Bringing you today’s stories on issues important to Native communities. NewsClips is a complimentary service of the Council for Native Hawaiian Advancement. For information and updates on our training workshops and events, please visit our Web site at: www.hawaiiancouncil.org.
February 1, 2006
- State's offer to OHA: $15 million a year
- Akaka Announces Opposition to Alito Nomination
- NaHHA Holding Community Meetings on the Impact of Tourism
- Scholarships 'for everybody'
- Training gets Hawaiian homebuyers financially ready
- Door opens on a brighter future
- Kim bill faces dim future
- Statement of U.S. Senator Daniel K. Akaka on the 2006 Presidential State of the Union Address
- Guardians of Nanakuli's history
- Akaka Urges the President to Make Veterans a Top Priority
- The fight for Kaho'olawe
- BBNC harbors salmon, ponders resource development
- Bernanke meets with Akaka
- Lung cancer plays favorites
- NFL will help build Nanakuli center
- Bill would boost efforts to retain tribal language
- Are plants rooting out pollution?
- New Wildlife Viewing Guide Offers Unique Perspective on Watching and Protecting Hawai'i's Wildlife
Posted on: Friday, January 27, 2006
State's offer to OHA: $15 million a year
By Gordon Y.K. Pang
Advertiser Staff Writer
The state would allocate $15 million a year to the Office of Hawaiian Affairs and pay a one-time sum of $17.5 million, under a partial settlement of the issue of revenues from ceded lands.
The agreement between OHA and the Lingle administration was announced yesterday. It still must be approved by the OHA board of trustees, which is expected to vote on it Thursday, and the Legislature.
Ceded lands are 1.4 million acres of former crown and government lands — once part of the Hawaiian kingdom — held in trust by the state. OHA is due a share of the revenues derived from those lands under the Hawai'i Constitution.
OHA, in recent years, has been receiving about $10 million annually as its pro rata share of revenues derived from the public land trust. That amount would be increased to $15.1 million under the proposed partial settlement. Also, the agency would receive $17.5 million as back payment for the period from July 1, 2001, to June 30, 2005, reflecting additional receipts from the use of the lands.
Clyde Namu'o, OHA administrator, said the state currently collects about $50 million annually from the revenues derived from ceded lands, including harbor fees, leases from a portion of the land under the jurisdiction of the Department of Transportation, parking revenues from 'Iolani Palace and other ceded lands, and leases from a portion of land in Kaka'ako under the jurisdiction of the Hawai'i Community Development Authority.
The settlement does not include additional state revenues that OHA believes it is entitled to. A decision in a lawsuit over that revenue dispute is pending before the Hawai'i State Supreme Court. These so-called "disputed revenues" include payment for use of a portion of the land under Hilo Hospital and University of Hawai'i at Manoa, airport landing fees, concession fees, and the state's share of revenues from DFS Hawai'i, the state's duty-free store contractor.
The state and OHA are continuing discussions on the disputed revenues. And the Supreme Court has agreed to reconsider its decision last year to dismiss OHA's legal claim to the disputed revenues.
OHA has never received any revenues from the sources under dispute. The amount at stake ranges from $150 million to hundreds of millions of dollars, according to estimates by state and OHA lawyers.
The proposed partial settlement was reached following more than a year of discussions between OHA and administration officials.
PAYMENTS HALTED
All payments to OHA were stopped by former Gov. Ben Cayetano in 2001 but Gov. Linda Lingle resumed those payments in 2003, shortly after she entered office. Cayetano halted payments after a Hawai'i Supreme Court decision that threw out the formula used to calculate how much OHA should receive. Before that ruling, OHA received about 20 percent of revenues from "undisputed" ceded lands.
OHA returned to court in 2003 in another bid to collect money in connection with the disputed revenues.
OHA Chairwoman Haunani Apoliona, in a press release, said she was pleased with the proposed partial settlement and commended Lingle for her work.
"With the work of the OHA negotiating team and concurrence of the OHA board of trustees, we acknowledge that this is only the first phase of work to be completed relating to the ceded land revenues," Apoliona wrote.
Lingle, in the same release, praised OHA officials and said the agreement is "the right and fair thing to do."
BROAD SUPPORT
Leaders in both houses of the Legislature indicated they see support for the agreement.
"The Legislature needs to take this proposal very seriously because we have a constitutional obligation to make these payments," said Rep. Scott Saiki, D-22nd (McCully, Pawa'a), chairman of the House Hawaiian Affairs Committee.
"I would hope there will be an attempt in this legislative session to address the disputed amounts and attempt to find a resolution to that issue."
Senate Majority Leader Colleen Hanabusa, D-21st (Nanakuli, Makaha), said, "I don't see why it wouldn't go through." Hanabusa, who also serves as chairwoman of the Senate Judiciary and Hawaiian Affairs Committee, added, "This is something that we've tried to resolve in one way or another."
State Rep. Ezra Kanoho, D-15th (Lihu'e, Koloa), the chairman of the House Water, Land Use and Ocean Resources Committee, said he too was pleased.
"This is something that won't go away. This is an obligation," Kanoho said.
Advertiser staff writers Derrick DePledge, Ken Kobayashi and Vicki Viotti also contributed to this story.
Reach Gordon Y.K. Pang at gpang@honoluluadvertiser.com.
January 26, 2006
Akaka Announces Opposition to Alito Nomination
Washington, D.C. -- Senator Daniel K. Akaka (D-HI) issued the following statement on his intention to vote against the confirmation of Judge Samuel Alito to the United States Supreme Court:
"In the months since President George W. Bush nominated Judge Samuel Alito as an associate justice on the United States Supreme Court, I have carefully considered his record. I evaluated his long history of government service and his work on the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit, and I have closely followed his confirmation hearings.
"I am not confident that Judge Alito will be able to fairly apply the principles embodied in the United States Constitution. I believe in a nation where everyone has the opportunity to receive justice in a court of law. As a judge on the Third Circuit, he has repeatedly made it difficult for victims of discrimination to prevail or even receive a jury trial. I cherish our system of checks and balances in government, but Judge Alito's record shows that he would undermine Congress's authority to protect the public. On the Third Circuit, Judge Alito has ruled that Congress did not have the authority to pass the Family Medical Leave Act or to enact a federal ban on the possession or transfer of machine guns. In both cases, the Supreme Court disagreed with Judge Alito's conclusions and upheld these protections. I take my responsibility to provide advice and consent seriously. I cannot support Judge Alito's nomination.
"Unfortunately, Judge Alito is expected to be confirmed as Justice Sandra Day O'Connor's replacement. This means he will be in the position to affect a number of critical issues in the coming years. Important questions on privacy, the environment, presidential power and women's reproductive rights will all come before the Court to be resolved. With Judge Alito sitting on the Supreme Court, I am very concerned about the direction the Court will take our great nation.
"Although during his hearings Judge Alito promised that he would not legislate from the bench, his record indicates otherwise. For the sake of our country, I am hopeful that Judge Alito will take seriously his commitments to uphold the principles of our Constitution."
February 1, 2006
NaHHA Holding Community Meetings on the Impact of Tourism
The Native Hawaiian Hospitality Association (NaHHA) is holding community meetings statewide through mid-April regarding the impact of tourism on Native Hawaiians. Come share your concerns and propose solutions at these community meetings, then shape them into key strategies at NaHHA’s ‘aha kūkā on the future of tourism from May 2nd through May 4th at the Ihilani Resort and Spa in Kapolei, O‘ahu.
Two meetings have been held in Waimea and Anahola on Kaua‘i. Future community meetings are planned for the dates and locations listed below, with weekday meetings running from 6:30 pm to 8:30 pm, and Saturday meetings running from 10:00 am to 12:00 pm. These meetings are facilitated by CNHA.
Register for a community meeting and sign up for the ‘aha kūkā mailing list at
www.hawaiiancouncil.org\docs\events\forms\nahharegformspring06.html.
Pre-registration for the community meetings is encouraged, but you may also register on-site at any meeting. If you are unable to attend a meeting, request an input form from CNHA and provide your mana‘o by fax or mail.
| Meeting dates and locations:
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| A project funded by
Office of Hawaiian Affairs |
Posted on: Thursday, January 26, 2006
Scholarships 'for everybody'
By Loren Moreno
Advertiser Staff Writer
Kayla Yost, a Hawai'i student attending George Washington University in Washington, D.C., knows how it feels to worry about paying for school.
