Closing Our Seminar in He'eia and Graduation

On our final morning together, we gathered makai, at He'eia fishpond, which is being restored by the non-profit called Paepae O He'eia.  Koa took us on a short tour of the fishpond with a walk around part of the walls, which are being restored with lots of labor from the community.

We took the opportunity, of course, for a great group photo against a beautiful backdrop!

 

 

After a group evaluation of the program, we headed to He'eia State Park, only 5 minutes away, for Graduation!

Family members and friends of graduating members came to celebrate with us.

We feasted on locally grown food prepared by Chef Mark Noguchi of He'eia Pier Deli. It was delicious!

 

As this was Donna's last class, accolades abound for her 20+ year contribution to the program and agriculture in Hawai'i.

Our final group shot with Agricultural Leadership Foundation of Hawai'i board members who joined us on this special day. A hui hou, till we meet again!

A Kalo/Coral Reef Restoration Project at He'eia

We completed our journey in the ahupua'a of He'eia by spending the rest of the afternoon at Koa's project: Mahuahua 'Ai O Hoi run by the non-profit called Kako'o 'Oiwi. We've heard about this project since day one of our program but for most of us, this was the first time we stepped foot into this large community-based project with support from The Nature Conservancy.

After Koa explained the vision, goals, objectives, and strategies of this long-term project, we got right into the thick of it by helping to re-open a kalo (taro) lo'i (patch) using hand tools. The project is not allowed to bring in heavy machinery to do the work at this time. It sure would make a big difference!

Joan found a nearly two foot long worm in the mud!

Someday this land could feed the communities, raise more farmers, and keep the streams that enter the ocean running clear again.

He'eia Ahupua'a - 'Aina Momona

Class organizers for this field trip day, Koa Kukea-Shultz and Kai Fox, created an experience fully in the realm of the ahupua'a of He'eia, on the windward side of the island of O'ahu. We started our morning with a visit to Hui Ku Maoli Ola, a for-profit business specializing in native Hawaiian plants. There we met Matt Kapaliku Schirmann, a co-founder of the business.

Their native Hawaiian plant nursery produces plants for wholesale and retail purchases, as well as restoration projects, which the company does on contract. One of the project they've worked on is riparian restoration to control erosion. Hui Ku Maoli Ola is arguably the largest commercial native plant nursery in the state.

We walked about a quarter mile behind the nursery to another project that the non-profit partner of Hui Ku Maoli Ola called Papahana Kuaola.  The non-profit focuses on cultural restoration and community education.

Matt took us along a short trail with plantings of many types of native plants. Papahana Kuaola staff take many school groups on this hike to let the students see and touch the plants. The plants looked so healthy and beautiful!

 

Our next stop was to Windward Community College, just a few minutes away. We met Clyde Tamaru, ALP alumnus and UH CTAHR Extension Specialist. After many, many months of hearing about it, we finally got to see the "Waimanalo prototype" of aquaponic systems.

Clyde and Kai showed us the different types of systems they are testing, with different species of plants and fishes. This small area is a hotbed of research and could help many communities develop soil-less agriculture, which uses viital resources such as land and water much more efficiently than more conventional forms of agriculture.

 

Our Final Seminar Starts with Strategic Planning

Our last seminar took place on the island of O'ahu at the University of Hawai`i, with a two-day workshop led by Donna Ching on "Facilitating Strategic Thinking and Planning." We were joined by about a dozen people from other groups unrelated to agriculture, which made our discussions more diverse.

Our case study revolved around a fictitious church serving a homeless population, and our class members got into their role-playing.

It was good to review the tools we had learned in our first two seminars on facilitating meetings and add other planning elements.Many of us could see ourselves facilitating a strategic planning workshop in the future.

A Special Ending to an Extraordinary Experience

Taos is the "land of enchantment," or so says the Taos Tourist Bureau.  They aren't so far from the truth, we believe. We ended our week in New Mexico by spending most of the day at and around Taos Pueblo, the only living Native American community designated both a World Heritage Site by UNESCO and a National Historic Landmark.

We were fortunate to meet Bob Pederson, who has worked closely with Red Willow Farms, located on Taos Pueblo.  He first showed us the educational organic farm he is developing outside of the pueblo. Though still in developmental stages, the farm is producing beautiful crops, and Bob has a vision to create alternative energy and food year-round.

 

We couldn't resist getting our hands on the farm to pick vegetables that needed to be picked as the growing season was coming to an end. We also picked beans that we cooked up to take to our potluck later in the day. Talk about fresh food!

After Bob's farm, we went to Red Willow farm, an organic farm that is also used to educate local youth about agriculture and the Tewa culture.  Taos means red willow in the Tewa language. There, we met Shirley Trujillo, manager of the farm and resident of the pueblo.

Shirley graciously invited us to her home to have a special lunch with her extended family, for it was San Geronimo Feast Day, a day to celebrate the end of the harvest. We were able to watch a portion of the pole climbing ceremony at the pueblo (no pictures allowed), a harrowing feat carried out by young men dressed in costume. It was fascinating to say the least!

A beautiful trip could not end without a sunset at the "gorge" over the Rio Grande. As the sun set and as we peered over the railings of the bridge hundreds of feet above ground, we reflected on the past two weeks and how fortunate we were to spend the time together learning about and appreciating agriculture and its connection to building a strong community. Certainly these experiences built our resolve to work hard back home to ensure that agriculture remains an integral part of our own communities.