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Learn about proposed new legislation to help protect Hawaiʻi’s coral reefs, the harmful effects of chemical sunscreens, and safe alternatives to sun exposure in the following article by Katherine Martinko…

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When sunscreen chemicals wash off beach-goers, they bleach coral, stunt its growth, and sometimes kill it outright.

If you’re heading to Hawaii, or any other tropical paradise, to soak up the sun this winter, you might want to leave the sunscreen behind. It sounds counterintuitive after years of being told to slather on sunscreen to protect our skin from dangerous UV rays, but now research is showing that human use of sunscreen could be seriously damaging tropical coral reefs.

Senator Will Espero presented a bill to the state congress on January 20 that would ban sunscreens containing oxybenzone and octinoxate (except under medical prescriptions) in Hawaii. Espero argued that a ban is crucial to maintaining the health of coral reefs – an tourist attraction on which Hawaii relies.

​Sunscreens use filters, either chemical or mineral, to block out the sun’s radiation. The chemical filters are most damaging, washing off the skin into the water while swimming, surfing, spearfishing, or even using a beach shower. Researchers have measured oxybenzone in Hawaiian waters at concentrations that are 30 times higher than the level considered safe for corals. According to Hawaii’s Department of Land and Natural Resources:

“[These chemicals] cause deformities in coral larvae (planulae), making them unable to swim, settle out, and form new coral colonies.  It also increases the rate at which coral bleaching occurs.  This puts coral reef health at risk, and reduces resiliency to climate change.” Says Craig Downs of Haereticus Environmental Laboratory in Virginia, whose research on stunted coral growth has heavily influenced Espero’s bill: “Oxybenzone — it kills [coral]. It turns them into zombies if it doesn’t kill them outright. It makes them sterile and you do not get coral recruitment.”

This problem is not unique to Hawaii. Approximately 80 percent of the corals in the Caribbean Sea have died over the past 40 years. While there are many compounding factors, such as temperature anomalies, overfishing, coral predators, coastal runoffs, and pollution from cruise ships and other vessels that affect coral health, the fact that an estimated 14,000 tons of sunscreen wash off annually into the world’s oceans is a serious matter.

Not surprisingly, Espero has met resistance from sunscreen manufacturers, such as L’Oréal, which say the evidence is not yet strong enough to justify a ban; but Espero insists the public support is there. Scientific American quotes him: “We have advocates and science on our side. Fishermen, boat owners, sailors, ocean-sports enthusiasts, ocean-tour operators and environmentalists rely on the ocean for recreation and jobs. Opponents will be out there, but supporters as well.”

​If you’re wondering how not to burn in the sun, check out the Environmental Working Group’s 2016 guide to safe sunscreens, and consider its advice: “Sunscreen should be your last resort.” Use clothing (long-sleeved shirts or special UV blocking clothes), shade, sunglasses, and careful timing to minimize exposure to sunshine.

Recent Press & Hawaiʻi Ecotourism Association Certification for Kauaʻi Hiking Tours!

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Mention in “Escape to Hawaiʻi” article (Islands Magazine)

Islands Magazine – “blurb” & photo 

Expedia Local Expert® Hawaii Activity Guides

“Dispatches” – “Kauaʻi: The 10 Very Best Activities” List

Condos in Kauaʻi Travel Blog Post

Hawaiʻi Ecotourism Association Certification – Sustainable Tour Operator

Last, but certainly not least, weʻve become one of only 3 Kauaʻi tour companies to pass Hawaiʻi Ecotourism Association’s stringent certification process for becoming a “Certified Sustainable Tour Operator”.Hawai’i Ecotourism Association Mission: To protect Hawaii’s unique natural environment and host culture through the promotion of responsible travel and educational programs relating to sustainable tourism for residents, businesses and visitors.Hawaii Ecotourism Association Goals:

  • Promote communication and education about ecotourism and sustainable travel.
  • Promote community-based visitor businesses that are environmentally sensitive and culturally accurate.
  • Provide information, professional development, and a resource network.

For more information, please visit: http://www.hawaiiecotourism.org/

“Land of Pō” – recounting Hawaiian Legend

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Synopsis:

This video was shot several years ago while hiking with friends on Kauaʻi. We are on a ridge above the Nāpali Coast with a good view of the island on Niʻihau. The view reminded me of a Hawaiian Legend which makes mention of a mystical land located at the bottom of the sea, between where we were currently standing and the island of Niʻihau. My memory of where I had read or heard the story was fuzzy, as were many of the details.

I did my best to locate the source from which the story came with no luck. Instead I found multiple myths & legends containing components of the story I am telling. It’s possible that I combined multiple tales into my own conglomerate version. More important than specifics (in my opinion), are the general concepts related from a good tale – and the subsequent thoughts, feelings, and universal “life lessons” they inspire. A crucial component in many storytelling traditions includes space for filtering the story through one’s own memory & perception. It’s worth noting that this seems to be an acceptable aspect of the Hawaiian storytelling tradition as well. That said, I apologize in advance for any gross inaccuracies.