"I definitely would not have been able to go to college if I didn't have scholarships and financial aid," said Yost, an 18-year-old Wai'anae High School graduate who comes from a single-parent home.
Yost was one of 1,500 students awarded more than $3 million in scholarships last year through the Hawai'i Community Foundation.
"They have such an array of scholarships you can apply for," Yost said in a phone interview. She received about $6,000 from the foundation and other private scholarships last year.
The March 1 application deadline is fast approaching for the Hawai'i Community Foundation Scholarship Program. And the best thing is, "there is something for everybody," said Judy Oliveira, HCF senior scholarship officer.
Through the foundation, students have access to more than 100 different scholarships, with more being added every day, said Oliveira. Scholarships available are categorized by majors, ethnicity, geographic location, religious affiliation and for those who are members of organizations.
"Students fill out one application online and they can be eligible for more than one (scholarship)," Oliveira said.
Each scholarship fund has its own specific requirements defined by the donor who created it, Oliveira said. The scholarships have a variety of award amounts, which range from $500 to several thousand dollars, according to the foundation's Web site.
The average scholarship grant in 2005 was $1,850.
Financial aid and scholarships have become more and more necessary with the rising cost of tuition and parents expecting their children to help pay their way through school, Oliveira said.
One-third of parents have not saved any money for their child's college education and more than half insist that their child share the financial burden, according to a recent national poll by Next Step Magazine, a college, career and life-planning magazine for high school students.
Nationwide, a four-year, in-state public college can cost on average nearly $12,127 a year, while four years at a private institution can cost on average nearly $29,026 a year, according to The College Board, a college-preparation program that administers the SAT and PSAT college assessment examinations.
That is what has made scholarships so important, Yost said. She encourages students like her to apply for any scholarship, even if they think they will not qualify.
"I was one of those students who didn't think I would get too many scholarships," Yost said. "They look beyond the grade and the test scores — they look at the person," she said.
Reach Loren Moreno at lmoreno@honoluluadvertiser.com.
Posted: January 28, 2006 06:00 PM
Training gets Hawaiian homebuyers financially ready
Gina Mangieri
KHON2
Thousands of homes for Native Hawaiians will be built within the next couple of years. But not everyone on the Department of Hawaiian Home Lands list qualifies financially to buy one. A financial training program, however, aims to turn that around.
Forget open houses. The first step to homebuying is qualifying financially.
"Homes are getting very expensive right now," says Gordon Nahoopii, a potential homebuyer taking the financial course. "This is giving us hope that we may be able to buy a home."
He's among thousands of Native Hawaiians with the same dream.
"When I first came to their first session, it was an eye-opener for me," Nahoopii said. "I learned a lot in that orientation session, and it got me excited."
Hawaii Community Lending launched this service to get more Hawaiians qualified to buy a home.
"We need to get the people ready, because you can build all the homes, but if the families aren't financially ready, it's not gonna make any sense," said Helen Wai, a trainer for Hawaii Community Lending.
The Department of Hawaiian Home Lands is rolling out thousands of units over the next few years.
"It's moving quickly," Wai said. "They're building many homes, not just here on Oahu but statewide."
There are about 18,000 names on the DHHL waiting list -- with several upcoming lotteries to award homes.
"There are many Native Hawaiians who are good to go, they're just waiting for the opportunity for the projects to come up," Wai said. "However there are many who have been on the list for years who need the help."
In an era of sky-rocketing home prices, it's more critical than ever to get the projects rolling -- and get families into houses.
"Affordable housing, it's a hot issue this year, it's high demand," Wai said. "We're pushing our own local people out of our state because we can't afford to live here."
The classes aren't just open to Native Hawaiians. Jeremy Matsumoto and his new wife, Belle from the Philippines, are hoping to buy a condo downtown.
"It covers a lot of topics that can help basically anybody that is looking at buying a home," Matsumoto said.
- Feb. 11, 8 a.m.-5 p.m., Papakolea Community Center, 2150 Tantalus Drive, Honolulu
- March 18, 8 a.m.-5 p.m., Kamehameha Schools Community Learning Center, 89-101 Farrington Hwy., Nanakuli
- April 1, 8 a.m.-5 p.m., Kamehameha Schools Community Learning Center, 89-101 Farrington Hwy., Nanakuli
- March 2006, Kauai, location to be announced
For more information, call Hawaii Community Lending at 587-7886 or visit http://dhhlhoap.org/
Posted on: Tuesday, January 31, 2006
Door opens on a brighter future
By Mike Gordon
Advertiser Staff Writer
MA'ILI — Quinten Cuesta stood on the threshold between his old life and a life of possibilities, the keys to his family's future literally pinched between his fingers. His hand shook.
Seven months ago, Cuesta and his wife and two children found themselves homeless, scared and living on Tracks Beach in Nanakuli. The couple had steady jobs — they still do — but their monthly rent had soared from $750 to $1,050 in less than a year, more than they could afford.
Yesterday, they became homeowners for the first time, thanks to help from the Consuelo Foundation and the Ma'ili Land Transitional Housing Program, run by Catholic Charities Hawai'i.
"Oh ... oh ... oh!" said Cuesta as a dozen people, including new neighbors he met five minutes earlier, watched him unlock the front door. "Oh, there we go!"
The agencies that helped the family say the Cuestas are the face of Hawai'i's working poor: They are too strapped by monthly expenses to afford a mortgage but they earn too much to qualify for government assistance.
And advocates for the homeless, while lacking statistics for the working poor, said their ranks have been growing in the past two years, according to the Rev. Bob Nakata, pastor of Kahalu'u United Methodist Church and a member of Solidarity with the Homeless.
The homeless used to consist mainly of people with substance abuse and mental health problems, he said. Not any more.
"The more recent homeless are the working poor who cannot afford things," Nakata said. "They are dropping out of the rental market. It is not uncommon to hear stories of rents going up several hundred dollars a month."
Most troubling of all: They are families with children to feed and keep in school.
When the Cuestas moved out of their rental unit in Makaha last April, staying briefly with a relative before heading to the beach, they were weighing gut-wrenching decisions each month.
"For me it was a choice of: 'Am I going to pay my rent or go buy food or pay my utilities?' " said Cuesta, 42, a maintenance worker at the University of Hawai'i.
In July, they were accepted into Ma'ili Land, a 44-unit housing facility that helps families find jobs and housing while teaching them skills that help them take control of their lives.
But even as they dreamed of improving their life, they never imagined that would include owning their own home. And yesterday was so special, Quinten Cuesta kept his 15-year-old daughter and 12-year-old son out of school so they could savor the occasion.
"There are so many of us that need an affordable place to live," he said. "I am one of the few grateful and lucky ones that I am allowed this. I thank God and pray to him to help the other people because there are so many people who need help. There are a lot on the beach."
Their new home is part of the Consuelo Foundation's 75-home subdivision, Ke Aka Ho'ona, in Wai'anae. The homes were built with the help of their owners in the mid-1990s as part of a self-help project.
They rarely change hands, however, and the Cuestas got lucky. They consider the home a miracle.
After the previous owners moved out, the foundation offered them the home for $77,000 and no down payment. Their monthly mortgage is about $500 with a lease payment of about $30.
At the end of a street lined with well-kept homes, Cuesta's three-bedroom, two-bathroom home would be the envy of many. It has an open, airy feel with a high ceiling, clean, white walls and a small yard outside.
"From where we came from, I cannot believe we are owning our own home," said Shannon Cuesta, who works as a tutor at Makaha Elementary during the week and at the Nanakuli McDonald's on weekends. "This is unbelievable. I owe it all to the Lord. I'm overwhelmed."
But before they could qualify for the home, the Cuestas had to change some spending habits and clear old ledgers, said Helen Wai, the financial coach who worked with them for months.
They had numerous debts, an old unpaid student loan, back child support and five years of unfiled tax returns to deal with, Wai said.
"We needed them to understand it was not just getting in the house, it was staying in the house," Wai said. "They needed to understand the responsibility of home ownership."
