Today, we learned about what we will be doing tomorrow at UH Manoa and OANRP (Oahu Army Natural Resource Program). Along with learning what OANRP does for our community, we also measured our vegetables that we planted last week.
By Riley Jose, Nanakuli Program
Today, we learned about what we will be doing tomorrow at UH Manoa and OANRP (Oahu Army Natural Resource Program). Along with learning what OANRP does for our community, we also measured our vegetables that we planted last week.
0 Comments
By Rile Jose, Nanakuli Program Our huaka’i or field trip was to Wai’anae Kai Forest Reserve. There, we were able to participate in restoration of the native plants of Hawai’i, such as ’aweoweo, pōhinahina, ilima, milo, koa, a’ali’i, and alahe’e. La’au lapa’au was also a subject that was taught during the field experience where we learned that the ilima was to help a female during pregnancy. The pōhinahina, when used as a poultice was used to cure skin irritation and small cuts. During our work period of the day, we cut down haole koa trees, and dug out Guinea Grass in hopes that the native plants that are growing will cultivate into a new generation of restoration plants. Being able to help with the restoration of Waianae Kai was very eye opening experience. Knowing that we, as individuals were able to be apart of a project that brings us one step closer to restoring our ahupua’a to its original state in terms of agriculture and planting. By Ke'ala Ford, Wai'anae Program
Today we had a field trip to Wai’anae’s Watershed up in Wai’anae Valley. We had the privilege of being apart of a restoration process for our land up there to flourish once again. For the majority of the day we used a sickle to pull out guinea grass, which is basically a weed that is prone to fire. This is bad because our native plants are susceptible to fire and die all the while the invasive guinea grass will still be there. So we pulled that out and other weeds there, along with some small trees that are also invasive. We did that for a few hours to get a taste of what the workers there do. Two students from Wai’anae did so well that they were given a job offer there. After having lunch we headed back to the field school we were apart of, my peers and I take part in Wai’anae’s field school so we went back to Wai’anae High school to finish up the day. When we got there we went back to the classroom and just waited until we had a community circle to end the day. I thought it was a great experience and would recommend it for those who love the outdoors and I know there's many of them. By Ke'ala Ford, Wai'anae Program
Today we learned more about the environment. We started off with a ’ōlelo no’eau, (wise saying), hahai no ka ua I ulu la`au. Rain always follows the forest. We had a discussion about what this wise saying meant. To me, personally, I think the saying meant wherever the flora, plant life, is the rain will be there. Since it’s a figurative saying people may interpret this to whatever comes to them. This learning process led us to the organizations in charge of our water which is Board of Water Supply (BWS) and Department of Natural resources (DLNR). Later, we learned more about how plants get water in a way that helps them receive the right amount of water. Starting with the canopy trees which takes the brunt of the rain, then the water makes its way down the sub-canopy trees, next it continues further down the different smaller plants, and lastly, the shrubs soak up the remaining water so the ground does not get flooded. After that, we had a kahoot to review what we learned last week. I was absent last week due to being in another program, creative media with Lili’uokalani Trust and the people they hired to instruct us from CalArts which is an art school in California. I placed 3rd from having the knowledge they tested us on from prior experiences. Towards the end of the day, we went outside to see which way of making salt was the most effective and efficient. It came down to two choices which were a black metal container and an aluminum pan. They did not make an official choice yet but most sided with the black container. We ended the day by sharing the community ball to have a check in with how we were doing. by Riley Jose, Nānākuli Program
