Kāwika Winter, Director
Limahuli Garden and Preserve
Ahupua‘a Restoration: Melding Science and Culture to Produce Models of Sustainability
KONA: Keauhou Beach Resort, Ballroom II
Date/Time: April 30, 2010 5:30–7:00 p.m.
HILO: UH Hilo (Eia Hawai‘i), University Classroom Building #127
Date/Time: May 3, 2010 Noon–1:30 p.m.

Abstract:
With upwards of 95% of our food and energy being shipped into Hawai‘i—the most remote land mass on the planet—there is a lot of room for improvement when it comes to issues of sustainability. The ahupua‘a system of resource management is the traditional model of sustainability that existed here in these islands for at least a millennium. This management system harnessed ecosystem services which provided for a large and healthy population while at the same time maintaining ecosystem integrity and high levels of biodiversity. Because of Hawai‘i’s current situation there are many who are looking to live more sustainably on both community and personal levels. Instead of reinventing the wheel we advocate for looking back to a proven system of sustainability, and applying it in a modern context. We will examine five major lessons of the ahupua‘a system that are not only applicable to contemporary issues in Hawai‘i but to the entire globe.

Bio:
Kāwika Winter was born and raised in the moku (district) of Kona, O‘ahu, particularly in the ahupua‘a of Wai‘alae and Waikiki. He has an M.S. in botany from the University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa, and is currently a Ph.D. candidate focusing on theoretical ethnobotany in the same department. Kāwika learned of ahupua‘a management from the late kumu hula, John Ka‘imikaua; and other late kūpuna, most notably Eddie Kaanaana. Kāwika is now the director of Limahuli Garden and Preserve (a branch of the National Tropical Botanical Garden) where, among other things, he is now in charge of the longstanding Hā‘ena Ahupua‘a Project, the aim of which is to restore the culture, ecology, and community of Hā‘ena back to a collective state of health.