Clarification on some Points:

  1. Early Hawaiians came to the mountains to gather red & yellow bird feathers (for making elaborate feather cloaks called ʻahuʻula), to harvest koa (for making outrigger and voyaging canoes), to gather medicinal plants, and for spiritual reasons. The generally did not stay there for extended periods of time.
  2. In the story I heard the warrior lived in a village inside Waimea Canyon, somewhat isolated from the main villages along the coast. The woman he fell in love with lived in the village of Waimea on the coast.
  3. Men & Women not eating together was just one type of kapu among many, albeit a very important one. The kapu system was the religious law system that ruled over almost every act of Hawaiian life. It consisted of thousands of rules which identified what people could and could not do. The kapu system was based on beliefs about mana (spiritual power).
  4. “Forgetting to feed him” may refer to offering food and/or other matrimonial offerings. Since men & women didn’t eat together it’s unlikely that she would be expected to serve him food, in the traditional sense.
  5. Interesting side note – in 1819, ‘ai kapu was overthrown – men and women eating together was the first public act in abolishment of the kapu system by Queen Kaʻahumanu (one of the late king Kamehamehaʻs more than 20 wives, and queen regent at the time) and Keopuolani (Kamehamehaʻs sacred royal wife, mother of the current king, Liholiho). At the time women and men were also not permitted to cook food in the same fire or eat from the same calabash (‘ai kapu); additionally, women were not permitted to eat pork, bananas, and coconuts. Though many were outraged by this sudden break with long held beliefs & customs, it came as a relief to many makaʻāinana (“commoner”, general Hawaiian population) who were often subjected to harsh, at times unjust, punishment by the intricate kapu system. It was at great personal risk that Kaʻahumanu and Keopuolani made this bold declaration to the royal court and the young king, Liholiho (“Kamehameha II”), as death and beatings were common punishments for violating kapu.
  6. In the video I make reference to “the land of Pō”. In the version I heard this land was located on the bottom of the ocean, between Kauaʻi and Niʻihau. Pō is referenced in many ways, for the purpose of this story it can be seen as an “underworld” or “realm of the gods”. Because I was not sure if this was the correct way to reference it -“the land of Po”- I did some research to try to find the story I had heard. Try as I might, I could not find an exact reference to the story I am telling. My research was unexpectedly rewarded by stumbling onto a treasure trove of Hawaiian myths and legends – all of them fascinating and reflective of the deeper Hawaiian cultural knowledge that goes beyond simple words. Click here to check out Pō stories from the UH Manoa Archives.
  7. I speak of her soul getting smaller and smaller as they ascend towards the surface, pulling their way up a long rope, further and further from the land of Pō at the bottom of the sea. I find it interesting that ascending from the depths would change the size of something as abstract as a soul. I can imagine slowly pulling up to the safety of the surface on a long rope. For me it conjures up the image of pulling crab and lobster traps from the bottom of the ocean via a long rope (often slowly, so the crab doesnʻt realize what is happening and try to escape). It also brings to mind the changes in pressure that happen while freediving in the ocean – how the pressure of depth causes contraction, then gradual expansion as you near the surface (the opposite effect on “souls” accustomed to the depths perhaps). Finally, I like the imagery of the specially made coconut shell halves as a “soul capturing device”!
  8. I was unclear about the purpose of warriorʻs mele (song or chant, sometimes accompanied by, or offered as, prayer). He is singing them next to her lifeless body to coax her soul back into it.
  9. Here’s a link to versions of similar Hawaiian legends which involving heartbroken lovers, These stories take place with different characters on the island on Maui and Hawaiʻi. The book Legends and Myths of Hawaii: The Fables and Folk-Lore of a Strange People, by David and Rollin Mallory Daggett also contain related Pō stories.

The meanings of Pō, po-, and pō-: 

Initial results yielded a literal translation of simply “night”. Digging deeper, I found references to “the darkness”, “night/period of the gods”, and “the chaos of formless creation”.

Going deeper still, I found the many poetic definitions of pō listed below – used a stand-alone word or as a prefix (po- or pō-) in the many Hawaiian words flavored by it’s meaning. Once again I am blown away the meaning and poetry contained in Hawaiian words, in this case only 2 letters!

These final references come from the Hawaiian Dictionary contained on the website: www.wehewehe.org:

[on a related side note, here’s the similarly multifaceted poetry of the word wehewehe: 1. vt. To explain. Cf. puke wehewehe ʻōlelo. Wehewehe ʻana, explanation, definition. 2. Redup. of wehe; to unsaddle or unharness, as a horse; to pull growing taro stalks slightly apart so as to strengthen the corm. 3. (Cap.) n. Name of a star (no data).]

