Heritage Management

Permanent URI for this collectionhttps://hdl.handle.net/10790/3210

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Holohol: A holistic approach of Remathau ancestral seafaring wisdom towards enhancing post-disaster resilience
(University of Hawaii at Hilo, 2025-05) Uowolo, Jermy; Genz, Joseph JG; Heritage Management
Island and coastal communities worldwide face unprecedented climate change challenges. In this thesis, I explore the adaptive capacity of the Remathau (“people of the sea”; refers to the Indigenous inhabitants of the low-lying atolls and islands of Yap State in the Federated States of Micronesia). I focus on the ancestral seafaring knowledge and traditions to enhance climate change adaptation and post-disaster resilience for small islands and coastal populations. Through a collaborative community-based research approach using oral histories, participant observation, partner-driven computational modeling analysis, and Indigenous ways of knowing, the project engaged with the Remathau community, including the diasporic populations, to understand how their ancestral knowledge systems can enhance climate change adaptation and post-disaster community resilience. The overarching purpose of this research is to document and assess aspects of Remathau ancestral seafaring knowledge, including established inter-island social networks, cultural practices, climate topology, and environmental knowledge essential to the community’s historical adaptive capacity and resiliency, and analyze how this Indigenous body of knowledge can inform community-driven efforts for climate adaptation and post-disaster resilience. This establishes the project’s guiding research question: How can Remathau ancestral seafaring knowledge enhance post-disaster resilience for island and coastal communities? Using grounded theory through thematic analysis, four major themes were developed, including Kol Faluyach (cultural values of our islands), Repiyal Faluyach (traditional knowledge), Hamwalel Faluyach (stewardship practices), and the Kol Repiyach Igala (fragility of Indigenous) knowledge that illuminates historical adaptability and contemporary challenges. Drawing on the narrated oral histories combined with Indigenous methods, archival sources, and my capacity as a researcher and member of the community, I contend the post-disaster resilience of the Remathau community is grounded in Holohol, the social fabric of the interwoven ancestral seafaring system. The project contributes to risk reduction frameworks to strengthen community capacity and resilience; cultural heritage preservation, education, and empowerment; and lays the groundwork for future research.
Lē ʻāiga na lalaʻa mai i vasa (The family that has been wandering the sea): Using community-based research with the tama uli of Aʻele, Sāmoa in understanding identity in connection to place
(University of Hawaii at Hilo, 2025-05) Cooper-Moussa, David; Genz, Joseph; Heritage Management
The village of Aʻele, in Sāmoa, stands apart from traditional Samoan villages due to its unique land lease system. In this study, I investigate the connection and perception of place among the descendants of tama uli (lit. black man) in Aʻele. I explore how these descendants perceive their ties to the village through the lens of “voluntary immobility” (Yee et al. 2022), a theoretical framework describing communities that choose to remain on their ancestral lands despite challenges. I employ a multifaceted methodological approach, including grounded theory, ethnography, indigenous methods, and narrative research, to conduct oral history recordings in collaboration with community leaders. The study uncovers the factors influencing voluntary immobility in Aʻele and its impact on residents’ sense of place, community well-being, cultural preservation, and social capital. The historical backdrop of Aʻele, marked by the importation of laborers from Papua New Guinea and the Solomon Islands during the colonial plantation era and subsequent land lease agreements, frames the current socio-political dynamics of the village. The analysis of the oral history transcripts produced three key themes: communal identity, connection with the land, and family. These themes reflect the communities’ drive for greater autonomy over their lives and their land, where they can safeguard their ancestors’ stories, maintain their unique heritage, and protect against displacement and the dispersion of their identity. Drawing from the recorded oral histories and the oratory proverb, “the family that has been wandering the sea,” I argue that the Tama Uli of Aʻele understand place as inseparable from their ancestors’ shared historical experiences, serving as the foundation that unites and sustains their communal identity.
Jemjem māāl ("Honing the spirit of community"): Fostering climate resilience in the Marshall Islands through oral histories of women's roles and the practices of community engagement in voyaging interaction networks.
