Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 33, Number 9, 1 September 2016 — Youth add new energy to global conservation efforts [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

Youth add new energy to global conservation efforts

By Dave Dondoneau The theme of the IUCN World Conservation Congress couldn't be mueh closer to Jane Au's heart. "Planet at the Cross-

roads" is a eall for the thousands of world leaders, scientists, environmentalists and delegates to band together to share ideas that ean preserve and enrich the earth, something the 23-year-old Au is turning into her life's work. "I've always been really interested in conservation and here in Hawai'i we have some unique conservation issues, so having the world congress here gives a voice that we ean share," said Au, a Hale'iwa resident born and raised. "'Crossroads' means we need to all eome together now to determine a new path and act compassionately because Mother Earth comes first." Au, who graduated in December from the University of Hawai'i at Mānoa and is entering graduate school to continue her religion education at UH, is one of the younger generation whose fingerprints are all over the historic event. An intern with the nonprofit Kupu Hawai'i, Au has been entrusted with overseeing feasibility, wildlife, marine and cultural guides that will be distributed and on display. She not only looks to make sure the Hawai'i spellings are correct, but she also makes sure some of the presentations will be historically accurate and she's helping to plan the logistics of some of the excursions. One of the outings she's helping with is a visit to Hawai'i's traditional fishponds, whieh will be the topic of two sessions: On Sept. 4 a pavilion event entitled "Launeh Celebration Luneh: The Loko Pa (Hawaiian Lishpond) Restoration Guidebook" and an off-site session "Hawaiian Lishponds" on Sept. 8. "The excursion will give visitors a ehanee to see traditional fishponds so that SEE AU ON PAGE 16

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will be exciting," Au said. "It's a ehanee to show the world how Hawaiians have lived off the earth for centuries. It's a sustainable way oflife that's been passed on for generations." Au chose to study world religions because she's fascinated with how religions impact ways of life. In Hawai'i, for example the World Conservation Congress will learn that Hawaiian religion is centered around conserving the earth and environment. "The goal is to take care of the planet and not use it just as a resource." In addition to her logistics planning and helping ensure the authenticity and accuracy of what visitors will experience, part of Au's internship has been to write a blog for RISE, a professional development program for Kupu, detailing the preparation for the event and

Hawai'i issues. In July, she penned the blog "Hawai'i Passes Bill to End Trade of Wildlife Products" and in June she wrote about the University of Hawai'i working to preserve Hawai'i's water resources. In December, she penned one of her first blogs for Kupu entitled "Moving Lorward, Looking Back - How Indigenous Knowledge ean Help Modern Issues in Hawai'i." It was a look at Hawai'i's dependency today on outside sourced food compared to decades ago when Hawaiians fended for themselves and had a sustainable food source through fishponds. "Loko i'a have been utilized in these islands for nearly 1,000 years, and at one point provided Native Hawaiians with an annual 2 million pounds of fish," Au wrote. "By building rock wall enclosures, Hawaiian communities were able to raise fish in salt, fresh, or brackish water and could readily monitor what species were or were not being

depleted. "Indigenous food security methods such as loko i'a are a testament to Hawai'i's former excellence in sustainability and natural resource management. Efforts to reinstate loko i'a have been underway since the late 1990s, but earlier this year a process called Ho'oala Loko I'a, was approved, creating a statewide permit for fishpond restoration, repair and maintenance. In a plaee as unique as Hawai'i, indigenous methods of sustainability and conservation are irreplaceable, as they encapsulate generations of traditional, plaeebased knowledge. These traditional sustainability methods thus play a crucial role in Hawai'i's efforts to be sustainable in modern day. By utilizing indigenous knowledge of sustainability, our communities ean advance in a way that is meaningful and effective." Brace yourself, World Conservation Congress, Hawai'i youth are serving notice and ready to educate. ■

AU Continued from page 14