1)    po-
Same as pō-. See poale, pohole, pokaʻi, poluhi.
2)    pō-
Time of, state of. See below, especially poʻeleʻele, pōhae, pōhihi, pōhina, pōʻino, pōkaʻa, pōkaʻo, pōlena, pōlewa, pōluku, pōmaikaʻi, pōnalo, pōniho, pōniu, pōpilikia, pōule. Also po-.
3)  pō
1. nvs. Night, darkness, obscurity; the realm of the gods; pertaining to or of the gods, chaos, or hell; dark, obscure, benighted; formerly the period of 24 hours beginning with nightfall (the Hawaiian “day” began at nightfall) Fig., ignorance; ignorant. Cf. Halāliʻi, Pōʻakahi, Pōʻalua. Hōʻike a ka pō, revelation from the gods [as in dreams or omens].Inoa pō, name suggested for a child in a dream. Mai ka pō mai, from the gods; of divine origin. Kāne o ka pō, wahine o ka pō, husband of the night, wife of the night [spirit lover: it was believed that a child born of such a mating might resemble an eel, lizard, shark, or bird, or might have supernatural powers; sometimes death or sickness followed nightly visits]. Nā pō o ka mahina, days [lit., nights] of the month. Pō ʻahia kēia? What day of the week [or month] is this? Pō nui hoʻolakolako, the great night that supplies [the gods revealed their will in revelations and dreams at night]. Pō pouli ʻaʻaki, a night so dark it bites with the teeth. Pō i ka lāʻau, darkened by the tree. Ua pō, it’s late (not necessarily night, but usually said if one is in danger of not being home by dark]. Ua hana māua ā pō ka lā, we worked until night; lit., until the day darkened. Ua hana māua ā ao ka pō, we worked until daylight; lit., until the night lighted.

More Information: can be found on the larger umbrella site Ulukau: www.ulukau.org, of which the www.wehewehe.org site is a part of. I highly recommend you check out these two sites, they contain multitudes of traditional Hawaiian knowledge! Click here to search keywords, such as Pō, contained in popular Hawaiian myths & legends.

Native Hawaiians Now Have A Pathway To Form A Government

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BREAKING NEWS FROM NPR:
Native Hawaiians Now Have A Pathway To Form A Government
September 23, 20165:59 PM ET MERRIT KENNEDYThe U.S. Department of the Interior has announced that Native Hawaiians can now choose whether to form a unified government, which could eventually enter into formal government-to-government relations with the U.S.It would be the first time the Native Hawaiian community had their own government since their Kingdom was overthrown in 1893 by merchants and sugar planters.​This is a result of a reconciliation process that has lasted more than 20 years, as Hawaii Public Radio reported, and “the new relationship would be similar to the tribal status of Native American Indian groups.”

Any change would come following a referendum, the Interior Department said. Native Hawaiians are under no obligation to form a unified government as a result of the new rule – rather, it’s meant to decide on its future “as an exercise of its self-determination.”

“If a formal government-to-government is reestablished, it could provide the community with greater flexibility to preserve its distinct culture and traditions,” the department added. “It could also enhance their ability to affect its special status under Federal law by exercising powers of self-government over many issues directly impacting community members.” Additionally, a Native Hawaiian unified government “could establish courts or other institutions to interpret and enforce its laws.”

​Many Native Hawaiians welcomed the new rule, like Annelle Amaral, the president of the Association of Hawaiian Civic Clubs. “What it allows us to do is to finally have control over our sacred sites, over health care for our people, over the education of our children,” Amaral told the member station. “Instead of waiting for someone else to do something about our problems, with our own government we can begin to initiate change.”

​Additionally, “Native Hawaiians have been the only major indigenous group in the 50 states without a process for establishing a government-to-government relationship with the federal government. This rule finally remedies this injustice,” the Office of Hawaiian Affairs Chairperson Robert K. Lindsey said, according to Hawaii Public Radio.

​The new rule does not “authorize or in any way contemplate compensation for any past wrongs,” the department said. Hawaii Public Radio spoke to an activist named Bumpy Kanahele who opposed the announcement: he said “the involvement of the federal government is not welcome. And stands in the way of a return to an independent, sovereign Hawaiian nation.”

The new pathway to federal recognition comes after another major federal decision regarding Hawaii earlier this month. As we reported, President Obama quadrupled the size of the Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument, off the coast of his home state. In the announcement, the White House said that “Native Hawaiian culture considers the Monument and the adjacent area a sacred place.”

AUTHOR INTERVIEWS: How Sugar Brought An End to Hawaii’s Nationhood

CODE SWITCH: It Took Two Centuries, But The Native Hawaiian Population May Be Bouncing Back

CODE SWITCH: Hokule’a, The Hawaiian Canoe Traveling The World By A Map Of The Stars