Community Collaboration
A‘ohe hana nui ka alu‘ia (No Task Is Too Big When Done Together)
Of all the ocean users, the largest group of people to use the ocean in Kailua are the men, women and children who paddle canoes.
Hoe Wa‘a
The tradition of the wa‘a in Kailua is strong. Canoe clubs in Kailua have been recognized over the years as top participants in the sport of regatta and long distance paddling.
Today there are at least four clubs that paddle daily in the summer season. While they compete against each other, they are connected through many Kailua families. Because members of MIOM are long time paddlers, an initiative was started to bring the canoe clubs together to take kuleana of our ocean resource. They are part of the fabric that binds our ahupua’a together and they can protect the ocean and keep it safe for their keiki to swim and for the fish to thrive.
If the community agrees there should be a marine management area in Kailua, they will help by being the guardians (kia‘i) of the pu‘uhonua. The coalition of this community on one man canoes patrolling Kailua makes our application to the State for a Marine Managed Area a self-sufficient entity that works together with the DLNR.
Other projects we are providing to the community is erosion control on Kaiwa Ridge Trail. Known as the “Pillbox Trail," this hike receives approximately 2,000 hikers per day which has eroded the trail boundary and created a silt run-off problem when it rains hard. Working with the DLNR, MIOM dug channels to divert the erosion run off away from the sea.