(University of Hawaii at Hilo, 2025-05) Myazoe, Jerolynn Neikeke; Genz, Joseph H.; Inglis, Kerri A.; Heritage Management
This thesis explores the pivotal role of women in fostering climate change adaptation in the Marshall Islands through oral histories of the community engagement activities in voyaging interaction networks. Centered on the concept of jemjem māāl—a metaphor for honing the spirit of community resilience—this thesis investigates how traditional forms of community engagement, often overlooked in seafaring narratives, can contribute to adaptive capacity and sustainable sea transport strategies today. Drawing from oral histories, participant observation, and bwebwenato (storytelling), alongside Indigenous research protocols, this study highlights the generational knowledge and cultural practices upheld by Marshallese women that have sustained communities through environmental and social transformations. Through this research, five major themes emerged: practices of community engagement, responsibilities on a voyaging canoe, voyaging patterns, metaphors of canoes, and cultural stewardship. Among the many traditional knowledge systems examined, women have played essential roles in resource management, particularly in ways that intersect with the sociocultural dimensions of voyaging. Their contributions include organizing food preservation for long-distance travel, maintaining kinship networks that facilitate inter-atoll exchange, transmitting ecological knowledge crucial for navigation, and upholding social structures that ensure the continuity of intergenerational learning. By understanding these roles, this thesis seeks to reposition Marshallese women within seafaring traditions and demonstrate how their knowledge remains vital for contemporary climate resilience efforts.
Thaaq ("Networking Relationships like Strings"): Using Oral Histories of Yapese Voyaging for Climate Resilience Through Remathau Practices of Community Engagement
(University of Hawaii at Hilo, 2024-05) Tamagyongfal, Shania; Genz, Joseph; Heritage Management
In this MA thesis, I document oral histories of Yapese voyaging relevant to the sawei system between Yap and its outer islands. These oral histories will help strengthen the current research literature on inter-island voyaging and its community engagement, rather than just focusing on the mechanics of voyaging, which has already been thoroughly documented. The data collected from the oral histories will later be used in its application as a method of climate change adaptation with the concept of voyaging for sustainable sea transport. To ensure meeting these objectives, the research question framing this project is focused on exploring the ways in which traditional voyaging skills can re-establish community engagement between Yapese Island hierarchies. The project primarily focuses on recording oral histories, participant observation, and three forms of Yapese conversations to understand the context of how knowledge and stories are shared. From the results, there are five major themes that emerged: the sawei system, women’s roles, bodies of seafaring knowledge, perpetuation, and voyaging as a metaphor. These themes reflect the need for documentation of the traditional knowledge passed down through oral histories for a better understanding of the knowledge still accessible today and its preservation for future generations and applications. Such examples of the traditional knowledge being shared include sail weaving by women, environmental circumstances that influenced the development of voyaging networks, and the sociocultural dynamics of relationships in voyaging. In this MA thesis, I contend that the underlying relationships that once supported the Yapese ancestral voyaging networks serve as the foundation for modern solutions in facing social, environmental, and economic issues.
HULIHIA KA ʻĀINA, ʻONIPAʻA KA LAUAʻE O MAKANA–COMMUNITY ROOTEDNESS IN THE FACE OF CHANGE ON THE NORTH SHORE OF KAUAʻI
(University of Hawaii at Hilo, 2023-05) Massrey, Serena Lynn; Mills, Peter R.; Heritage Management
This community-driven heritage management project expresses the duality of ʻonipaʻa (steadfast) and hulihia (overturned, a complete change) found in Hāʻena, Kauaʻi. To contextualize this duality, this research addresses questions about the story of Hāʻena from a Kauaʻi-centric view, envisioning the wao kānaka (human realm) and its importance, hulihia events that have shaped community and ʻāina (land) alike, and how the community has persisted becoming the kuaʻāina (backbone of the land) of Hāʻena. The collaboration with Hāʻena’s lineal descendants builds an understanding of ʻāina momona (the state of sustainable resource abundance) in a changing world. This research re-maps the ahupuaʻa (social-ecological community) archaeological footprint to gain insight into how ka poʻe kahiko (the ancient people) might have engaged in resource management. Additionally, ethnographic work helps reclaim the moʻolelo (history) of the kuaʻāina to illuminate why the community is ʻonipaʻa. The initial objective was to estimate the potential carbohydrate production yield, carrying capacity, and resilience of the ahupuaʻa by utilizing Geographic Information System (GIS), archaeological survey methods, and first-hand accounts. This goal was modified after historic flooding on Kauaʻi in 2018. This flooding is just one of many hulihia events that have shaped the community as we examine how place-based management facilitates community resilience in the face of natural disasters and the feedback loop of how natural disasters highlight place-based management strategies related to heritage management building community resilience. I argue that the north shore Kauaʻi community is ʻonipaʻa in the face of change through the integration of ancestral knowledge and modern thought while the community strives to revitalize an ʻāina momona.
