New DLNR videos highlight traditional knowledge, stewardship of natural resources

“Hawaiʻi’s natural resources are deeply intertwined with the communities that depend on and care for them,” said the Department of Land and Natural Resources in its latest series of short, sub-15-minute videos.

The “ʻIke Kaiāulu,” or “Community Knowledge,” series — produced by the DLNR’s Division of Forestry and Wildlife and Division of Aquatic Resources — aims to tap into the rich history of mālama ʻāina (caring for the land) and kai (the ocean).

Launched in 2023, the series debuted with four videos highlighting community knowledge on topics like limu (seaweed), wood carving, lāʻau lapaʻau (traditional Hawaiian medicine), and protecting sacred places like Kaʻena Point.

Recently, four new videos were added, featuring local experts sharing their knowledge across various cultural and environmental practices:

• Kumu Hulu Mele Kahalepuna Chun explores her family’s history with Hawaiian featherwork and its relationship to the health of forest birds in Hawaiʻi
• Paepae o Heʻeia Executive Director Hiʻilei Kawelo shares her experiences with loko iʻa (fishponds) and their connection to mauka and makai ecosystem health
• ʻŌpelu fisherman Chuck Kealoha Leslie discusses his knowledge of net making and his hopes for the future of fishing in Hawaiʻi
• Dr. Kawika Winter, director of the Heʻeia National Estuarine Research Reserve, discusses biocultural restoration and the importance of centering indigenous ways of thinking in ecosystem management.

While sharing knowledge from different fields, the interviewees expressed common themes. Each of the four experts talked about their knowledge coming from parents, grandparents, or other kūpuna and the importance of passing on that knowledge to younger generations.

Mele Kahalepuna Chun said that passing along the knowledge provided by her tūtū and her mother was not a job, but a kuleana. “What I want to say to our keiki is to make sure it lives. Just holomua: keep it going.”

Another common theme was the endurance of cultural practices in communities. “The relationships we have within the ahupuaʻa, that’s what makes the magic happen,” said Hiʻilei Kawelo. On the topic of featherwork, Kahalepuna Chun added that her tūtū was often asked, “‘Isn’t this a dying art?’ She’d say no, not as long as I can help it.”

Interviewees also shared hope for the future of their particular areas of expertise. Chuck Kealoha Leslie shared that he wanted keiki to know how we did things in the old ways, and then they can make it their own. He added, “If they want to do fishing, make fishing their life and make it joyful.”

Dr. Kawika Winter articulated his views of cultural practice as part of management and life in Hawaiʻi, saying, “We’ve been here a long time, we’re going to continue being here a long time.” On the importance of sharing experience and knowledge, he added: “So many of the elders who came before me have said that Hawaiʻi has the answers that will help heal the world.”

All videos are available on the DLNR website at dlnr.hawaii.gov/dofaw/education/videos.