Indigenous for Our Survival: ʻŌlelo Hawaiʻi Learnings with Sierra Club of Hawaiʻi

By Sharde Mersberg Freitas, Chapter Organizer | Reading time: 3.5 minutes

Looking to Indigenous knowledge isn’t new, especially since the more concerted federal government efforts to provide guidance on the inclusion of Indigenous Knowledge across all federal agencies. Here in Hawaiʻi, the ʻike (ancestral wisdom) of our ancestors continues to live today, and is often looked to as a guide through times of change. Recently, dozens of island nations from across Moananuiākea gathered here in Hawaiʻi for the Pacific Festival of Arts and Culture (FestPAC) and signed the Tuurama Ariki Declaration further underscoring the importance of Indigenous knowledge. There is also a growing number of publications that look to our ancestral texts, practices, and ʻāina herself that exemplifies the importance of Indigenous Knowledge, and our responsibility to care for this great resource. Law school professor, my meʻe (heroine), Professor Kapuaʻala Sproat leads us to the duty to aloha ʻāina with her analysis of the Ching v. Hawaiʻi and looking to Hawaiian newspapers. For our team at the Sierra Club of Hawaiʻi, our staff discussed at our staff retreat a couple of months ago our interest to have more dedicated time for learning ʻŌlelo Hawaiʻi. We have since dedicated time to focus on learning ʻŌlelo Hawaiʻi. ʻŌlelo Hawaiʻi, similar to any language, is often a vehicle to learn much more than the language itself.

Where does one typically look for insights on Indigenous Knowledge? Especially with Hawaiian culture and language, one often looks to the Hawaiian newspapers. Professor Sproat and MJ Palau-McDonald did just that in their article, “The Duty to Aloha ʻĀina: Indigenous Values as a Legal Foundation for Hawaiʻi’s Public Trust.” As part of this article, Sproat writes about the duty to aloha ʻāina using a contextual legal analysis and the four pillars of restorative justice as a framework. This is a particularly important read because of the legal analysis, and part of the foundation set for this discussion in the article involves a multiplicity of definitions for concept, philosophy, and value of “aloha ʻāina.” 

For our staff, our ʻŌlelo Hawaiʻi learnings have started by each team member researching and learning more about the wind and rain of where they live. At each gathering, it is as if we all go on a huakaʻi together as we all benefit by learning more about each other, where people live, their wind and rains and waters that nourish them. This common entry to learning more about where we live is often recommended as a way to not only better understand the ʻāina upon which we live, but also more about the history of how our place came to be. Diving deeper into the potential meanings of the names of where we live, the wind, rains, ahupuaʻa, moku, waters, all provide deeper meaning of the ʻāina herself

More specifically to our staff gatherings to learn ʻŌlelo Hawaiʻi, here is a testimony where community organizer, Lauren, shares her experience thus far:

“Having the chance to learn ʻōlelo and uncover the history of where I live in a group setting has been incredibly meaningful. At times, it feels awkward and uncertain but knowing we’re intentionally growing together in a safe space is a privilege. I live in Makiki, a highly developed, urban area that often feels overlooked. But doing the simple act of researching original names of place like how it got its name from the rock quarry I didn’t even know existed in the mountains. Or Puʻu ʻUalaka (aka Tantalus), meaning “hill of the rolling potato” unraveled a whole new understanding of the vast agricultural history and interconnectedness within the ahupuaʻa of Waikīkī. I now look at Makiki, with a new relationship and curiosity. Also, witnessing my coworkers’ deep connection to their places has also brought us closer together. In our work, we’re already aligned in our fight to protect the integrity of all special places throughout Hawaiʻi, but understanding and sharing our personal ties to them makes our efforts more united and powerful.”

As someone who was born and raised on Oʻahu, I too, am learning so much. Because of Lauren’s research and sharing, my relationship with Makiki, where I also lived for 10 years and birthed four of my children, is renewed and deepend.

I invite us all to go on this huakaʻi of continued learning together. I look forward to hearing from you on what you learn.

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Actualizing Restorative Energy Justice Throughout Hawaiʻi