When he walked into his home for the first time yesterday, the white carpet soft beneath his bare feet, Quinten Cuesta looked around and his eyes began to tear. He tried to say something to his wife, but the words were choked with emotion.
Then he gave her a tight hug.
"I think we're going to be OK over here," he said.
Reach Mike Gordon at mgordon@honoluluadvertiser.com.
January 27, 2006
Kim bill faces dim future
Hokulia illustrates uncertainty in law
by Nancy Cook Lauer
Stephens Capitol Bureau
HONOLULU -- A bill filed Tuesday on behalf of Mayor Harry Kim that would change state land-use law and make Hokulia legal will be heard in committees, but Big Island lawmakers don't expect it to pass in its current form.
The bill, HB 2525/SB 2405, adds a new category to agricultural land use so that single-family homes can be constructed on lots there, provided there is less than 10 percent of the higher-quality A and B soils.
And it grandfathers in all single-family dwellings on projects approved by county zoning ordinances before the law took effect, if lots have been sold and construction of infrastructure already begun.
The bill has already been dubbed the Hokulia bill, but lawmakers insist its ramifications go far beyond the upscale 730-lot golf-course community makai of Kealakekua. Single-family homes there are among thousands throughout the state that were approved by county zoning boards, even though state law requires houses built on agricultural lands be used by those who make their living farming.
Hokulia is especially critical to Kona because an impasse between environmentalists and the developer has put the brakes on millions of dollars of promised road and other improvements while the state Supreme Court considers an appeal to a 2003 Circuit Court ruling against the developer.
It's so important. There are millions of dollars that people are willing to give for roads, health care and schools, but they're reluctant to come to Kona because of this impasse, said Rep. Josh Green, D-Kailua-Kona, Keauhou.
Kim could not be reached for comment Tuesday. But the bill describes the problem this way, The trial court decision is at odds with practices followed by Hawaii's counties for decades... The counties have allowed construction of many homes in the agricultural district, in many cases with little or no agricultural activity connected with those homes.
Still, the idea of the Legislature creating laws seen as circumventing a court ruling makes lawmakers squeamish. And no one wants to draft abiding policy for the entire state around a single case.
Green said the Big Island legislative delegation has agreed to follow the lead of Sen. Russell Kokubun, D-South Hilo, Puna, Ka'u, the powerful chairman of the Water, Land and Agriculture Committee.
Kokubun said Tuesday that he'll hear the mayor's bill as a political courtesy, but he is filing his own bill that will set strict definitions of what's considered a farm dwelling from this point on.
Judge (Ronald) Ibarra made a certain ruling. It's being challenged, but as a ruling it currently stands, Kokubun said. One of the questions is, have the counties changed their approach relating to agricultural land. And it may be too that the state law is too general.
Kokubun worries that his bill, which didn't have a bill number by late Tuesday, could get bogged down in the controversy that's sure to erupt again over the Big Island measure. Still, said Kokubun and Green, the state needs to make it abundantly clear just what is allowed to be built where.
Hokulia left us with a big question mark. It's really important that people know what their community is made of, Green said. If we could come up with a good standard, so that everyone knows what it means to be agricultural, rural and important agricultural, we could move forward in Kona.
Rep. Clift Tsuji, D-South Hilo, Puna, vice chairman of the House Agriculture Committee, expects to see some version of a farm dwelling bill in his committee this session. But he doesn't expect Kim's bill to pass as-is.
This gives us the ability to initiate discussion and it's a working tool, Tsuji said. But it has to be massaged.
Nancy Cook Lauer can be reached at nclauer@stephensmedia.com
January 31, 2006
Statement of U.S. Senator Daniel K. Akaka on the 2006 Presidential State of the Union Address
Washington, D.C. -- Tonight, U.S. Senator Daniel K. Akaka (D-HI) issued the following statement regarding the State of Union Address by President George W. Bush.
"This evening, I listened carefully as the President spoke on the issues and challenges faced by our country, especially as many of our men and women continue to fight the war in Iraq. I do not disagree that it is important for the United States to complete its mission in Iraq and Afghanistan. However, he failed to inform us when and how we will be able to accomplish our missions so that we may bring our troops home.
"The President has many times thanked America's servicemembers for their selfless service. But as the Ranking Member on the Senate Veterans' Affairs Committee, I urge the President to remember those remarks and truly honor veterans by requesting a budget that fully funds the Department of Veterans Affairs. Not once did the President address the concern for our veterans who are confronted with a host of health care problems. The Administration needs to ensure our young heroes are able to continue to lead productive lives after their military service is over. We must remember that some wounds are invisible and that these wounds need care. I have yet to learn about how VA will deal with long-term care. Unfortunately, I am left to wonder if the Administration will address any of our many veterans concerns.
"I welcome the President's Advanced Energy Initiative and hope that his Administration will fully recognize the value of hydrogen research and development programs by fully funding those initiatives. I also urge the President to fully fund the cellulosic ethanol and alternative feedstocks programs, such as sugar, to ensure that they can be produced locally - programs aimed to finally bring our gasoline prices down.
"As a former teacher, I fully agree that more math and science initiatives are needed in our education system to encourage students to pursue careers in these fields. But tonight the President failed to mention that also critical for success in today's world is proficiency in foreign languages. For years, I have actively promoted legislation to strengthen science, math and foreign language education programs. I have yet to see the Administration provide a real funding commitment in this area, but I am encouraged by the proposals the President spoke of tonight.
"Let us not forget that the President also has yet to fully fund the basic law underpinning all of K-12 education - the No Child Left Behind Act. Next week I will be taking a closer look at his budget in hopes that it will provide the necessary funding that our schools need, rather than leaving the NCLB as a severely unfunded mandate.
"And let us never forget our duty to our own countrymen. We saw in the federal response to Hurricane Katrina that many of the lessons of September 11th have yet to be learned. State and local responders are our first line of defense, yet the Administration fails to give them the tools they need to do their jobs.
"In listening to the President speak of a defining history, I am hopeful that this Administration will recognize the mistakes made so that history does not repeat itself."
Posted on: Monday, January 30, 2006
Guardians of Nanakuli's history
By Will Hoover
Advertiser Leeward O'ahu Writer
Even though it's moved to a brand-new building, the Nanaikapono Community-School Museum in Nanakuli — a 35-year-old, one-of-a-kind public museum specializing in the area's unique Hawaiian cultural history — mostly has been a well-kept secret.
That was supposed to change after February 2004, when the museum relocated from its old Nanaikapono Elementary School site at 89-195 Farrington Highway and into the school's $21 million complex a half-mile away at 89-153 Mano Ave.
The facility was poised to become a Leeward O'ahu "mini-Bishop Museum," it was said. But those expectations were put on hold after partnership funding with the Bishop Museum ended and the larger institution was unable to find a new source.
Officials at both facilities have big plans for the little museum and predict it will receive some well-deserved recognition — just not as soon as hoped.
"From our standpoint, we're still seeking a funding source to make our dreams come alive over there," said Kay Fullerton, Bishop Museum community program manager.
"The federal grant under which we were partnering with them for a few years has dried up. But we remain committed to trying to find a way to sustain the partnership and make the vision come true."
That vision includes high-quality permanent exhibits, ambitious photographic and oral-history projects, and other avenues through which the Bishop Museum could apply its expertise to a community museum, she said.
Nanaikapono museum curator Jonathan Kuahiwi Moniz agrees that that goal eventually will be realized.
"I still consider us to have a very good partnership with the Bishop Museum," he said. "If I needed guidance on something, I would have no reservations as far as calling them and asking for advice.
"And actually, the Bishop Museum includes us in many of their workshops."
Meanwhile, the museum continues to provide hands-on experience to those who seek to know more about Hawaiian dance, language, music and other traditions of the culture.
The obscure facility started out quietly inside a converted economics building at Nanaikapono Elementary in 1970. Part of a Model Cities Program, it was on the forefront of the Hawaiian cultural revival.
Its goal has been to acquaint school kids, the Nanakuli community and the general public with cultural, archaeological and historical aspects of the Hawaiian community in Nanakuli.
From the beginning, the museum was unique. Operated by the state Department of Education, it is primarily a school facility serving local students and school groups from around the state.
