Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 38, Number 1, 1 January 2021 — Papakilo Database OHA's Repository of 'Ike Celebrates its 10th Anniversary [ARTICLE]

Papakilo Database OHA's Repository of 'Ike Celebrates its 10th Anniversary

By Kale Hannahs, OHA Archival lnformation Specialist On April 4, 2011, the Office of Hawaiian Affairs (OHA) launched a unique and revolutionary online resource: the Papakilo Database. From its humble beginnings, hosting just 13 collections with approximately 500,000 records, the Papakilo Database has grown into a robust repository of Hawaiian 'ike, featuring 65 unique collections and over 1 million records. To commemorate Papakilo's 10th anniversary, in April 2021, Ka Wai Ola will feature stories about Papakilo's various community partners and identify the benefits that their collections have provided the community. This is the first installment of a 12-month series that celebrates Hawaiian 'ike and demonstrates the value of not only preserving our historic documents, but making them accessible to all. The name Papakilo was given to OHA by Dr. Puakea Nogelemeier and Kau'i Sai Dudoit of Awaiaulu, LLC. "Papa" translates as the foundation and "kilo" means to seek or search. A foundation for seeking, searching and observing not only describes the functional use of the database, but as OHA's former CEO, Dr. Kamana'opono Crabbe explained, it is also the "continual exploration of infinite spaces and levels of knowledge as a perpetual cycle for the next generations to eome." The vision of the Papakilo Database was inspired by the Native Rights, Land and Culture Division's goal of creating a showcase of Hawaiian 'ike, as well as the Compliance Division's plan to improve their efficiency and effectiveness by providing a one-stop-shop of resources to inform OHA's response to environmental assessments and impact statements, Section 106 reports, Burial Council requests, and other reports. Previously, these inquires required staff to conduct time-consuming research at the Bishop Museum, State Archives, Bureau of Conveyance, libraries and other repositories.

To bring the digital dream to life, OHA staff engaged in various internal and eommunity strategic planning meetings. The ; consensus was that the priority should be i to focus, initially, on improving access to selected high demand/high importance ; records. These collections would serve as cornerstones for Papakilo's foundation and I address the primary research needs of the i community - genealogy, land title, and kūpuna 'ike. The Māhele Record Collection, Bishop Museum' s Hawaiian Language Newspaper Collection, and Ulukau's Genealogy and Plaee Name Collections were identified as high-value resources whose i increased accessibility would benefit both constituents and OHA staff. : To this day, the Māhele records and news- ' papers are the most accessed collections within Papakilo. Papakilo's success and content relies on the partnerships and trust it has cultivated within Hawai'i's archive community. OHA's dream of a "one-stop-shop" that provides searchable records and eolleetions from various archives, libraries, and i museums had to be equally beneficial for these partners. i Consequently, the database is more than the sum of transactions that accumulate an i ever-growing collection, it represents the abundant harvest of symbiotic relationships ' between OHA and respected partnering organizations who are providing services that meet the needs of our beneficiaries. The Papakilo Database is truly a unique 1 and valuable repository that represents i OHA's investment in the education and : preservation of 'ike, and the future of the lāhui. Visit www.papakilodatabase.com to start your research experience. ■