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2024 Kapapahuliau Grant Program Recipients

ONHR awarded 17 Native Hawaiian Organizations (NHOs) with funding for climate resiliency projects across three funding categories:

2024 Kapapahuliau Climate Resilience Program Native Hawaiian Organization (NHO) Recipients:
 
Kiakahi (Individual NHO) Named for a single-masted sailing canoe, Kiakahi applicants are those who propose a single project resulting in outcomes that support the applicant and the constituents it serves.
 
Project Title: Kiolakaʻa Dryland Forest Restoration Project
NHO: Ala Kahakai Trail Association
This project aims to restore and preserve the native dryland forest habitat in Kiolakaʻa, Kaʻū, Hawaiʻi. Project activities include perimeter fence installation for feral ungulate control, fire-break installation to manage wildfire potential, access road maintenance, invasive species removal and native plant restoration
 
Project Title: E Hoʻomau O Nā Mālama I Nā Iwi Kūpuna
NHO: The Hawaiian Church of Hawaiʻi Nei
Protection of iwi kūpuna (ancestral remains) through educational workshops to harvest native plant materials and to prepare and craft sacred ceremonial items for the care of iwi kūpuna exposed by shoreline and streambed erosion, and development.  Project outputs will facilitate NAGPRA and Hawai'i State Law compliance for iwi kūpuna.
 
Project Title: Lei Kaiāulu - Empowering Youth in the Waiʻanae Moku to Engage Community and Impact Climate Resiliency
NHO: Hoʻomahua Foundation
Cultivating youth leadership in the community of Waiʻānae, Oʻahu. Program activities include in-class and hands-on education focusing on the preservation and promotion of Native Hawaiian traditional practices and values, environmental consciousness, and enhancing community capacity to address drought and wildfire risks in the area.
 
Project Title: Hoʻonohopapa Koholālele
NHO: Hui Mālama I Ke Ala ʻŪlili
Restore and manage 30 acres of Native Hawaiian agroforestry systems in the rural community of Koholālele, Hawaiʻi, currently dominated by introduced Eucalyptus. This initiative aims to enhance food security for the area, provide local workforce training, and promote environmental stewardship.
 
Project Title: Hoʻi Nō E Ka ʻOlu O Makaliʻi
NHO: Kauluakalana
A community-based agroforestry initiative focused on Native Hawaiian education and hands-on learning that will focus on cultural resurgence and resilience through the return (hoʻi) of balance and abundance (ʻolu) to the lands and waters of Makaliʻi, a historically and culturally significant land tract (ʻili ʻāina) on Oʻahu. Program activities include fence installation for feral ungulate and erosion control, removal of invasive trees, food cultivation, and stream restoration, which encompasses bank stabilization and the establishment of riparian buffers.
 
Project Title: Ola I Ke Au A Kanaloa: Thrive in the Era of Kanaloa
NHO: Kohe Mālamalama o Kanaloa, Protect Kahoʻolawe Fund
Enhancement of environmental restoration activities on the island of Kahoʻolawe to better withstand increased drought, intense rainfall, and tidal inundation. Project activities include replacing aging infrastructure at the Hakioawa base camp, planning for erosion control and native plant restoration, and establishing a secondary base camp at Kūheʻeia for improved access in response to tidal inundation.
 
Project Title: Project Huliʻia
NHO: Nā Maka Onaona
Support the Native Hawaiian communities of Anahola and Waimea, Kauaʻi in reconnecting and re-establishing their relationships with the natural environment through Native Hawaiian traditional practices of "kilo," a process for environmental observation and action. The skills acquired will enable these communities to more effectively address environmental changes such as drought, tidal inundation, coastal erosion, and the management of marine resource abundance.
 
Project Title: Loli Honua
NHO: Oʻahu Hawaiian Canoe Racing Association
Repair and maintenance of the access road to Hale O Lono harbor on the island of Molokaʻi. This 5.3-mile dirt and gravel road is essential for perpetuating the Native Hawaiian sport of outrigger canoe paddling, serving as the starting point for the iconic annual Molokaʻi to Oʻahu canoe races. Additionally, the road provides crucial shoreline access for the rural community which relies heavily on subsistence fishing and hunting and serves as the only alternative harbor for the island in case of emergency. Activities include community planning, road surface repair, and drainage improvements.
 
Project Title: Hoʻoulu Pono - Biocultural restoration of Hawaiian Fishpond and community in the face of climate change
NHO: Pacific American Foundation Inc.
Bridging Native Hawaiian traditional practices with modern science and technology to perpetuate aquacultural practices through the restoration of Waikalua Loko Iʻa, a 350-year-old, 12-acre fishpond in Kāneʻohe, Oʻahu. Activities include repairing fishpond walls to mitigate the impacts of storm surge and tidal inundation, removing invasive mangroves that threaten pond infrastructure, and conducting research on fish and seaweed to enhance food security.
 