“TALKING STORY” TO SUSTAIN COMMUNITY HERITAGE: CONNECTING MUSEUMS AND RURAL HAWAIʻI ISLAND COMMUNITIES THROUGH COLLABORATION AND PARTICIPATION
(University of Hawaii at Hilo, 2021-12) Garcia, Nicole; Mills, Peter R.; Heritage Management
This thesis investigates participatory collaborative relationships between a heritage center on North Hawaiʻi Island and two community groups, the Hāmākua Jodo Mission (HJM) and the Camp Tarawa Foundation (CTF). Using multi-disciplinary lenses including feminism, critical museology, and the New Museology, I examine museum trends toward democratic approaches in exhibit development through physical and online platforms. These approaches reposition “experts” in museums to better represent the voices of those being featured. Qualitative methods involve semistructured interviews and employ the local conversational style of “talk story” to engage with participating communities (both local and those with local connections). Two modes of collaborative exhibits are presented, including the online platform, Historypin.org and physical exhibits. This thesis positions the voices of the participants as the authority by focusing on topics they chose and guided. I demonstrate that a small, regional heritage center can successfully collaborate with and build positive relationships with local communities around exhibit-building and heritage-sharing.
Allies of the Movement to Protect Mauna Kea: Non-Indigenous Solidarity in Kanaka Maoli Protectivism
(University of Hawaii at Hilo, 2020-05) Laden, Abigail; Kawelu, Kathy; Heritage Management
As Indigenous-led movements across the globe work to protect sacred land, environmental resources, culture, and rights; non-Indigenous allies and accomplices take on supportive roles in these efforts towards protection. The coined term “protectivism” speaks to this Indigenous-led activism that is rooted in the right of original peoples to protect their sacred places and ancestral lands that are now being exploited through development by settler colonial capitalism. While this term is being used for the first time in this particular way within this thesis, I did not create the concept by any means. This word is drawn from people within the movement who define themselves over and over as “protectors, not protestors” (Goodyear-Kaʻōpua 2017:188). This MA thesis explores the roles and experiences of the allies of the Movement to Protect Mauna Kea on Hawaiʻi Island, as kiaʻi mauna (guardians and protectors of the mountain) protect their sacred mountain from the desecration that would be caused by the building of the Thirty Meter Telescope (TMT). This thesis explores the benefits and complications within solidarity, analyzes current literature in this field, and highlights the interviews of seven allies who stand in solidarity with Kanaka Maoli protectors. Under the guidance of my community mentor, Aunty Pua Case, and in a two-fold collaborative process, beginning with Kanaka Maoli mentors and then expanding to collaborate with the ally community, I explore what solidarity entails on Mauna a Wākea. As a non-Indigenous ally myself and a collaborative researcher, I utilize my own experience to be consistently reflexive throughout the research and writing process. The allies I interviewed reveal themselves to be respectful of Kanaka Maoli leadership, aware of histories like settler colonialism, are critically self-reflective of their positionality, and focus on maintaining support roles within the movement.
