Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 39, Number 11, 1 November 2022 — Protecting, Preserving and Revitalizing Cultural Resources in North Hālawa Valley [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

Protecting, Preserving and Revitalizing Cultural Resources in North Hālawa Valley

MO'OLELO NUI COVER STORY 1

By Ardena Sanoe Saarinen and Nicholas Tanaka

Clara "Sweet" Matthews and her 'ohana are part of the living, evolving mo'olelo of North Hālawa Valley. Since the early 1990s, with the help of a small group of community leaders, they have tirelessly pursued mālama aina activities in the valley - hand-clearing invasive plants, planting food and medicinal plants, and protecting nearby archaeological sites ffom being destroyed by further development. North Hālawa Valley has long been revered by Native Hawaiians as a plaee of healing for the mind and body, a plaee for learning, and a plaee for worship. In April 1992, Aunty Sweet and her late husband Robert "Boots" Matthews set out to protect two heiau (temples) located deep in Hālawa Valley: Hale o Papa (for women) and Luakini (for men). They stood alongside a rising tide of mana wāhine, Native Hawaiian practitioners, and po'e aloha aina to hloek construction trucks and bulldozers from advancing down the path of the planned H-3 Freeway that would connect Leeward and Windward O'ahu through the Ko'olau Mountains. H-3 opened for puhlie use on Dec. 12, 1997.

Although many were arrested for protesting, they were nevertheless determined to protect and preserve the archaeological, cultural, and natural resources that were sacred to the Kānaka 'Oiwi of the HālSEE PROTECTING HĀLAWA VALLEY ON PAGE 17

Mahalo OHA would like to recognize the perseverence of the Hālawa Valley stewards and celebrates the milestone accomplishment ofcompleting theirStewardship Management Plan and obtaining their renewable permit this year. Despite the excellentstewardship workoccurring at the Luluku and Hālawa Valley project areas, ensuring proper mitigation efforts for Ha'ikū Valley, also affected by lnterstate H-3, continues to be part of 0HA's kūleana. ■ OHA's role as the recognized consulting agency for |h^jQ3 H-3 mitigation work entails ongoing advocacy, holding both the Hawai'i Department ofTransportation (HDOT) and the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) accountable forcontinued federal historic preservaUk 4., tion-related mitigations and state level conservation district commitments made decades ago. OHA continues its commitment to working with the Ko'olau Foundation to bring about cultural restoration and preservation worl< in Ha'ikū Valley.

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awa ahupua'a and greater moku of 'Ewa; a determination catalyzed from knowing the vast impacts H-3 would impose on the Hawaiian people and upon the ma uka regions of the valley whose pristine tributaries onee fed the numerous loko i'a momona (fertile fishponds) of Pu'uloa (Pearl Harbor).

MO'OLELO NUI COVER STORY

PROTECTING HĀLAWA VALLEY Continued from page 16

Aunty Sweet and the growing hui held on to their vision and have worked for decades to protect this_sacred space for those ffom across Ka Pae 'Aina Hawai'i genuinely seeking a path to understanding the weahh of ancestral knowledge the valley holds, including the ancient healing practice of lā'au lapa'au. Nā Kūpuna a me Nā Kāko'o o Hālawa Nonprofit Nā Kūpuna a me Nā Kāko'o o Hālawa, Ine. (NKNKHI) was set up under leadership of Aunty Sweet who is now the project manager for the organization, and one of few kūpuna still with us. The mission of NKNKHI is to promote preservation, cultural stewardship, and education in Hālawa Valley. Core team members took part in the muhiple stages of planning potential mitigation options for North Hālawa Valley and other impacted areas in the aftermath of H-3's construction. The nonprofit has hosted and educated dozens of loeal, continental, and international groups over the last two decades. As the sole qualified applicant during the Ofhce of Hawaiian Affairs' (OHA) solicitation for stewards of North Hālawa Valley, NKNKHI accepted its kuleana as the recognized steward of the project area in March 2016 and committed to the creation of a Stewardship Management Plan (SMP) in pursuit of securing access for continued stewardship of these ancient Hawaiian cultural sites. This kuleana is intended to pass down from generation to generation in perpetuity. Healing of the aina and the people has been the main theme over the years. It was further developed as the primary guiding objective for mitigation work to be carried out and directed by the stewards. "We need ways to heal beyond the western concepts and practices of healing," explained Aunty Sweet. "A cultural learning center, a hālau, in Hālawa Valley ean provide descendants of this aina some ways to begin healing ffom generational trauma and trauma experienced in their lifetime. If we ean begin healing even just one or two of

