Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 28, Number 2, 1 February 2011 — EYE TOWARD FUTURE GENERATIONS [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

EYE

TOWARD FUTURE GENERATIONS

A conversation with incoming Ghairperson Golette Machado

Hawaiians, she jumped at the ehanee. "I strongly recommend people look at volunteering to serve on these boards l and commissions. Those

two served as critical education for me to understand what the state obligations are to the puhlie trust," said Machado, who encourages college students and recent college graduates to choose a board . or commission they

she received her GED, and then earned her bachelor's in education at the University of Hawai'i. "Never stop learning in spite of certain barriers that you may encounter, and give everything your all, 110 percent," Machado encourages. "Never limit yourself to just be satisfied with mediocrity. I learned that from the University of Hawai'i, and many of the people who have mentored me. I owe a debt of gratitude to many of the individuals who have mentored me." Machado's mother was pure Hawaiian and her father was more than half Hawaiian. Together they raised her and her older brothers Hawaiian style, whieh meant everyone worked hard. Growing up in rural Moloka'i people took care of one another, practiced a substantive lifestyle - growing produce, raising livestock and sharing with family. Machado proudly says Moloka'i is truly the last Hawaiian island with a large 80 percent Hawaiian population and many traditional practices continuing. A window to the past,

there are still no elevators or traffic lights on the island and only two ATMs. In the L past, residents would fight develop-

ment in an effort to maintain the old ways. But now, she said, Moloka'i residents are considering certain

explained, wherein you enact political decisions taking into consideration their impact on seven generations or more. "I learned that back in the late '70s." The Haudenosaunee, whieh means the "People of the Longhouse" is the Iroquois Confederacy, an association of several tribes of indigenous people of North America, traditionally of the New York area many now live in Canada. Machado intends to look ahead two decades or more when planning and creating policy, considering how today's decisions will affect the generations to eome and how it will impact their future. "Onee we ean eome to that eommon philosophy to serve and improve things, perhaps then, people will be able to support us more openly and more willingly," Machado explains. "Communication plays a big role and in this short period I feel that we are making some significant steps forward." "I could not have been as confident as I am today, if it had not been for the commitment of the Trustees, the administration and the entire staff at the Office of Hawaiian Affairs," Machado said. "I ean honestly say that that has moved me tremendously to where I am today. It might be a eliehe, but the Office of Hawaiian Affairs has changed my life in terms of how I perceive decisions that will impact the generations to follow." ■

OHA Chairperson Colefte Machado takes the long view in decision making, having been influenced by The Great Law philosophy of the lroquois Confederacy and by the Office of Hawaiian Affairs. - Photos: John Matsuzaki