He Kuleana Hoʻokaulike: Balancing Tourism and Cultural Perpetuation in the Hilo Lei Day Community
(University of Hawaii at Hilo, 2019-12) Schuler, Nicole Leigh; Genz, Joseph .; Heritage Management
Tourism in Hilo offers opportunities and challenges for contemporary lei makers in Hilo, particularly those whose lives intersect with the annual Lei Day. In this MA thesis I explore how the Hilo-based Lei Day community engages in agency and cultural sharing as well as the changes in lei making that have occurred over their lifetimes. I use a suite of methods to develop a thematic understanding of tourism-based lei making, including a grounded theory analysis of interviews, participant observation at Hālau LeiManu, observation at the 2018 Merrie Monarch Festival, and an immersive experience akin to the Tongan practice of talanoa. I also illuminate the experiences of lei makers in tourism and how they were impacted by the 2018 Lower East Rift Zone eruption, endangerment of native species, the professionalization of lei making, and the desire to preserve tradition. I argue that contemporary lei makers whose lives intersect with the annual Lei Day in Hilo are balancing their community’s commitment to preserve traditional knowledge on their own terms while being attentive to the ambivalent and often fraught nature of sharing Hawaiian culture in the context of the tourism industry.
Waimea's Heritage Landscape: Using GIS to Communicate Change and Significance of a Cultural Landscape in South Kohala, Hawaiʻi
(2018-06) Plunkett Jr., Samuel W.L.; Kawelu, Kathy; Heritage Management
Hawaiʻi County’s Land Use Pattern Allocation Guideline map (LUPAG) show an increase in lands being allocated for urban development in the South Kohala District of Hawaiʻi Island. Being that land allocations, and subsequent zoning is created by a combination of Hawaiʻi State Land Use designations, and the Hawaiʻi County General Plan, this thesis addresses preservation and restoration of a region’s natural and cultural resources, and sense of place from a planning approach. In order to incorporate both cultural and environmental resources into an integrated plan, that also accounts for community input, I combine a cultural landscape approach with geographic information systems (GIS) to produce a Heritage Landscape Resource Inventory Model. Through this model I spatially re-present Waimea Kālana, a traditional land unit that occupied most of modern day South Kohala. In re-presenting Waimea Kālana, a geographic and cultural baseline was created which challenges current perceptions of place in order to invite planning participants (community and governmental) to consider layers of landscape significance from an earlier point in time. This project argues that this geo-cultural baseline could be used by the Waimea community to raise its collective heritage awareness and participate in land-use planning. By re-presenting cultural landscape attributes of Waimea Kālana on a GIS format, this project will spatially model interconnections between a variety of resources, articulate its cultural and natural significance, and exemplify how a community might turn statements of significance into community derived land-use guidelines. In effect this model aims help a community preserve its sense of place and sustainably manage its cultural, and natural resources for their benefit, and for the benefit of the future generations of Waimea, South Kohala, Hawaiʻi.
MOʻOLELO ʻO NĀ IWI KŪPUNA: CONNECTING THE PAST, PRESENT, AND FUTURE OF THE NĀ ʻŌIWI MAMO
(2017-12) Halliwell, Tamara Ku'ulei; Morrison, Lynn; Heritage Management
Nā ʻŌiwi mamo (Aboriginal Hawaiian descendants) have a deep and abiding love and respect for their iwi kūpuna (ancestral remains). In this thesis, I explore the attitudes and perceptions of the nā ʻŌiwi mamo of Hawaiʻi Island and more specifically Hōkūliʻa development community located in Kailua-Kona. I interviewed 20 nā ʻŌiwi mamo who are connected to the burial issues concerning iwi kūpuna. They represent lineal descendants, cultural descendants, and ʻŌiwi archaeologists. Through the coding, five major themes were identified: identity through place and ancestors; kuleana (responsibility) and kāhea (calling); preservation in place; knowledge for advocacy; and self-determination and decision making. An innovative educational module provided the stimulus for kūkākūkā (discussion) on how non-destructive skeletal examinations can produce osteobiographies, or another story, of the lives of the iwi kūpuna. This module was instrumental in understanding the changing lens of nā ʻŌiwi mamo empowerment in protecting and preserving the iwi kūpuna. In this thesis, I demonstrate that the iwi kūpuna have a significant role in edifying ʻŌiwi (Aboriginal Hawaiian) ancestry as well as the ʻŌiwi current cultural identity. I demonstrate this by highlighting the central significance of moʻolelo (stories) in the ʻŌiwi culture, and specifically how osteobiographies are a contemporary form of moʻolelo. Ka poʻe kahiko (the people of old) of Hawaiʻi were haʻi moʻolelo (storytellers). Oli (chant), hula (dance), and moʻokūʻauhau (genealogy) are traditional methods of storytelling. In this way moʻolelo transcend time and space, linking each succeeding generation to the ones before as well as those yet unborn, an unbroken chain of continuity of the ʻŌiwi culture. Osteobiographies can be added to the canon of knowledge passed from generation to generation. The most significant finding is that nā ʻŌiwi mamo in this research project were not opposed to learning the stories of their iwi kūpuna under certain conditions and have it become a part of the historical and cultural canon of nā ʻŌiwi mamo.
