. She was the president of Miloliʻi Canoe Club during its early years, leading and guiding a club to many regattas but more so a love for paddling. Laila eventually became a Mohala na Konohiki apprentice under the expert eye of master practitioner Mac Poepoe of Molokaʻi. Laila currently oversees the Miloliʻi CBSFA monitoring program and has built a baseline that is rich in traditional methods of fishing and management. The goal is that Miloliʻi is not only surviving but thriving through the idea of ʻāina momona, the fatting of the land. The goal is that one day we see the return of abundant fish stock and healthy reefs in Miloliʻi.

Kalanihale

Kalanihale is a non-profit organization that’s mission is to improve the educational opportunities for our youth, mālama our environment, and sustain our cultural well-being. Our vision is for Miloliʻi to be a thriving Hawaiian fishing community, a healthy environment of abundant marine resources, and our ʻohana families have a strong sense of place and identity. For our presentation we will share the proposed boundaries for this CBSFA which are from Kipahoehoe in the north to Kauna in the south. This covers about an 18-mile area that is a traditional fishing area of the Miloliʻi community. We will share the history of the process for us to become a CBSFA, share the rules, and management actions. We will focus on our methods for success, the process for consulting our community including kupuna and lawaiʻa. We will share about building our partnership with the State and other NGO’s as we guided our plan through completion. We will cover our needs for a CBSFA, citing the decline of fish stock, targeted fish species that are on the decline, land base pollution, external pressures (coral bleaching and AQ collection to name a few) and best practices.

Featured Cultural Practioner

Chuck learned to make traditional nets in his ‘ohana’s style at 5, completing his net training at 14 when he was considered accomplished enough by his father and grandfather to begin fishing on his own.  He began crewing on the family's sampans (fishing boats) at 6 and by 17 was captaining the sampans and long-liners for the commercial business. He was trained in traditional subsistence fishing methods by his tutuman from Ka’awaloa, Henry Lanui Kaneao.  When the family was removed by the State of Hawaiʻi from their gathering rights and ability to live at Ka’awaloa in the late 1960’s, many of these traditions were lost to future generations.

The lawaiʻa traditions were not taught outside of the ‘ohana.  Chuck realized with the loss of family members to relocation to the mainland for jobs and affordable housing, as well as to the devastating loss of generations to drug abuse, the normal approach to passing his tradition on needed to change.  He now works in his community to try to teach what he can of his tradition to ensure its continuation, while still fishing.

Chuck has spent 76 years of his life perpetuating the lawai’a tradition.  His training includes more than 18 types of traditional subsistence and commercial fishing techniques.  He knows how to make and repair all types of fishing nets and steps in to help local communities when they need nets made and repaired.

Chuck has served on the West Hawaii Fisheries Council representing traditional and commercial fishing interests.  He also is a member of the Kai Kuleana Network, a group of 15 indigenous communities along the West Hawai’i Coast, working together to preserve and perpetuate traditional Hawaiian knowledge, culture, and environment through assistance of The Nature Conservancy. He also is a working member of the Kealakekua Bay Cultural Advisory ʻOhana where he consults with families and state, federal and county entities to ensure that cultural knowledge and practices lead the current and future management plans for the area.

Mahalo nui loa to our program sponsors for helping to make this event possible