But it is also a public museum that serves the community at large, which Moniz defines as local, islandwide, national and international in scope.
Normally, visitors other than Nanaikapono Elementary students come by appointment, but stragglers occasionally show up without warning.
"When that happens, I call upon one of my Museum Club members here at the school, and the students actually give the walking tour," said Moniz, who recounted how that happened recently when a woman from Belgium appeared at the door.
The essence of the museum's collection is its hands-on lending kits — consisting of authentic Hawaiian cultural objects made over the years by students themselves.
Each kit addresses a topic such as kapa making, poi pounding, canoes, farming or Hawaiian hula instruments. Student groups can visit the museum, touch items customarily locked in cases and be educated about the details of the culture.
If the students can't come to the museum, Moniz takes the lending kits and his expertise to the students.
The museum also has visual exhibits, in glass display cases, that it changes twice a year. The current display focuses on the fourth-grade curriculum of Hawaiiana.
Interest in the museum and Nanakuli's historical importance was heightened a few years ago by survey studies in the valley that turned up ancient adzes, game stones, dwelling structures, agricultural terrace systems and evidence of a heiau.
One uncovered artifact that has become the museum's most treasured possession is a hohoa, or kapa cloth beater, that predates Western contact with Hawai'i.
"What makes it extra special for us is that it was found in Nanakuli," said Moniz as he delicately removed the hohoa from its display case.
Moniz said the discovery of the hohoa dispelled the notion that Nanakuli was once a sparsely populated area, because the artifact was indicative of a more sophisticated society.
"There was sort of an opinion that Nanakuli was this impoverished fishing village," said Ross Cordy, who teaches Hawaiian Pacific studies at the University of Hawai'i-West O'ahu and who worked with the Nanakuli survey teams.
"What we found in the back was that the valley was covered with sweet potato fields and scattered houses dating back to the 1300s and 1400s."
Ironically, the majority of the folks living in Nanakuli houses today have little knowledge of the area's history, said Moniz, who grew up on the Wai'anae Coast.
More research needs to be done to uncover and explain the valley's mysteries, say many, including Cordy. They believe the role of Nanai-kapono Community-School Museum in the task is destined to grow.
"The museum has tremendous potential," Cordy said. "For that side of the island, for the community and for the schools."
Reach Will Hoover at whoover@honoluluadvertiser.com.
January 27, 2006
Akaka Urges the President to Make Veterans a Top Priority
41 Colleagues join Akaka in letter to President
Washington, D.C. -- Senator Daniel K. Akaka, the Ranking Member of the U.S. Senate Committee on Veterans' Affairs, sent a letter to President George W. Bush today urging him to give appropriate attention and priority to the needs of our nation's returning servicemembers and veterans in the Fiscal Year 2007 budget proposal.
The President is expected to submit a budget proposal soon to Congress. Forty-one Democratic Colleagues joined Senator Akaka in signing the letter to President Bush.
Senator Akaka also reminds the President of the Administration's mistake last year for not having enough resources to keep pace with demand. That mistake caused a crisis situation and the U.S. Senate swiftly acted to provide emergency funding to fix the problem.
Posted on: Monday, January 30, 2006
The fight for Kaho'olawe
By Gordon Y.K. Pang
Advertiser Staff Writer
Thirty years ago this month, nine people hopped onto the sand edging Kaho'olawe in an effort to stop the military bombing of the "Target Island."
The bombing continued for 14 years. The boldness of the protest, though, immediately helped set off what is now known as the Native Hawaiian movement. And today, care of the 45-square-mile island, once known as Kanaloa, is in the hands of a state agency chaired by one of the so-called "Kaho'olawe Nine."
The Hawaiian movement, up until that first activist landing, had been an offshoot of social change and civil rights activism of the 1960s, said historian and author Tom Coffman.
"It was Kaho'olawe that was the really transforming event," Coffman said. "Kaho'olawe was different, Kaho'olawe was special. It was such a desolate place, so damaged, and such a Hawaiian place beneath its surface that it became a metaphor."
Ian Lind, one of the Kaho'olawe Nine, said that while Hawaiian activists quarreled about which social and political issues to fight for, they stood together on the matter of the ailing island.
"People could all agree how outrageous it was that the bombing was still going on. It wasn't a divisive issue. It was a new issue that provided a symbolic focal point," said Lind, who today is a legislative aide at the State Capitol and a freelance writer.
HISTORIC CROSSING
On Jan. 4, 1976, shortly after daybreak, between 50 and 60 people boarded about 10 boats in Ma'alaea Harbor and headed south for a seven-mile ride to Kaho'olawe.
Talk about occupying the island had begun the previous year, said Maui-based activist Charles Maxwell Sr. He and others, with the help of knowledgeable fishermen, had made secret trips there to hide food, water and other provisions in caves. The group decided to land on the island in 1976, the bicentennial of the United States.
"We wanted to pick a date that was symbolic for America," Maxwell said.
As the flotilla crossed 'Alalakeiki Channel, between Maui and Kaho'olawe, a U.S. Coast Guard helicopter hovered overhead and warned that proceeding further could lead to arrests and boat confiscation.
Maxwell and others decided to turn back, fearing that the boats of fishermen who had volunteered to carry the activists to the island would be taken away. But a Maui charter boat captain and a reporter who had hired him offered up their speedy vessel.
Nine climbed in: Emmett Aluli, Kimo Aluli, George Helm, Lind, Ellen Miles, Stephen Morse, Gail Kawaipuna Prejean, Walter Ritte and Karla Villalba. All but Villalba were part-Hawaiian.
Ritte was motivated by seasickness — the trip to Kaho'olawe was shorter than the ride back to Maui. He was the first to jump off the boat at the island's edge.
"It wasn't anything magical, it was self-preservation," Ritte said of his eagerness to shore, laughing as he hearkened back 30 years.
ISLAND THAT'S DYING
Six members of the Kaho'olawe Nine are still alive. Each has traveled a different path in life since that day.
But even today, members of the group relay the same story about how they were struck by the enormity of the island, 11 miles long and 6 miles wide, the large amount of runoff flowing into the water caused by soil erosion and the silence of the place.
It wasn't just "the rock the Navy bombs," Lind said. "It wasn't a tiny negligible piece of land."
Emmett Aluli and Ritte made their way inland to explore. Within a few hours, they watched from a high point as the Coast Guard hauled away the others who had remained near the boat. They stayed two more days before surrendering to law enforcement officials.
Ritte, a hunter and a leader of the Moloka'i activist group Huialaloa, said he then came to understand why he was there.
"It was the island that shared herself with us," he said. "It was the island that told me, 'Hey, I'm dying.' So, after that one trip, it was a total commitment not to allow that island to die."
Ritte would go on to lead a number of other illegal occupations of Kaho'olawe, eventually landing him in jail for several weeks.
Aluli, then a recent graduate from the University of Hawai'i's medical school, said he felt the tug of Hawaiian history tied to the land.
"They were attracting us, pulling us into doing something for the sites," he said. "I never heard voices, but there were nature signs that would stop me and say, 'Eh, pay attention.' Like a cool rain when it was so hot, a cloud formation, a couple of rainbows along the way."
For Aluli, a dramatic moment occurred when he stood atop Mo'a'ulaiki, one of the two highest spots on Kaho'olawe. From there, he could see the peaks of Haleakala, Mauna Kea and Mauna Loa, as well the ridges of Moloka'i and Lana'i.
"That's why it's referred to as the piko (navel)," Aluli said of Kaho'olawe. "Geographically, it's the center."
By the end of the year, what came to be known as the Protect Kaho'olawe 'Ohana had formed and filed the first of a series of lawsuits against the military. Thirty years later, the group has shuttled thousands to the island to learn about its cultural and geographical history.
RESTORATION OF LIFE
The Kaho'olawe Nine went their separate ways in the months and years following the 1976 landing. Among the most publicly visible members were Emmett Aluli, Walter Ritte and George Helm.
Aluli, 62, established his medical practice on Moloka'i. He remains the face of the Kaho'olawe movement, both as the chairman of the Kaho'olawe Island Reserve Commission and a leader in the Protect Kaho'olawe 'Ohana. The commission, tasked with managing the island, works closely with the 'Ohana on revegetation and culture and education programs.