RESTORATION OF ʻĪMAKAKĀLOA HEIAU, KAʻALĀIKI, KAʻŪ HAWAIʻI: REDEFINING ANCIENT STRUCTURES FOR A LIVING CULTURE
(2017-05) Mossman, Konrad Kalahoohie; Kawelu, Kathy; Heritage Management
This thesis examines an Indigenous initiative to restore ʻĪmakakāloa Heiau, an ancient hula temple in Kaʻalāiki, Kaʻū on the island of Hawaiʻi to be utilized by the living culture for ritual and ceremony. This project was initiated by Kumu Hula (Hula Masters) with genealogical ties to the Kaʻū area seeking to elevate their practice through heiau ceremony. Together with the Kaʻū community, archaeologists, cultural practitioners, non-profit organizations, heritage managers and government agencies, a collaborative approach to understand this sacred place and the ceremony and protocol associated with it emerged. This thesis examines how traditional knowledge and ancestral processes of environmental connection can be used in conjunction with Indigenous archaeology in the field of heritage management. My research utilizes an interdisciplinary approach combining ethno-historical research with archaeology as complementary ways of understanding the past. Drafting a preservation plan to guide the restoration and overall site preservation efforts is an important facet of this study, but the design of the research by cultural practitioners and the grounding of this research in Indigenous knowledge is what allows for an Indigenous approach to heritage management. Virtually every aspect of this project involved cultural practitioner participation. This study demonstrates the process of Indigenous Heritage Management, an approach that maintains community and stakeholder engagement, honors cultural protocol, utilizes Indigenous knowledge and serves Indigenous initiatives. A site documentation process utilized before during and after the restoration of the site will be implemented to provide a chronological record of the restoration process. The study also resulted in a protocol guide created specifically for the ʻĪmakakāloa Heiau restoration by the Kumu Hula to be disseminated to various Hālau in preparation for a rededication ceremony in 2018. By providing protocols, this research aids in the perpetuation of hula ceremony practices and rituals which maintains the connection between cultural practitioners and their environment. While many Indigenous archaeological projects are initiated by an archaeologist and include the Indigenous community; this project is initiated by the Indigenous practitioner community and, when necessary, includes archaeologists, educators, students, cultural practitioners, experts, non-profit organizations and government agencies, illustrating the many facets of collaboration involved in Indigenous heritage management.
Koʻa Heiau Holomoana: Voyaging Set in Stone
(2017-05) Mello, Nicole Antoinette; Genz, Joseph; Heritage Management
Decades of Western influence led to the decline of seafaring knowledge and cultural practices throughout the Pacific. The 1960s and 1970s saw the flourishing of Hawaiian culture. The revival of open-ocean voyaging and non-instrument navigation was a key facet to this reawakening. Approximately 50 years after reincorporation of this practice, wayfinding is once again part of everyday lives for Pacific Islanders. This thesis elaborates on the navigational heiau Koʻa Heiau Holomoana in its centrality to the organization Nā Kālai Waʻa by being their cultural piko and training ground. Interviews, participant observation, EDXRF analysis, and research combine to begin to determine the heiau’s upright stone origins. This community-based collaborative project documents the heiau in its contemporary setting to contribute to its preservation against the influx of tourists. I demonstrate that Koʻa Heiau Holomoana connects Nā Kālai Waʻa to broader Pacific voyaging spheres in the past and in the present while centering community members to their home training ground and spiritual center.
