In this inaugural episode, we have the benefit of an illuminating conversation with Kamuela Enos, the director of the newly formed Office of Indigenous Innovation at the University of Hawaiʻi. Before that, Kamuela was director of social enterprise at MAʻO Organic Farms. Born and raised in Waiʻanae, he comes from a family of cultural practitioners and farmers committed to sustainable agriculture. A vocal advocate for innovative educational approaches that serve all learners, Enos has turned his lived experiences into a successful post-secondary academic career. He has an undergraduate degree in Hawaiian Studies and a master’s degree in urban and regional planning from the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa.

With Kamuela, we delve deeply into the refreshed perspective he brings on the layering or infusion of valuable ancestral practices into modern society. We discuss the importance of being rooted in a respectful relationship with the earth; and, his experience working with Maʻo Organic Farms and its mission to bring health and economic empowerment to the local community, through a re-connection to community based and sustainable farming practices

We begin with a chant well known in Hawaiʻi called E Ho Mai. This oli, or chant, is often used at the beginning of an event or special gathering to help focus energies and properly receive wisdom.

For more info: 

• The University of Hawaiʻi Center for Indigenous Innovation and Health Equity
• “$1M for UH center to advance Indigenous innovation to improve NHPI health”  by University of Hawaii News
• Maʻo Organic Farms
• PBS Hawaiʻi Interview on Long Story Short with Leslie Wilcox (April 2018)

Credits: 

Created, produced, and hosted by Paula Daniels

Sound engineer: Keola Iseri
Project support: Sue Woodard

Theme music: Caryssa Shinozawa
Other Music: "Monomer" by Leroy Wild, “Kamaniki”, “Sugar Cane Train”, “Makapuʻu Pali” by Pacific Sounds

Logo: Reiko Quitevis and Sue Woodard

Thanks to our sponsor, the Hawai'ʻ Institute for Sustainable Community Food Systems at the University of Hawaiʻi - West Oʻahu

Thanks also to the students at Waipahu High School for sound creation (Caryssa Shinozawa, Landon Guzman, Syd Sausal) and graphic design (Ashley Alfaro, Erika Pagtulingan, Reiko Quitevis); and their teachers, Noelle- lili Edejer and Sky Bruno.