Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 37, Number 3, 1 Malaki 2020 — E pili lokahi mau a mau. United, together, forever! E hana me ka 'oia'i'o. Let us work with sincerity! [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

E pili lokahi mau a mau. United, together, forever! E hana me ka 'oia'i'o. Let us work with sincerity!

Question: A "Blue Ribbon Commission" made into a state law? A State House committee passed this resolution even when hundreds of beneficiaries testified against it. This led me to think about how our ancestors, our kūpuna would handle this. . . E alu like mai kākou! Teamwork is indispensable — You might have only three or four people in your core team working in close quar-

ters, or upwards of 20 or 30 — either way, you'll depend on eaeh other to progress and get to know eaeh other well. The closer teams are on a personal and professional level, the more efficient and motivated they're going to be.

The problem is, you can't force people to be closer together. Please ensure your small teams work together as closely as possible. Here, make it your job to ensure that every individual brings something to the table. The more time your team spends talking to eaeh other and exchanging ideas, the closer they're going to become. Even more importantly, creating an atmosphere of trust and listening, helps to produce a collective atmosphere where everyone feels like they're a worthwhile and appreciated part ofthe team . Also, get the entire team together to enjoy a reward at the same time... doing so rewards every individual that participated in achieving the goal and simultaneously facilitates interpersonal conversation. On all fronts, the team grows closer together, and everyone learns to function closer as a unit. And now our teams ean look at one of the issues... One View: According to former trustee Peter Apo , the ongoing protests have raised a number of controversial topics. Besides opposing the Thirty Meter Telescope as a violation of the sacredness of Mauna Kea,

the other issues include: ( 1 ) disrespectful management of the entire mountain by the state and the University of Hawai'i; (2) protectors blocking the road leading to the summit in violation of the law; (3) the decades-long frustration of Native Hawaiians of the failure of the state to address the illegal annexation of Hawai'i to the United States and claims of Hawaiian sovereignty; and (4) a sharply divided Hawaiian eommunity over the validity of the

claims of sacredness by the leaders of the protectors. A Second View: The first "tweet" eame from Notre Dame graduate assistant Keli'i Moanauli K e k u e w a . Kekuewa, who assists Msh defensive line eoaeh

Mike Elston, shared a photo of the Notre Dame football team with a sign that read "Kū Kia'i Mauna." The phrase has become the rallying cry for the "protectors" in Hawai'i hoping to protect Mauna Kea, a mountain on Hawai'i Island that Native Hawaiians hold sacred. Years of legal battles and protests have prevented the construction of the Thirty Meter Telescope on Mauna Kea. But in July of 2019, with the permission of Governor David Ige, construction was finally set to begin. That triggered these latest rounds of protests whieh has drawn national attention and backing from celebrities like Dwayne Johnson and Jason Momoa. And according to Walter Ritte's testimony at the "Blue Ribbon Commission" hearing, our protectors will "never leave the Mauna unprotected. Our kūpuna and others would lay down their lives for her, Mauna a Wakea. . ." And there you have it... not a "Blue Ribbon" commission , but e alu like mai kākou.. Let our Ancestors help us. Please Listen, Learn, E alu like mai kākou! Mahalo e Ke Akua no kēia lā. . . Mālama pono, a hui hou, Trustee Leina'ala Ahu Isa ■

Leina'ala Ahu lsa. Ph.D. Trustee, At-larye