Today we had a guest speaker Paul from Wai'anae Mountains Watershed Project, who talked about our Wai'anae watershed and how it works. Paul talked about how we are going to be helping our Wai'anae watershed tomorrow during our huaka’i (Field trip) to Wai'anae Kai. Paul had talked to us about what species are invasive, native, endemic and what species and plants that can cause or spread fires. Another thing we had worked on today was our water cycle and water cycle mele called Pō’aiapuni Wai which tells the cycle of our water and the process of how it gets from the sky to us, the humans. By Riley Jose, Nanakuli Program
Today, we had the privilege to learn about the sun an the what the pa at palehua was used for. At the pa we learned about the way the Hawaiians learned and studied, along with learning a few scientific facts. The sun rises in the East and sets in the West, but every day, the sun moves more and more to the West until the Summer solstice, then it moves the opposite until Winter. In the a we also learned about the different Hawaiian islands, and how they are similar told through pohaku, or rocks. Ranger Anu showed us the rocks that were in the pa, and how each rock indicates two of the mokupuni, or islands in the Hawaiian chain. By Riley Jose, Nānākuli Program We arrived at Camp Pālehua and were greeted by the owners who told us about the camp. Then Dr. Scott Rowland talked to us about a map that tells us about the geography of O'ahu. On the hike we took, we stopped numerous times to learn about certain plants or rock structures that we were able to learn about. When we got to the Nānākuli look out, we were able to learn about how the Nānākuli valley came to be. Along with how the layers in the mountains were formed and how they eroded away. When we got down, back to the camp we then went up to Mauna Kapu, there we saw most of the island of O'ahu, and other islands too. By Krisa Robinson, Wai'anae Program
First week of field school and we’re already spending the night on a mountain. How riveting! After arriving at the desired destination with the Nanakuli group, we joined together and did a quick ice breaker. I personally am not a fan, but I can’t complain. It was still kinda fun. Next we got a short lecture from the geologist, Dr. Rowland. He showed us a very old geological map, which was pretty cool to see! Afterwards we followed our guide Chris onto the hiking trail. It was a very beautiful walk, and I loved stopping and hearing Chris talk about the names of places and explaining the Hawaiian lore of each place. He had lots of passion, and it was obvious he spoke from his heart! We ate lunch by the Nanakuli overlook, and afterwards we headed back down to the camp and took a small break before heading out on our next trip. We took a perilous drive all the way up to mauna Kapu, on a debatably narrow and windy road! However, the absolutely stunning view during both the short hike and sitting at the top was very much worth the nerve racking drive. This was probably by far my favorite hike! After returning from Mauna Kapu, we came back to camp and settled into our bunks before dinner. We had a community circle with everyone to talk about the day, then we had a few minutes to talk and hang out before lights out. However, in the girls bunk, their were multiple cane spiders in our cabin. Luckily, after this discovery we were able to sleep somewhere else for the night. Nonetheless, it was an incredibly eventful day! I’ve never actually spent the night at a camp before, so this was a good experience! (Minus the less than tasteful spiders.) By Riley Jose, Nānākuli Program
Today’s class topic was about the volcanoes and the land formation of O'ahu; the types of volcanoes along with the geography and maps that scientist use and how they were made. Another thing we worked on was breaking down maps from Dr. Scott Rowlands’ geography packet of the Wai'anae area. The class also read the story of Pele and how she created the Hawaiian Islands. By Riley Jose, Nānākuli Program During the second day of Mālama 'Aina Field School, the topic of this class were Garden Plots and the Wahi Pana O Wai'anae Moku (The Sacred Places of the Wai'anae District). Our Garden Plots are made of a section of land that we are given and seeds in which we use to plant and grow so we are able to eat the vegetables that we have grown throughout the program. Guest speaker Poki’i came in to talk about his life story and the importance of the 4 different types of mana (Acquired, Inherited, Educated, Innate) along with the power and importance of a person’s name.