CROSSING THE ‘A‘Ā: CONNECTING CULTURAL LANDSCAPES AND COMMUNITY VALUES ALONG THE KULA KAI TRAILS OF HĪLEA, KA‘Ū, HAWAI‘I
(2017-05) Clark, Matthew Ranney; Mills, Peter R.; Heritage Management
Western perspectives, as manifest in archaeological practice, have dominated the study of Hawai‘i’s ancestral places for more than a century. In recent years, cultural practitioners and indigenous Hawaiian scholars have begun to employ alternative methodologies for interacting with and interpreting Hawai‘i’s heritage landscapes. Here I examine the intersection of trails, cultural landscapes, and community values within the kula kai (seaward plain) of Hīlea, Ka‘ū, on the Island of Hawai‘i. I attempt to contextualize the trails within the physical setting of the ‘a‘ā landscape, the ethnohistoric past, and the sociopolitical environment of heritage management as it is currently practiced in Hawai‘i. By examining this landscape of movement in its various physical, sociopolitical, and culture historical contexts, I demonstrate how an understanding of movement and connection, both past and present, can create spaces for establishing communication and collaboration between archaeological and Kanaka Maoli communities in the future.
Through the Lens of the ‘Ili Kūpono: Re-establishing Connections to Pi‘opi‘o, Waiākea, Hilo, Hawai‘i Through Ethnohistory, Archaeology and Community
(2017-05) Brandt, Lokelani M.P.; Kawelu, Kathleen; Heritage Management
This thesis takes an in-depth look at the Hawaiian cultural history of the ‘ili kūpono of Pi‘opi‘o located in the ahupua‘a of Waiākea, Hilo, Hawai‘i. This research draws from ethnohistorical accounts written in both the Hawaiian and the English languages. These narratives are employed as a means to understand the function of the ‘ili kūpono land division and its association to Hawai‘i Island’s chiefly class. Nineteenth-century Māhele records and Boundary Commission Testimonies offer a glimpse into the life of the maka‘āinana (commoners) who utilized both land and marine resources for their survival. Although anchored in the distant past, this study also demonstrates historical continuity by employing an Indigenous framework to begin the process of rebuilding a community- one that advocates for the preservation of Pi‘opi‘o’s heritage. Through community outreach efforts, the ethnohistorical record is complimented with aspects of oral history and archaeology as a way to enhance our understanding and connection to this unassuming place we know as Pi‘opi‘o.
NĀ KIʻI LĀʻAU, THE GODS AND GUARDIANS AT PUʻUHONUA O HŌNAUNAU NATIONAL HISTORICAL PARK, SOUTH KONA, HAWAIʻI
(2017-05) Blakemore, Kalena Kahawaiolaa; Genz, Joseph; Heritage Management
The kiʻi lāʻau (wooden images) stationed at Hale o Keawe on the grounds of Puʻuhonua o Hōnaunau National Historical Park represent various meanings and significance to community members in South Kona, Hawaiʻi and malihini (visitors) who venture to this destination from abroad. This research endeavored to understand the contemporary cultural meanings and significance of the kiʻi lāʻau through the lens of ʻŌiwi (Native people). Through collaborative community engagement utilizing oral history methods and archival research, stories were gathered, analyzed, and interpreted. In this MA thesis, I argue that the contemporary significance and meaning of the kiʻi lāʻau to cultural and lineal descendants of Puʻuhonua o Hōnaunau is the maintenance of a profound spiritual and sacred connection to the puʻuhonua through ritual ceremony and revitalization of cultural practices. In my capacity as both scribe of ʻŌiwi voices and ʻŌiwi anthropologist, I contend that the kiʻi lāʻau represent a foundational platform of symbolism for ʻŌiwi and descendants of Hōnaunau, Kiʻilae, and Kēōkea who express generational pride in the legacy left by the carvers of the 1960s by organizing their understanding of the world through ritualized spiritual maintenance and continued knowledge exchange in order to perpetuate their heritage.

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