Ritte, 61, also is on Moloka'i and continues to fight for Hawaiian causes. Most recently, he has been involved with those urging the University of Hawai'i to give up patents on taro genetically enhanced by crossbreeding.
Helm, and his cousin Kimo Mitchell, disappeared in 1977 during a visit to Kaho'olawe. Accounts differ on where they were last seen.
Helm was a spiritual and charismatic man who was an influential part of the movement. He is most credited with coming up with the catch phrase "Aloha 'Aina," love of the land. A rising Hawaiian falsetto talent, he was well respected and had connections on all islands, Aluli said.
Weeks after the Jan. 4, 1976 landing, each of the nine received a warning from the military stating that if they returned to the island, they would be found guilty of ignoring a warning of trespassing and would be jailed.
That ended the activist careers for some, including Kimo Aluli, Emmett Aluli's cousin and today the owner of Kimo's Surf Hut, a surfboard shop in Kailua.
"That rattled my cage a little bit," said Kimo Aluli, 51.
Kimo Aluli said he sometimes wishes he were more of a participant in the Hawaiian movement. "I was born in Hawai'i, but I was raised as an American," he said, adding that he often feels conflicted.
Stephen Morse left the Kaho'olawe movement after the 1977 disappearances of Helm and Mitchell. But for the greater part of three decades, he has worked for agencies that advocate for Hawaiians including Alu Like, the Queen Lili'uokalani Children's Center and, currently, the Office of Hawaiian Affairs.
Morse said he sometimes wonders whether the young activists should have opted for a strategy other than occupying the island.
"When I look back in retrospect, there's some mixed emotions because of the loss of life, people going to jail and the disruption to families," said Morse, who is now 59 and has 10 grandchildren.
Morse maintains that the Protect Kaho'olawe 'Ohana likely would have been successful without the landings by simply fighting the Navy in the courts.
In the end, the U.S. government allocated up to $400 million for the removal of ordnance and other cleanup activities on Kaho'olawe. The Navy called it the most expensive cleanup of unexploded ordnance ever.
In the initial cleanup effort, some 400 workers collected more than 10 million pounds of bombs, shells and scrap.
Emmett Aluli said the legacy of Helm, Mitchell and others linked to the Kaho'olawe Nine now serves as an inspiration for younger generations.
"Kaho'olawe will continue to be a place for ongoing cultural and traditional practices," he said. Noting that Aloha 'Aina is now entwined in the daily lives of all who call Hawai'i their homeland, he added, "Our work has become a model of organizing our communities in Native Hawaiian rights issues ... and healing."
MODEL FOR HAWAIIANS
Today, the fight between Hawaiian activists and the Army seeking to re-establish live-fire training exercises in Leeward O'ahu's Makua Valley bears a strong resemblance to the struggle over Kaho'olawe.
An Army lawyer last week warned that Schofield Barracks troops are being deployed to Iraq this summer and that casualties in the 25th Infantry Division (Light) will be higher without the training.
The attorney for Malama Makua, which is fighting the proposal, argued that the Army has other places to train troops.
William Aila Jr., a member of a different group, Hui Malama O Makua, said the fight over Kaho'olawe offers inspiration.
"The most inspiring lesson that we learned was that it could be done," Aila said. "The return of Kaho'olawe was unprecedented. ... A group of Hawaiians who felt a very spiritual call from the island was able to overcome military law and political opposition to really effect the first solid step toward sovereignty."
Web posted Sunday, January 29, 2006
BBNC harbors salmon, ponders resource development
By Margaret Bauman
Alaska Journal of Commerce
Oil and gas exploration, and the development of a massive gold and copper mining operation are all looming prospects in Southwest Alaska. But fish still rule in the 40,000-square-mile span that is home to the Bristol Bay Native Corp.
"Fish are where it's at in Bristol Bay," said Tom Hawkins, senior vice president and chief operating officer for BBNC, the regional Native corporation representing some 7,600 shareholders of Eskimo, Indian and Aleut descent. "If you are proposing something that may impact fish, you are challenging the existing economy."
The corporation is on the cusp of what may be its best economic year ever, thanks in large part to the good prices for Bristol Bay's famed red salmon. While the leadership of BBNC remains staunchly protective of the region's world-renown sockeye salmon fishery, they are open to responsible development in both oil and gas exploration and in mining.
"We are perceived in the region as being in somewhat of a neutral position on Pebble," a gold and copper mine being considered by Northern Dynasty Mines Inc., said L. Tiel Smith, land and resource manager for BBNC. "We are for responsible mining."
BBNC officials acknowledge their shareholders are divided over the prospect of the mine, despite the fact that Northern Dynasty's chief operating officer, Bruce Jenkins, is a fisheries biologist by training and holds a master's degree in fisheries.
Board members of BBNC also have taken a fairly supportive position of seeing the Northern Aleutian shelf on the schedule for outer continental shelf leasing, if studies show there are good prospects. The corporation also supports onshore oil and gas exploration. But in both instances only with assurances that the work and subsequent transport of oil would not threaten fisheries.
"If there are any prospects in Bristol Bay, they are most likely in the North Aleutian Shelf," Hawkins said.
BBNC is seeking future job opportunities for its shareholders, 50 percent of whom are 40 years old or younger. This is the generation that will inherit responsibility for the regional corporation, and its high-tech subsidiaries, which has footholds in everything from environmental and engineering services to customized fuel management and hazardous waste cleanup.
"There is a large and growing number of young Alaska Natives and they need opportunities," said Jason Metrokin, director of shareholder and corporation relations.
To that end, BBNC has utilized a number of training programs, including annual village leadership workshops in Anchorage, usually held during the first week of December. The village leadership workshops are aimed at more traditional community leaders on many different levels, Metrokin said.
The Training Without Walls program is sponsored by BBNC and Choggiung Limited, the village corporation for Dillingham, and is more specifically aimed at future leaders. Applicants for this program, which alternates between Anchorage and Dillingham, must be between the ages of 25 and 55, have a four-year college degree, five years work experience and be currently employed. Students meet twice for two days, three times a year as a group, the rest of the time work one on one with a coach on individual management training goals and objectives. "It's a self-motivating program," said Metrokin. "You get what you put into it."
The corporation also participates in the University of Alaska's Alaska Native Science and Engineering Program, which offers pre-college preparation programs for high school students with an interest in engineering fields. This program also serves to bridge the time between the senior year of high school and first year of college, and offers mentors and tutors at the college.
"For engineering firms, like several of our subsidiaries, this is a definite resource for us to draw from," Metrokin said. ANSEP is on the university's Anchorage and Fairbanks campuses, and is affiliated with similar programs at the universities of Washington and Hawaii, and is open to all Alaska Native students.
Hawkins said he sees the various training programs not only as a benefit to individual shareholders, but also as a talent-spotting opportunity for the corporation. All of BBNC's subsidiaries offer shareholders opportunities in job shadowing, internships and summer hires, he said.
BBNC subsidiaries, like Kakivik Asset Management LLC, which specializes in nondestructive testing and inspection, also have their own individual training programs at the BBNC building in Anchorage. Kakivik's contracts include pipeline testing for the Alyeska Pipeline Service Co. and ConocoPhillips Alaska Inc.
Kakivik is the Yupik Eskimo word used to describe a small pouch that contains items critical to survival in the harsh Alaska wilderness. The company, a venture of BBNC and Ch2M Hill Inc., offers a variety of services and technologies in fields ranging from radiographic and ultrasonic testing to corrosion engineering and electromagnetic acoustic transmission.
SpecPro, a wholly owned engineering and technical services firm, saw its revenues grow by more than 50 percent in the first six months of the current fiscal year. CCI, which specializes in removing hazardous wastes, earned nearly $4 million in the first six months of the fiscal year, with contracts including clean up of the wreck of the Selendang Ayu, which sank last fall in the Aleutian Islands.
Bristol Engineering and Environmental Services, the oldest of BBNC's subsidiaries, suffered some financial setbacks due to a bad contract, but with new contracts hopes to break even at the end of the fiscal year.
Another of the corporation's successful subsidiaries is PetroCard Systems, headquartered in Kent, Wash., which provides fuel and value-added fueling services to businesses operating fleets of commercial vehicles. "Even with rising gas prices, this company has done extremely well," Metrokin said. "It's been a success story."
