03/24/2021

The late Pius “Mau” Piailug of Satawal was one of the most transformative Pacific figures of the 20th century. In 1976, among the last traditional navigators in the world, Mau successfully navigated the Hōkūleʻa from Hawaiʻi to Tahiti without modern instruments. His profound demonstration of Pacific ingenuity quieted academic naysayers and changed the course of modern history for native Hawaiians and indigenous peoples throughout the Pacific. Papa Mau and his extended family of Micronesian Pwo navigators were recognized as a Pacific Legacy of Distinction at a virtual ceremony connecting atolls and high islands from Micronesia to Hawaiʻi. Hosted by Kamehameha Schools, Polynesian Voyaging Society, Bishop Museum, and the University of Hawaiʻi, traditional prayers and the ceremonial drinking of ʻawa and tuba were observed. Hawaiian Pwo Navigator Nainoa Thompson shares insights about his master teacher and the extraordinary gift of voyaging knowledge from a region of amazing beauty and brilliance, Micronesia.

02/24/2021

First Alaskans Institute executives La quen náay Liz Medicine Crow (Haida/Tlingit), CEO/President, and ‘Wáahlaal Gíidaak Barbara Blake (Haida/Tlingit/Ahtna Athabascan), Alaska Native Policy Director, talk with us about important social and racial equality work they are doing in Alaska. Both are active in indigenous networks with ties to Hawaiʻi. Listen as these amazing female leaders share personal life experiences around learning and reclaiming their mother tongue, the importance of their people’s matrilineal traditions, and what it means to be a leader in their community.

03/05/2021

Join us as we talk with Helen Scott, Taiwan Liaison for ʻAha Moananuiākea, and her two sons, Lucas and Liam, about having to adjust to living in Taiwan and being unable to return to Hawaiʻi due to Covid-19 travel restrictions. Listen as they share why they visited their mother’s place of birth, how they are adapting to life with their Taiwanese relatives, what they miss about Hawaiʻi, and how going to school in Taiwan is different from going to school at Kamehameha.