the many issues we Hawaiians face today - then these are the first steps to ensure a prosperous future for our mo'opuna." Stewardship of a Sacred Space in Perpetuity With the completion of the SMP last March, the Hālawa stewards have reached a project milestone together in one small part of the overall and ongoing H-3 mitigation process. The Hālawa SMP is based on the framework of the Luluku SMP, co-written by 'Āina Momona and the Hālawa-Luluku Interpretive Development Project (HLID) team. In the SMP for Hālawa Valley, NKNKHI details its five-year Strategic Action Plan, Proposed Preservation Plans for Archaeological Leatures, a Master Plan for Support Lacilities, and a Comprehensive Site Maintenance Plan. Together, these plans constitute the starting point for NKNKHI to begin implementing its programs and guiding future development as its organizational capacity expands through the coming years. "Our 'OHAna proudly recognizes the signifiant accomplishment of Nā Kūpuna a me Nā Kāko'o o Hālawa in completing their North Hālawa Valley Stewardship Management Plan," said OHA CEO Dr. Sylvia Hussey. "1his milestone honors the strength and perserverence the kūpuna of Hālawa have sustained through decades to realize their vision of biocultural restoration that will establish a plaee of healing and learning for all." This past September, the Hālawa Stewards completed another significant milestone as the group was issued an automatically renewing permit from the State of Hawai'i Department of Transportation (HDOT). This permit provides the stewards with access in perpetuity to the state-owned lands that comprise the North Hālawa Valley HLID project area. The SMP and the permit to access these sacred cultural sites detail the relationships, responsibilities, limitations, and processes that NKNKHI and HDOT will navigate together as Native Hawaiian community-based stewardship of this aina evolves over time. Mai Maka'u i ka Hana, Do Not Fear the Work

Volunteers kokua with elean up at Halawa Valley on a community workday. H-3 is visible above them on the left. - Photo: Courtesy

NKNKHI will continue to lead the eollaborative community work required to revitalize, restore, and preserve the sacred Hale O Papa and Luakini Heiau as part of SEE PR0TECTING HĀLAWA 0N PAGE 18

the cultural kipuka of North Halawa Valley.

PROTECTING HĀLAWA Continued from page 17

Hālawa Valley stewards brief volunteers before they enter the protected area. - Photo: Courtesy

Support facilities in the valley are progressing with remaining pre-construction activities nearing completion. Construction of the hālau, restrooms, storage, and irrigation system in the valley together with the complete renovation of an administrative center near the entrance of the valley are anticipated to begin early 2023, and will be completed within the year. Inspired and invigorated by these accomplishments, NKNKHI stands ready to guide the next generation of core team members that are needed to facilitate the important biocultural activities in Hālawa Valley that remain vital to healing and feeding the minds and bodies of our community. "This achievement is a great reminder of what ean be done when we 'ilau hoe, when we paddle together towards a eommon goal, like the protection and restoration of important cultural kīpuka across Ka Pae 'Āina," said OHA Board Chair Carmen "Hulu" Lindsey. "Part of OHA's mission is to support efforts such as this hana here in Hālawa Valley. When we accomplish these things together we strengthen our lāhui and honor our kūpuna by creating protected spaces to perpetuate our cultural practices for this generation and those yet to eome." ■ Ardena Sanoe Saarinen is OHA's project coordinatorfor the Hālawa-Luluku Interpretive Development (HLID) project. Nicholas Tanaka ispresident ofNā Kūpuna a me Nā Kāko'o o Hālawa, lnc.