For all its financial successes, though, BBNC is mindful of the economic problems its shareholders face, in rising costs of fuel, transportation and living in rural Alaska.
"The majority of our shareholders have relocated," Hawkins said. "Our biggest village is Anchorage."
The key to the future of residency in the villages of Bristol Bay in large part lies in bringing low cost energy to the region, he said. If the Pebble mine begins production, it would in all probability lower the cost of energy to Lake Iliamna-area communities, but not necessarily those in the rest of the vast Bristol Bay region.
So the corporation continues to interact with its shareholders on a broad range of topics, challenging its existing and future leaders to find solutions in issues ranging from commercial fishing, mining, and oil and gas exploration to cost effective energy, he said.
Margaret Bauman can be reached at margie.bauman@alaskajournal.com.
January 30, 2006
LATEST NEWS
Bernanke meets with Akaka
Pacific Business News (Honolulu)
Ben Bernanke met Monday with Sen. Daniel Akaka at the Capitol on the eve of his confirmation as chairman of the Federal Reserve Board.
Akaka said he looks forward to Bernanke's tenure as Fed chief after talking with him about financial and economic education, remittances, credit card disclosures, and banking the unbanked. Akaka has sponsored legislation to improve financial literacy, partly through education and partly through more transparent disclosure of interest rates by lenders such as credit card companies.
"We share a commitment to improving the financial literacy of our students and consumers," Akaka said. "I look forward to working with the new chairman to encourage better economic and financial literacy, which, in turn, will result in stronger families, better-functioning markets, and a more secure future for our nation."
In April 2004 in an address to the JumpStart Coalition, Bernanke said, "Our economy can become ever more prosperous and our financial system ever more sophisticated, but if our young people lack the knowledge with which to make wise choices--for their present and their future--they will not be able to share in the benefits of the advancing economy and financial system."
Alan Greenspan chaired the Fed for 18 years through Republican and Democratic administrations. Ben Bernanke's confirmation as his successor was expected in a Senate vote scheduled for Tuesday.
Posted on: Thursday, January 26, 2006
Lung cancer plays favorites
By Gordon Y.K. Pang
Advertiser Staff Writer
Blacks and Hawaiians who smoke up to a pack of cigarettes a day have a significantly higher risk of developing lung cancer than people of other ethnic groups, according to a study published today in the New England Journal of Medicine.
The findings are part of an ongoing study, now in its eighth year, that is considered the largest ever examination of the relationship between smoking, lung cancer and ethnicity. It studied 184,000 men and women — roughly half of them in Hawai'i, the rest from California.
The study found that black and Hawaiian men and women who smoke up to 20 cigarettes a day, considered light to moderate smokers, are up to 55 percent more likely than whites to develop lung cancer. Japanese-Americans and Latinos are up to 50 percent less susceptible than whites, the researchers found.
Researchers said the disparity between ethnic groups was more stark among those who smoked less and negligible among those classified as heavy smokers, or those smoking more than 30 cigarettes a day.
The study is being conducted jointly by researchers at the University of Southern California and the University of Hawai'i-Manoa Cancer Research Center of Hawai'i.
Dr. Loic Le Marchand, a UH epidemiologist, said the study included 6,000 men and 8,000 women who reported themselves as having any percentage of Hawaiian heritage. There was no discernible difference between the sexes when comparing the ethnicities. Previous studies showed that in general, men are more likely to develop lung cancer than women.
"We knew before that Hawaiians have a higher incidence rate of lung cancer" regardless of whether they smoke, Le Marchand said. Previous studies have shown that in every 100,000 Hawaiian men, 96 will develop lung cancer. For whites, the rate is 78 per 100,000.
Doctors also have long known that blacks are substantially more likely than whites to develop lung cancer and more likely to die from it.
The lung cancer rates among Hawaiians and blacks who are light to moderate smokers are about the same, Le Marchand said.
REASONS UNKNOWN
Why the two groups have higher incidences than other ethnicities remains a mystery to the researchers. Suspected factors include genetics and habits among the groups.
Le Marchand said the researchers looked at diet habits of the ethnicities as a possible explanation, but found no differences. Among the things examined were the amounts of fruits and vegetables people ate.
"All cigarette-related deaths are preventable, and the department is aggressively addressing this issue," said state health director Chiyome Fukino.
"Unfortunately, this report is yet another study that confirms what we know to be true, that the Native Hawaiian population is overrepresented in the ill effects of various diseases," Fukino said.
The latest statistics "certainly will give us pause to make sure that our messages are appropriately directed," she said.
Sterling Yee, president of the American Lung Association of Hawai'i, said the latest numbers reinforce his agency's core mission to stop people from smoking before they start.
"It's no mystery that smoking kills smokers," Yee said in a release. "The message for our Native Hawaiian population is that they are being killed at a rate higher than almost all other ethnic groups, and they especially should quit."
STUDY FOCUSES ON DIET
The multi-ethnic study is funded by a National Cancer Institute grant. The other UH researchers involved are Dr. Laurence N. Kolonel, the principal investigator for the study, an epidemiologist and deputy director of the Cancer Research Institute; and Lynne R. Wilkens, a biostatistician.
While the researchers have collected detailed information about smoking, the main purpose of the ongoing study is to examine the relationship between diet and health. Methodology included filling out a series of questionnaires over the eight years. Those surveyed also gave blood samples.
CONTROVERSIAL ISSUE
The effect of race on the risk of disease is controversial.
Proponents of the importance of racial differences hailed the researchers' findings as strong evidence that biological differences among races can be significant, making it imperative that research focus on these genetic variations to try to resolve disparities in health. Skeptics, however, said that the study is inconclusive, and that it could just fuel racial stereotyping and divert attention from environmental and social factors that are probably far more important.
The Washington Post, Associated Press and Bloomberg News Service contributed to this report.
Reach Gordon Y.K. Pang at gpang@honoluluadvertiser.com.
Posted on: Sunday, January 29, 2006
NFL will help build Nanakuli center
By Rod Ohira
Advertiser Central O'ahu Writer
The National Football League will donate $1 million toward establishing a youth community center next to Nanaikapono Elementary School in Nanakuli as a gesture of appreciation for Hawai'i's longtime support of the Pro Bowl, NFL officials said this week.
Since 1993, NFL Charities has set up 10 such Youth Education Town community centers as a lasting legacy for Super Bowl host cities. The centers' mission is to provide "sports and recreational activities, in combination with education, to assist disadvantaged youth," the NFL said.
The NFL, which has contributed $1 million to Hawai'i nonprofits over the past 10 years, will make the formal announcement of the Nanakuli YET center on Feb. 8 during Pro Bowl week, said Beth Colleton, NFL director of community affairs.
Honolulu is host city of the Pro Bowl, which will be played for the 26th year at Aloha Stadium on Feb. 12.
Nanaikapono principal Myron Brumaghim said YET is being built for the community, not just the school, so community meetings will allow input from a "lot of people looking at it with different lenses."
"For me, I feel the more opportunities available to kids the better," Brumaghim said. "I look at the recreational opportunities here and see we have a lot of water but few basketball courts."
Brian McCarthy, NFL's director of corporate communications, said, "The people of Hawai'i have supported us for more than 25 years, and this is another opportunity for the NFL to show our appreciation and provide a legacy to the boys and girls of O'ahu.
"We have extended a very successful program normally reserved for our Super Bowl host cities ... to the Pro Bowl," McCarthy said.
Boys & Girls Club of Hawai'i, which also has clubhouses in Wai'anae and 'Ewa Beach and an afterschool program at Nanaikapono, will manage the Nanakuli YET center. The organization has negotiated a 30-year lease with an option for a second 30 years with the state Department of Hawaiian Home Lands for a one-acre-plus lot for the facility, fulfilling a primary requirement set by the NFL.
"DHHL is very happy to be part of this partnership," said Micah Kane, Department of Hawaiian Home Lands chairman. "Nanakuli is an underserved area, and this program will be well received and is much needed."
Matching the NFL donation is also a requirement, and local efforts to obtain the necessary funds already are under way.