By Riley Jose, Nānākuli program
Today was the first day of Field School. Today we started off with an icebreaker, in which we all created a community ball using our mana (spiritual power/strength) into a yarn puff ball which is named “Oreo”. The class worked on the art of “Aha” made of eight aho (rope/string) which is weaved together to make one strong bond. The Kumu (Teachers) talked about the classroom norms and rules of Mālama 'Āina Field School. Then ended the day with a community discussion using the community ball we had made this morning. By Ethan Hoppe-Cruz, Wai'anae Program
Today is June 18, the first day of field school, a program that mixes the sciences, Hawaiian culture and conservation all in one, and to be honest a majority of the students are loving it already. To start this amazing learning experience we did an icebreaker to introduce ourselves and even made a ball to help with community circles, (a practice where we all reflect in a safe space), the “community ball”, known as John the Dude. In which we made by stringing cord and sharing a spiritual energy know in Hawaiian as mana. We then proceeded to make an 8 strand braid know as “Aha”. After this we went over the rules of our classrooms, took a few assessments to determine where we were and to cap it all we closed with another community circle and everyone, or at least in the case of this writer, an overwhelming sense of belonging. By Pauline Sato, Mālama Learning Center
The Mālama 'Āina Field School began as a pilot program in the summer of 2013 at Nānākuli High & Intermediate School. Since then, it has expanded to include students from Ka Waihona O Ka Na'auao Public Charter School in Nānākuli, and now to Wai'anae Intermediate School and Wai'anae High School. Although we are not able to quadruple the size of the program due to logistical constraints, we are making this program accessible to more students along the Wai'anae Coast not only through the summer school program, but also throughout the school year through their teachers who strengthen their skills in 'āina-based and place-based learning. We are proud and appreciative of everyone who takes part in this program. Mahalo nui loa to our many supporters and resource people. We simply could not do this without you! Please enjoy reading the journal entries made by our students from both the Nānākuli and Wai'anae programs who work separately in class and together, as one 'ohana, on huaka'i (field trips). Today we had two guest speakers, Ka'umealani and Kamoa'e from La'ie. They talked about the idea of accomplishing a goal. Some other things they talked about was traditional navigation. Ka'umealani is a teacher at Kahuku Kula Kaiapuni and Kamoa'e is a Hawaiian Language professor at BYU Hawai'i. He also sails on the Wa'akaulua Iosepa. They both taught us Hawaiian language as well as traditional navigation techniques using the stars, moon, waves, sun, birds and wind. They stressed the importance of navigating our world through a Hawaiian lens and worldview.
Today we went to Waimanalo Gulch located in Kapolei. We learned that most of their waste is burned and given to H- Power to create electricity for the island. Waimanalo Gulch was established in 1980. When we took our tour around the area, we didn't expect it to be like that because it wasn't dirty like other landfills we know or think of. For our second stop, we went to PVT land company, there we learned that more than $3.5 million has been spent on dust mitigation projects alone including extensive landscaping with plants. The PVT recycling system is able to process up to 900 tons of feedstock per day. They are responsible for taking care of the construction waste. Our day at Hoa 'Aina o Makaha began as we gathered under the hale. There we shared a bit about our selves things such as our name, the land that we personally tie to and, the person that we carry with us. As our time in the hale concluded we were given a tour around the land; stopping at places found significant to our hosts. Our first stop of the tour was at the "piko" of Hoa 'Aina o Makaha. The piko consisted of various stones from visitors from all over the world. One of the stones that shared about was a piece of limestone brought from Italy, the land that Mr. Gigi personally ties to. As our tour came to an end, we broke up in to groups to work (hana). From cleaning up fallen leaves from the ulu tree (breadfruit), to raking flowers to clean out the ahupua'a model and, even pulling dead leaves off of the sugarcane. The hard work that was done was our ticket to lunch. Our two hour lunch consist, pizza, fruit salad, ice cream and, salad. Everything that was consumed was made by us. As our day at Hoa 'Aina o Makaha came to end we chanted (oli) to show our respect and gratitude.
Today’s adventure was broken up into three parts all in which we were able to explored our own ‘ahupua`a. Our day began at Lyman Ranch a private owned property located at the base of our surrounding mountains. There we were greeted by Uncle Eric Enos who then educated us of the cultural structures and uses of that piece of land. Structures such as an ‘ahu (altar) and acres of what was once (‘uala) sweet potatoes mounds. As we hiked to where we ideally thought the ‘ahu was we were surrounded by the majestic mountains that make up our valley. Although we were unsuccessful in finding the ‘ahu being in an area of such cultural purpose was fulfilling. As lunch approached we headed down to Zubland’s for some water quality testing. Sampling both water from the ocean and Honiniwai (commonly known as “Stink Pond”), we tested both samples for pH, conductivity and, salinity. We also had the opportunity to plant kulekule and, pohinahina to the left side of the marsh-like pond. Clearing, the invasive pickleweed to extend the cleared plot there that will be used for future planting. As our time at Zubland’s ended we ended our day at Nanakuli ranch. There we joined in a circle and reflected on what was once in our valley and our personal thoughts for what the future holds. Although, beforehand we took into consideration that although visual we could not see any water multiple large monkeypod trees flourished. |