The “Ginger Ninja” of Kohala are firing up a campaign to win more battles against invasive kahili ginger in the native rain forest of Kohala Mountain. We need your help!  Please visit our campaign website at http://www.indiegogo.com/kohala-ginger-ninja?a=489768 and contribute. Then share with your friends, colleagues, family and neighbors! This is one of those global crowdfunding campaigns, and we think it can work to save Hawaiian forests!

Our goal is to raise $20,000, most of which will be used to hire a summer crew of 4 high school students, to work in the forest controlling ginger.  It’s a win-win-win!  The forest gets a chance to recover from the invasion, the kids gets a great summer work experience, and YOU get some mighty fine perks for your donation.

Just click here http://www.indiegogo.com/kohala-ginger-ninja?a=489768 and contribute as much as you can. You can show your commitment with $5 or $5,000! We appreciate the support and networking! !

Mahalo for your contribution!

For more information about Kohala’s forest ecosystem, about our work, or about the project, visit kohalawatershed.org

We are looking for enthusiastic, hard-working, 16-17 yr. olds who live near Kohala Mountain, and are excited by the idea of a job in the forest this summer.  We are hiring four interns, who will work three days a week for 6 weeks on kahili ginger control from June 18 – July 27, 2012.

These interns will be working as a field crew with a KWP field leader on a part-time basis to control kahili ginger, an invasive weed. Work includes identification of native and invasive plants, and hiking through muddy, wet, rainy conditions to do weed control. Additionally, the interns will have the opportunity to volunteer for training in basic techniques of GPS, scientific monitoring and/or reforestation for watershed management.

For more information, contact the KWP coordinator, Melora Purell, at 333-0976 or via email at Coordinator@kohalawatershed.org

To apply, please complete the application form here and send as an email attachment to Melora or fax it to 885-6707 before May 30. Interviews will take place on June 1. Finalist applicants will be be required to attend one volunteer work day on June 4-6 as part of the application process, and offers of employment will be on June 8.

You will need to comply with all state laws for under-age employment, including getting a worker’s permit prior to employment. This will require proof of age and parent’s permission.

35 adults and children came out on Earth Day to plant with us!

I sing you life, I sing you hope.  I sing you love and strength to grow — today and tomorrow.        — Melora’s song for the keiki plants

What a wonderful month of celebration of our native Hawaiian plants!

More than 75 different volunteers came out to help us reach our goal – to plants 1000 native trees in the month of April in celebration of Earth Day.  We beat that goal and left it in the dust!  We planted more than 1,500 plants in the month, including ʻiliahi(sandalwood), koaiʻa, aʻaliʻi, hōawa, mamane, and kuluī. Mahalo nui loa (thank you very much) to all the great folks that donated their time & energy, and planted our babies with such loving care.

. . . and as we always say to our keiki plants, as we gently firm the native soil around their roots and send them off to live on their own. “Kū paʻa.”  Stand firm!