David Nakada, Boys & Girls Club of Hawai'i executive director, said the organization will have to raise more than $1 million to complete the project, which he estimates will cost $4.5 million. He said Hawai'i's U.S. senators, Daniel Inouye and Daniel Akaka, already have secured $700,000 in grants to support the effort. Boys & Girls Club is seeking corporate sponsorships, grants in aid and community block grants for additional support.
Nakada said the Nanakuli YET will be a one-story building with a gym, learning and technology centers, and a social recreation area. He said he hopes to have it open in 24 to 30 months.
The architectural firm of Mitsunaga & Associates Inc. will be scheduling community brainstorming meetings to determine how the center can best meet the community's needs.
Nakada said he is confident the money can be raised. He said he also is encouraged by other Leeward projects, citing the Salvation Army's plan to build a Kroc Center in Kapolei and possible new YMCA facilities in Kapolei and Wai'anae.
"The Salvation Army and YMCA deserve kudos for their vision, because the development of support services is going to be tremendous," Nakada said. "I agree with Michael Town (a Boys & Girls Club board member and Circuit Court judge) that the real enemy is the streets, and not competition with other agencies, because if the streets win, the whole community loses."
Rex Johnson, executive director of the state Tourism Authority, said he and retired banking executive Larry Johnson, the authority's designated negotiator, were in Chicago early last year, working on a contract with the NFL to keep the Pro Bowl here through 2010, when the NFL brought up the idea of establishing a YET center on O'ahu.
"Larry was the driver and began talking with them on how to get the thing done," Rex Johnson said. "The NFL looks at Hawai'i as its 33rd franchise, and this is an ultimate reward."
Johnson said 25,400 visitors here during Pro Bowl week in 2005 came just for the game. Hawai'i benefitted from $39.45 million in visitor spending and $3.83 million in resulting state taxes during that period, he said.
Colleton said the NFL includes a Learning Across America program at all YET centers to keep them connected.
Two more YET center sites are planned, one for Houston and one for Jacksonville, Fla.
Reach Rod Ohira at rohira@honoluluadvertiser.com.
Posted: January 31, 2006
Bill would boost efforts to retain tribal language
by: The Associated Press
AUGUSTA, Maine (AP) - The days in which Penobscot children were admonished for speaking their native language in school are long gone. But the Penobscots still need to do more to rebuild a language that was nearly lost forever, a tribal lawmaker says.
Michael Sockalexis, who represents his tribe in the Legislature, has introduced a bill that would add $300,000 to a Penobscot Language Preservation Fund operated by the state Department of Education. The money would be matched by the National Endowment for the Humanities.
Many Penobscots know some words or phrases, but few are fluent. Precise figures are hard to come by, but Sockalexis said there are only a handful of ''traditional speakers'' among the tribe's more than 2,300 members, more than 1,000 of whom still live in Maine.
Sockalexis said he was part of the last generation to be immersed in the Penobscot language at home. But even he is no longer fluent. ''I lost it,'' he said.
With the language ''at a tipping point,'' the goal is to continue to instill the language in the tribe's children and to turn it back into a conversational language, he said.
The tribe, which has a reservation on Indian Island, is working hard to do just that, using an after-school program that serves all students in the K - 8 school, as well as an immersion summer camp at which students speak nothing but Penobscot.
The state funding and the matching funds would allow the tribe to move the language program back into the regular classroom, Sockalexis said.
Maine's four Indian tribes - the Penobscot Nation, Passamaquoddy Tribe, Houlton Band of Maliseets and Aroostook Band of Micmacs - speak languages that are closely related. Those tribes and the Abenakis comprise what is known as the Wabanaki Confederacy.
Wayne Newell, a Passamaquoddy language coordinator and an authority on all of Maine's tribal languages, said he prefers to speak Passamaquoddy. ''When we were kids, that's all you spoke. That's all you had. That's all you saw,'' he said.
Now, Newell said, children of all tribes are unlikely to become fluent in their native languages, or to speak them at all, unless they learn them at school.
The differences between English and Indian languages are much greater than the difference between English and French or Spanish, he noted.
There are some English words that have no equivalent in Native languages, or that translate very differently. There is no Passamaquoddy word for ''wild,'' for example, because ''we have no concept of it'' as Indians, Newell said.
Another difference is that verbs are more important than nouns in the Passamaquoddy language. ''You can have a complete sentence in Passamaquoddy with one word,'' Newell said.
Newell said efforts like those of Sockalexis are important because language defines people.
''Whenever you lose a language, you lose more than just a language,'' he said.
Posted on: Thursday, January 26, 2006
Are plants rooting out pollution?
By James Gonser
Advertiser Urban Honolulu Writer
A demonstration project that uses plants to clean parts of the Ala Wai Canal is working but it has a long way to go before the polluted urban waterway is safe for swimming or fishing, officials with a private company say.
Early data from the year-long experiment show the floating plants have reduced the amount of nitrogen, bacteria and algae in the canal and increased visibility where they are anchored, near the Waikiki-Kapahulu Public Library and along the bank from the city golf course to the Manoa-Palolo drainage canal.
"The water has become more clean," said Wenhao Sun, vice president of Marine Agritech and principal investigator for the project. "It has become safer and the nutrient levels reduced due to the system of plants."
Sun declined to release testing data until an official report is issued, but said the monthly testing shows dramatic reduction in pollutants. The water is cleaner with more fish and birds living and feeding in the area, he said. The plants do not remove heavy metals such as lead, mercury and copper, which were found in the mud during a dredging of the canal in 2003.
Last April, Natural Systems Inc. was given permission to conduct a one-year demonstration project in the canal. Natural Systems partnered with Marine Agritech to place thousands of 'akulikuli plants on floating rafts with their roots dropping 3 feet into the water. Bacteria and microorganisms colonize the roots and improve water quality through their nutrient uptake.
The process is known as phytoremediation, or using plants to treat environmental problems.
"From the reactions we've had so far, we are encouraged," said Peter Young, chairman of the state Department of Land and Natural Resources. "It appears to be an effective way to deal with water quality that is relatively benign. We will be getting a more formal report later, but the preliminary indications we heard have been very encouraging."
Working with a $500,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Biosystems Technology Program, the companies grew the plants in a nearby drainage canal and placed them in the Ala Wai.
The report will be presented to the state by April.
Koalani Lagareta, a teacher at Halau Ku Mana Public Charter School, brought her middle school class to study the process yesterday.
The students are testing water quality, propagating the plants, making rafts and studying the history of the area.
"Our project is based around water usage and quality," Lagareta said. "Science, social science and math are all integrated into this one project. If you are talking about microorganisms in the water and ecology in the classroom and they never get a chance to actually see how those systems affect one another, then it's almost too abstract. It's been a really great resource for us to come down here."
The Ala Wai Canal is not a stream but part of the island's drainage system and is polluted by urban chemicals washed down from vehicles and homes. The canal is heavily used by canoe paddlers and kayakers. Staph infections are common when the canal's water gets into an open wound. The state Department of Health has posted signs warning people not to swim or eat fish caught in the canal and suggests that anyone who falls in the water should take a thorough shower as soon as possible.
Halau Ku Mana student Hae Ani, 14, is a canoe paddler and winces when recalling the time her boat tipped over, sending her into the water. Ani said it is fun to come down to the canal and see improvements in the water quality and environment.
"We are learning about how we can clean our water without using more chemicals," she said. "It is better then regular classes where you just read about it."
Chad Durkin, project manager for Natural Systems, said he is hoping the test results will lead to more grants to extend the work along the length of the canal.
Durkin has worked with students from 20 public and private schools to study the process and results of the phytoremediation. He said teaching children and the public to care for the environment can do a lot more in the long run than just working to improve one waterway.
"The Ala Wai is just one of more than 18 water bodies in the state," Durkin said. "If you fix one, it's nothing. But if you can change the mindset of people, eventually it will impact all the water bodies here and hopefully spread around the world. (Pollution) is a global problem."
Reach James Gonser at jgonser@honoluluadvertiser.com.
January 25, 2006
New Wildlife Viewing Guide Offers Unique Perspective on Watching and Protecting Hawai'i's Wildlife
Honolulu. Native Books/ Na Mea Hawai'i and the Hawai'i Watchable Wildlife Project are pleased to announce the publication of the Hawai'i Wildlife Viewing Guide, which will introduce residents and visitors to the amazing diversity of flora and fauna that inhabit the Hawaiian Islands.
