Hala (Pandanus tectorius) management and biocultural restoration in Niuliʻi, North Kohala
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2022-05
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This project investigated Niuliʻi, a 48-acre property and ahupuaʻa on the coast of North Kohala, as a case study for biocultural restoration and hala management in Hawaiʻi. I define biocultural restoration as efforts to restore biocultural systems (linked biological and cultural systems on a landscape). Hala (Pandanus tectorius), a plant native to many tropical islands in the Pacific, holds great cultural significance in Hawaiʻi as the tree was used extensively, especially as a weaving material. The hala grove at Niuliʻi is known by many practitioners to have fantastic lau (leaves) for weaving. Over the course of three years, I assisted The Kohala Center (a non-profit and Niuliʻi’s landowner) with a process to protect Niuliʻi’s hala grove. The main objectives of my research project were to determine the current and historical extent of hala at Niuliʻi, create an ArcGIS StoryMap to serve as one of the first outreach materials for Niuliʻi, and synthesize best management practices for hala restoration. For this project, I served as a member of the planning team for Niuliʻi, visited Niuliʻi eight times, and collectively, The Kohala Center and I conducted unstructured interviews with eight cultural practitioners and hala managers across Hawaiʻi. In addition, in this report, I share a collection of reflections of my time working alongside The Kohala Center. Using GPS data and satellite imagery, I determined that there are 3.9 acres of hala currently on the property and a historic map showed about 70 acres of hala at Niuli’i in 1874. When managing a hala grove, practitioners who gather from the site should be consulted, trees should be regularly cleaned, and emphasis should be placed on healthy reproduction in the grove (ensuring keiki are germinating and surviving). This project documents the decline of hala in Hawaiʻi, provides a list of steps for a successful biocultural restoration project, and discusses the importance of building trust and working in collaboration with community.
Description
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Pandanus, Lauhala Weaving, Hawai'i, Geographic Information Systems, Community-Based Conservation, Land Use-Management
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37 pages
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Hawaii
Hawaii Island
Hawaii Island
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Rossi de Leon, Claire
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