Makali'i 'Ohana Wa'a leads the IUCN opening ceremony. Photo courtesy Maegan Gindi The Planet at the Crossroads was the theme for the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) conference, which took place in Honolulu from 9/1 – 9/12. Held every four years, its location in Hawai'i was the first time the conference has been held in the United States.
Makali'i 'Ohana Wa'a and the Dryland Forest Hui 'Ohana were two of the many representative groups that attended the conference from Hawai'i Island, where the connection of culture and nature was highlighted.
The opening ceremony with dignitaries from all over the world, took place on the shore. “We started off Wednesday morning with the opening ceremonies on Kahanamoku Beach in front of the Hawaiian Hilton Village. "We wanted to ground them and give them a feel for the culture in the Pacific regions and what our traditions are. We welcomed them with traditional haka chants and we had some of our lua experts challenge them coming ashore,” says Maʽulili Dickson, Na Kalai Wa'a canoe captain and quartermaster.
The opening ceremony for the Pacific island nations continued at the Blaisdell Arena. “Aunty Pualani Kanahele (Kanakaole Foundation), her halau and the people of Hilo are the ones that did the traditional, cultural part of that,” says Dickson. And like a fish net being flung wide, “They started in the middle of the floor and walked out from there. Their leader [and MC] was Kamana'opono Crabbe in malo (loincloth) and kapa kihei (shawl),” adds Dickson.
Makali'i 'Ohana Wa'a and the Dryland Forest Hui 'Ohana were two of the many representative groups that attended the conference from Hawai'i Island, where the connection of culture and nature was highlighted.
The opening ceremony with dignitaries from all over the world, took place on the shore. “We started off Wednesday morning with the opening ceremonies on Kahanamoku Beach in front of the Hawaiian Hilton Village. "We wanted to ground them and give them a feel for the culture in the Pacific regions and what our traditions are. We welcomed them with traditional haka chants and we had some of our lua experts challenge them coming ashore,” says Maʽulili Dickson, Na Kalai Wa'a canoe captain and quartermaster.
The opening ceremony for the Pacific island nations continued at the Blaisdell Arena. “Aunty Pualani Kanahele (Kanakaole Foundation), her halau and the people of Hilo are the ones that did the traditional, cultural part of that,” says Dickson. And like a fish net being flung wide, “They started in the middle of the floor and walked out from there. Their leader [and MC] was Kamana'opono Crabbe in malo (loincloth) and kapa kihei (shawl),” adds Dickson.
Pacific Island Nations leader, Kamana'opono Crabbe opens proceedings at the Blaisdell. Photo courtesy of Eric McNatt For the next day and a half Pacific Island nation groups, including the ever-growing 'Ohana Wa'a, shared their knowledge and experiences. “We had Aotearoa, Tahiti, Cook Islands, Palau, Marshal Islands and more. We were there in conjunction with the World Wide Voyage,” says Dickson.
The mission of the World Wide Voyage is to raise awareness of the environmental challenges being faced by the entire planet and especially Pacific Islanders. “All the 'Ohana Wa'a are in unison. The Pacific nations have to start looking at how we can better our environments. Starting at home,” says Dickson.
The IUCN was also an opportunity for policy makers and administrators to see the results of many such efforts and possibly influence decision making and funding. Palau President, Mr. Tommy Remengesau Jr wowed the assembly with his country’s impressive environmental accomplishments, focusing on grass roots action.
“Palau’s one of the leading Pacific nations that are actually doing something. Reefs, recycling, energy use, they're actually doing it, rather than talking and policy making. Like our Makali'i community. You work with what you got. The more people you get involved from the community, the more resources become available,” says Dickson.
The mission of the World Wide Voyage is to raise awareness of the environmental challenges being faced by the entire planet and especially Pacific Islanders. “All the 'Ohana Wa'a are in unison. The Pacific nations have to start looking at how we can better our environments. Starting at home,” says Dickson.
The IUCN was also an opportunity for policy makers and administrators to see the results of many such efforts and possibly influence decision making and funding. Palau President, Mr. Tommy Remengesau Jr wowed the assembly with his country’s impressive environmental accomplishments, focusing on grass roots action.
“Palau’s one of the leading Pacific nations that are actually doing something. Reefs, recycling, energy use, they're actually doing it, rather than talking and policy making. Like our Makali'i community. You work with what you got. The more people you get involved from the community, the more resources become available,” says Dickson.