Project Title: Punahoa Heritage Forest Protection and Preservation Project
NHO: Pūʻā Foundation
Addressing mental health and recovery for the community of Hilo, Hawaiʻi, with a focus on formerly incarcerated individuals, at the 390-acre Punahoa Heritage Forest. Project activities involve feral ungulate and invasive species removal to assist in mitigation of the Rapid ʻŌhiʻa Death fungal disease, perimeter fencing installation, education programs, cultural harvesting of plant species, and development of Native Hawaiian traditional access protocols.
 
Project Title: ʻUPENA Project - Understanding Practices to Educate on Native Abundance
NHO: Waihapakai
Advancing food security and land management to address coastal impacts from extreme weather events in Punaluʻu, Oʻahu. Project activities involve native plant restoration to address flooding and stream erosion, land mapping and planning for the development of Native Hawaiian Community aquacultural practices, coastal and terrestrial ecological monitoring, and community and youth engagement to increase awareness and action.

Instagram: @waihapakai

 
Project Title: A Healer in Every Home, A Garden in Every Home
NHO: Waimānalo Health Center
This project seeks to perpetuate the growth of appropriate lāʻau lapaʻau (Hawaiian medicinal plants) to increase health and wellness outcomes in Waimānalo, Oʻahu. Demonstration projects will be used to engage Waimānalo elementary schools and their families through a series of special event activities and to the larger community through classes and educational sessions.
 
 
ʻAuwaʻa (NHO Collaboration) Named for a fleet of sailing canoes, ʻAuwaʻa applicants are those that represent a group of identified partners collaborating on a joint project with shared outcomes.  
 
Project Title: Ka Liʻu O Loko Climate Resilience Project
NHO: Mālama Loko Ea Foundation
Supporting a cohort of loko iʻa (Hawaiian fishponds) in coping with and mitigating to the impacts of drought, flooding, tidal inundation, and storm surge by enhancing the capacity of kiaʻi loko (fishpond stewards) to apply Native Hawaiian traditional knowledge and contemporary scientific research. This will ensure the vitality of the fishponds through practices such as kilo (observation), weather and water quality monitoring, attention to seasonal cycles, species propagation, and other natural indicators. The project aims to expand the network of restored and functioning fishponds to mitigate the effects of extreme weather events and provide sustainable food security for the community.
 
Project Title: ʻImi Aku, ʻImi Iho
NHO: ʻOhana Waʻa
Empowering Polynesian voyaging organization partners on Maui, Oʻahu, Hawaiʻi, and Kauaʻi to recognize indicators, anticipate, and respond to extreme weather events. The ʻImi Naʻauao programmatic framework is an educational program that will be expanded to better understand environmental impacts through observation and data collection, analysis and results, and shared lessons learned with Native Hawaiian practitioners and others. This project seeks to strengthen environmental awareness and knowledge for future generations. 
 
Project Title: Kūpaʻa Heʻeia
NHO: Paepae o Heʻeia
Paepae o Heʻeia and Kākoʻo ʻŌiwi will implement Native Hawaiian aquacultural and agricultural management strategies to address and mitigate challenges posed by extreme weather events in Heʻeia, Oʻahu. Project activities will include flood mitigation through the removal of invasive vegetation and development of loʻi kalo (taro ponds), restoration of native plants to enhance groundwater recharge, and coastal erosion mitigation through the restoration of fishpond walls.  Project will also enhance food security for Native Hawaiian communities.
 
 
Hoʻokele (NHO Grant-Maker) Named for the helmsman or navigator of a canoe, Hoʻokele applicants are those who have the administrative capacity and experience to provide financial and technical assistance to sub-recipient NHOs (sub-recipient NHOs must meet the same eligibility requirements as recipient NHOs) from underserved or disadvantaged communities that need assistance but often lack the administrative capacity to be successful in a competitive grant environment.  
 
Project Title: Restoring Native Hawaiian Ways of Knowing and Being to Enhance Climate Change Resiliency in East Maui
NHO: Hōlani Hāna Inc.
Administering a cooperative agreement with ONHR to implement a subaward process that amplifies Native Hawaiian knowledge systems and place-based practices while strengthening the resilience and self-determination of communities in East Maui from Keʻanae to Kahikinui. The program aims to enhance the administrative capacity of smaller organizations with limited resources by providing hands-on, sustainable technical support and guidance. The subaward process will assist these smaller organizations to better prepare for extreme weather and natural disaster events while fostering collaboration for landscape-level and systemic change through gatherings, knowledge sharing, and collective action.
 
Project Title: Hoʻohonua No Nā Hānauna ʻŌiwi
NHO: Kanu o ka ʻĀina Learning ʻOhana
The organization will administer a cooperative agreement with the ONHR to implement a subgrant program for Native Hawaiian language immersion public charter schools across the State. Subgrants seek to address Native Hawaiian Community-specific education and hands-on learning to prepare for, and respond to, extreme weather events and related impacts.