Hawai‘i Association of Watershed Partnerships

Help us fire up the Ginger Ninja campaign!

KohalaWP — Wed, 16 May 2012 19:06:42 +0000

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

KWP hiring high school Ginger Ninjas

KohalaWP — Tue, 15 May 2012 03:03:18 +0000

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.

KWP did it! We planted 1500 plants in April!

KohalaWP — Tue, 15 May 2012 03:00:22 +0000

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!

LHWRP Volunteer Trip

KalikoSpencer — Thu, 19 Apr 2012 20:19:54 +0000

maile lauli’i

Alyxia oliviformis

Welo ka huelo ku.

The standing tails sway.

Said of young wines that appear in the month of Welo and have not yet spread. Owls sometimes mistake them for rats and pounce on them.

-ʻŌlelo Noʻeau, Pukuʻi

It has been said by some, that Hawaiʻi as no seasons. However, the people of old were so attuned to their natural environment that they were able to not only recognize the change in seasons but even the slight changes from day to day. As we near the end of April we move into the time of Welo. Welo, is the last malama or month in the 6 month season of Ho’oilo, our winter or wet season. As the seasons shift from winter to summer, or Kau, this is also the time when Makali’i will set and not return again to our eastern sky until Oct./Nov. signifying the beginning ofMakahiki. It is a time of endings as well as new beginnings. It has been said, thatWelo is the malama when creeping plants send up little shoots which look like tails, and farming is at its best for all things continue to grow thriftily. Welo is also the name of a star used by our kupuna in their navigation of the vast Pacific, as well as a word used to signify a group custom. So appropriate is this time of Welo and all that it encompasses, as we ask for your help to revive our group custom of volunteer trips. Please join us as we continue to work towards the restoration of Auwahi.

When: Saturday, April 28th, 2012, 8:00-4:00

Due to the rough and steep terrain, WE REQUIRE HIKING BOOTS TO BE WORN THAT COVER THE ANKLE, and unfortunately, we will have to turn folks away without proper boots. We have some extra boots you can borrow but please bring your own socks. Plan to pack layered clothing, raingear, two liters of water, lunch, sunscreen and a hat. Please clean all your gear, backpacks and boots and leave hitchhiking seeds behind.

*Please let us know if you would like to join us, so that we may save you a seat, by contacting auwahi@yahoo.com or calling 573-8989. Mahalo nui loa, for your dedicated support and hard work. A hui hou!

Ke aloha nui

Art, Diana, Luke, Fernando, Ainoa, Kawika, Robert, Christian, Erica, Andrea, & Kaliko

ʻImi Pono no ka ʻĀina’s Summer 2012 Applications are here!

EmilyLeucht — Mon, 02 Apr 2012 23:35:04 +0000

Are you tired to sitting around all summer?

Do you wanna get outside and see something new?

Join ‘Imi Pono this summer for two weeks exploring native ecosystems all across Hawaiʻi Island.

For more information and the application click on the link below.

ʻImi Pono 2012 Summer Application

Applications due by Friday, May 18, 2012

WMMWP at upcoming local community events in April!

WMMWP — Wed, 28 Mar 2012 22:32:53 +0000

WMMWP will be hosting informational booths at two upcoming Maui community events. If you have ever been interested in conservation in West Maui, please come visit us during these great local events!

Maui County Ag Festival

Date: Saturday, April 7th, 2012

Time: 9:00 AM – 4:00 PM

On the first Saturday in April, Maui County Farm Bureau along with the farmers, ranchers and agricultural allies present the annual Maui County Agricultural Festival to share agriculture’s vital role in the economy, environment, and lifestyle of Maui. Held on the lū‘au grounds of Maui Tropical Plantation in Waikapū, this is Maui’s prime event to raise awareness about local agriculture on Maui.

Here’s an event to talk story with the people who grow our food and their industry allies, to discover what agriculture means to our communities and ‘aina, to taste fresh flavors, have fun. Hosted by Maui County Farm Bureau in partnership with Office of Economic Development, and supported by generous sponsors, the festival provides the one-stop experience of the wondrous impact of agriculture in day-to-day life.

WMMWP will be there from 9-4pm with information about West Maui Conservation Initiatives

Maui Nui Botanical Gardens - Ola Ka Honua, Earth Day 2012

MNBG’s annual Earth day Celebration is a free family event focusing on the preservation of native Hawaiian resources and culture. There will be earth friendly information booths, games, cultural demonstrations, great food and entertainment! Native Hawaiian Plants will be made available for purchase. Call 808-249-2798 or email info@mnbg.or for more information or to participate.

Date: Saturday, April 14th, 2012

Time: 9:00AM – 3:00 PM

WMMWP will have a booth at this event as well to teach about native West Maui plants, our forested watersheds and how important a diverse ecosystem is to the health of our communities!

WMMWP working on 5 Year Overall Management Plan and Weed Management Plan

WMMWP — Tue, 20 Mar 2012 19:49:29 +0000

WMMWP is working with Partners and other natural resource managers to plan for watershed protection in West Maui over the next 5 years! We are looking forward to completing these important documents and will have online versions available once they are completed.

TMA 2011 Newsletter Now Available

LeahLaramee — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 18:12:15 +0000

Download 2011 TMA Newsletter here.

The Last Drop

LeahLaramee — Fri, 20 Jan 2012 18:31:44 +0000

A promising plan, aimed at doubling the area of protected watershed over the next 10 years, has been launched by Gov. Abercrombie and state water officials. Aptly entitled, “The Rain Follows the Forest,” the $11 million per year stewardship initiative will create some 150 jobs, investing now to ensure the long term availability of fresh water statewide. Groundwater levels in Pearl Harbor, source of over 60 percent of Oahu’s water, have declined by half since 1990. Read more here.

Watershed protection is vital

LeahLaramee — Fri, 20 Jan 2012 18:21:22 +0000

Spending millions of taxpayer dollars to replenish Hawaii’s vegetation and native forests may seem extravagant except for the alternative: public consumption reliant on declining sources for absorbing rainwater and replenishing groundwater. The alternative would be to take the salt out of ocean water at enormous expense, which is why Gov. Neil Abercrombie is asking legislators to save the forests. The response should not be delayed. Read more here.