The Dryland Forest Hui 'Ohana working Kipuka Oweowe at Pu'uwa'awa'a Another group from Hawai'i Island, the Dryland Forest Hui 'Ohana, highlights a ground up approach to conservation work. The “Hui” is an informal group comprised of: Kaloko-Honokōhau National Park; Ka'ūpūlehu Dryland Forest Preserve; Kīholo Bay Restoration Project; Mauna Kea Forest Restoration Project; Puʽuwaʽawaʽa Forest Reserve; and Waikōloa
Dryforest Initiative. The group came together with the realization of how much more can be accomplished by pooling resources and gathers once a month to work on individual projects and to share knowledge and resources.
The “Hui”’s presentation at the IUCN was well received and attended by a wide range of people who wanted to know just how they do what they do. “One of the things that stood out for me, is when Evan Paxton from the USGS mentioned that this is a really rare model of collaboration in his eyes. He asked us about how we collaborate and hurtles we have overcome,” says Elliott Parsons, Puʽuwaʽawaʽa Volunteer Coordinator. But to the “Hui” sharing resources and working together is foundational, a natural outcome of life in the islands.
One attendee from Bonaire, a small island in the Caribbean, is working on reforesting Klein Bonaire, an even smaller island, where the forest has all but disappeared. This was familiar ground for the “Hui” as 95% of the dryland forest in Hawai'i is gone. “With the “Hui” we can create five acres of dryland forest in one day. Maybe in a year or so we can talk about what percentage of the dryland forest there is available because of the work of the “Hui”,” says Parsons.
The conference was an inspiration and an awareness raising experience as well. “We think we have it really bad in Hawai'i and we do have challenges, but there are many places around the world that are facing even more dire conservation struggles. It was really good to get out of our bubble,” says Parsons.
The relationship of culture and nature was a main theme throughout the conference, and was the focus of a session called “Standing on Sacred Ground” about the struggles of eight indigenous communities to preserve their sacred sites.
“A film maker brought representatives from these communities to come and share their stories. One of them was from Papua New Guinea and he stood up and said, 'I've never left the bush before'. It was heart wrenching to hear of their struggles. We're not the only ones struggling with trying to conserve nature and there are various ways we can help each other,” says Parsons.
The IUCN was like the weaving of a fish net. The lines of many people connecting and being woven together, to create a net that when flung wide, will feed and sustain the planet and its people.
Dryforest Initiative. The group came together with the realization of how much more can be accomplished by pooling resources and gathers once a month to work on individual projects and to share knowledge and resources.
The “Hui”’s presentation at the IUCN was well received and attended by a wide range of people who wanted to know just how they do what they do. “One of the things that stood out for me, is when Evan Paxton from the USGS mentioned that this is a really rare model of collaboration in his eyes. He asked us about how we collaborate and hurtles we have overcome,” says Elliott Parsons, Puʽuwaʽawaʽa Volunteer Coordinator. But to the “Hui” sharing resources and working together is foundational, a natural outcome of life in the islands.
One attendee from Bonaire, a small island in the Caribbean, is working on reforesting Klein Bonaire, an even smaller island, where the forest has all but disappeared. This was familiar ground for the “Hui” as 95% of the dryland forest in Hawai'i is gone. “With the “Hui” we can create five acres of dryland forest in one day. Maybe in a year or so we can talk about what percentage of the dryland forest there is available because of the work of the “Hui”,” says Parsons.
The conference was an inspiration and an awareness raising experience as well. “We think we have it really bad in Hawai'i and we do have challenges, but there are many places around the world that are facing even more dire conservation struggles. It was really good to get out of our bubble,” says Parsons.
The relationship of culture and nature was a main theme throughout the conference, and was the focus of a session called “Standing on Sacred Ground” about the struggles of eight indigenous communities to preserve their sacred sites.
“A film maker brought representatives from these communities to come and share their stories. One of them was from Papua New Guinea and he stood up and said, 'I've never left the bush before'. It was heart wrenching to hear of their struggles. We're not the only ones struggling with trying to conserve nature and there are various ways we can help each other,” says Parsons.
The IUCN was like the weaving of a fish net. The lines of many people connecting and being woven together, to create a net that when flung wide, will feed and sustain the planet and its people.
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