Author Jeanne L. Clark will join members of the Hawai'i. Watchable Wildlife Steering Committee and Jim Mallman, President of Watchable Wildlife, Inc., for the book launch of the Hawai'i.Wildlife Viewing Guide around the islands during the week of February 12. The public is invited to attend these events. Pre-release copies of the guide will be available for sale and for signing by the author.
The Hawai'i Wildlife Viewing Guide showcases 31 sites that are known not only for their wildlife, but also for their outstanding scenery, cultural values or water-oriented recreation. Visitors may see huge gatherings of seabirds, remarkable scenes of migrating whales, up close views of rare forest birds or incredible underwater vistas of coral gardens and colorful fish. There is a special emphasis on the rich marine life in the surrounding ocean.
Colorful photos highlight each site description, which includes historical perspective, natural history, a map and viewing tips, including the best time of year and even the best time of day to visit in order to maximize your wildlife viewing experience. A dozen “Species Notes” with illustrations by noted Hawaiian artist Patrick Ching capture common or interesting species seen at certain sites. Information about Hawaiian culture is included throughout the guide. Native Hawaiians have had a long presence on the islands and a reverent association with native plants and wildlife.
The Hawai'i Wildlife Viewing Guide is the result of the vision and hard work of a Steering Committee that includes representatives of the primary conservation organizations and governmental agencies involved in wildlife and wildlands conservation, education and tourism in Hawai'i. Principal sponsors are the Hawai'i Tourism Authority and NOAA Fisheries and NOAA National Ocean Service.
Hawai'i is the 44th state to join Watchable Wildlife, Inc., a nonprofit organization that has supported state wildlife viewing programs nationwide since 1990. "The Watchable Wildlife Program will provide an important interface between people and nature," said Sam Gon, Director of Science at The Nature Conservancy of Hawai'i. "It will help visitors and kamaaina alike become more aware of the wildlife around them and build an appreciation for our native species and the habitat they need to survive." The Watchable Wildlife Viewing Guide series is published by Adventure Publications under the direction of Watchable Wildlife, Inc.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Jeanne L. Clark has worked in the field of natural resource communications for over twenty-five years and has written numerous books, magazine articles, video scripts, brochures, and reports. She is the author of the coffee table book, America’s Wildlife Refuges: Lands of Promise, a commemorative book showcasing the National Wildlife Refuge System centennial anniversary. She also authored the California Wildlife Viewing Guide and the Nevada Wildlife Viewing Guide, and co-authored Northern California Nature Weekends.
Jeanne has worked with numerous government agencies and private organizations. For eight years she served as editor of Out & About, an award-winning quarterly newsletter published by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service/Pacific Region, and has written many other Fish and Wildlife Service publications. Jeanne lives in Newcastle, California, where the beauty of nature and the march of the seasons help to shape and enrich her writing.
Book launch events will be held at the following location:
Kailua-Kona, Hawai’i - Sun. Feb 12 10:00am
Kaloko-Honokohau National Historic Park
Kapalua, Maui - Sun. Feb 12 4:00pm
Ritz Carlton Amphitheater
Kilauea, Kauai - Mon. Feb 13 1:00pm
Kilauea Point National Wildlife Refuge
Honolulu - Tues. Feb 14 2:00-4:00pm
Native Books/ Na Mea Hawai'i Ward Warehouse
To RSVP for any of the book launch events, please call (808)783-2612 or email rmuemura@yahoo.com. For more information about the Hawai'i Watchable Wildlife project and the Hawai'i Wildlife Viewing Guide, visit www.HawaiiWildlife.org.
CONTACTS
Hawai'i Watchable Wildlife Project: Ray Tabata ray@hawaiiwildlife.org
For author interviews and review copies contact: Karen Killebrew, Nature Media Network, (530) 878-1330, karen@NatureMedia.net
Pre-release copies of the Hawai'i Wildlife Viewing Guide are available at Native Books/Na Mea Hawai'i Ward Warehouse in Honolulu, Maui Ocean Center in Ma'alaea, Kaloko-Honokohau Visitor Center in Kailua-Kona and the Kilauea Point National Wildlife Refuge Visitors Center on Kauai. The Hawai'i Wildlife Viewing Guide will be distributed throughout the islands in March, and at www.HawaiiWildlife.org.
In an effort to increase the usefulness of this service to our subscribers, CNHA is now including a section for Quiet Title Notices at the end of each NewsClips.
CIVIL NO. 05-1-0521(3) IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF THE SECOND CIRCUIT STATE OF HAWAII TO: HEIRS AND ASSIGNS OF KAHUHU; and Heirs of persons named above who are deceased, or persons holding under said Heirs, and spouses, assigns, successors, personal representatives, executors, administrators, and trustees of persons named above who are deceased; DOES 1 through 100, and all other persons unknown claiming any right, title estate, lien or interest in the real property described and TO ALL WHOM IT MAY CONCERN YOU ARE HEREBY NOTIFIED that Plaintiff ELISE MARIE GARRIGUE claims fee simple ownership, together with others, to: All of Land Commission Award Number 5498-B to Kahuhu) at Kahauiki, Hamakualoa, Island and County of Maui, State of Hawaii, Tax Key (2) 2-8-004-025, containing 0.938 acre, more or less. TOGETHER WITH a perpetual easement, 12 feet wide, for access and utility purposes, as granted by AGREEMENT dated May 23, 1986, recorded in Liber 19569 at Page 727. YOU ARE HEREBY FURTHER NOTIFIED that Plaintiff ELISE MARIE GARRIGUE has filed a Complaint to Quiet Title in the Second Circuit Court, Wailuku, Maui, Hawaii, requesting that title to the above-described real property be determined quieted as to any and all adverse claims not presented and/or adjudicated in this action. YOU ARE HEREBY SUMMONED to appear in the courtroom of the Honorable Joseph E. Cardoza, Judge of the above entitled Court, Hoapili Hale, 2145 Main Street, Wailuku, Maui, Hawaii, on Friday, the 17th day of February, 2006, at 8:30 a.m., or to file an answer or other pleading and serve it before said day upon Plaintiffs' counsel TOM C. LEUTENEKER, Carlsmith Ball LLP, 2200 Main Street, Suite 400, Wailuku, Maui, Hawaii 96793, to show cause, if any you have, why the prayer of said Complaint should not be granted. Unless you file an answer before the time aforesaid or appear at the Second Circuit Court, Wailuku, County of Maui, State of Hawaii, at the time and place aforesaid, your default will be recorded, and said Complaint will be taken as confessed and a judgment by default will be taken against you for the relief demanded in the Complaint. DATED: Wailuku, Maui, Hawaii, Dec. 27, 2005. D. KEYES CLERK OF THE ABOVE ENTITLED COURT CARLSMITH BALL LLP TOM C. LEUTENEKER 721-0 2200 Main Street, Suite 400 Wailuku, Maui, Hawaii 96793 Telephone No. 808.242.4535 Fax No. 808-244-4974 Attorney for Plaintiff (Hon. Adv.: Jan. 4, 11, 18, 25, 2006) (A-267695) Posted on 1/4/2006
IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF THE FIRST CIRCUIT STATE OF HAWAII SUMMONS TO DEFENDANTS Kahuenui (w); Mahelona (k); Charlene P. Johnson; Ora Johnson; Oralene Levi; Pamela Nalani Fujimoto; Lisa Ann Kahalewai; Ann Johnson-Kekaulike; Judi L. Johnson; Joseph P. Johnson; Mary Pung Sue; Wallace H.L. Wong; Carol Kiesel; Corrine Bailey; Wendi Chong; Robin-Jeanne Toledo; Darrin P. Chong; David-Nathan Chong; Andrew-Mark Chong; Jered-Michael Chong; Paul Puaa III; Vanessa Puaa; Paulette Moore; Mary P. Murray; Phillip Murray; En Sue P. Puaa; Kyle L. Nees; Jonne N. Field; James L. Nees; Dale K. Nees; Lahela T. Roback; Moses C. Pung; Sandra J. Rodrigues; Charmaine Kim; Charla Chandler; Becky K. Pung; Albert Bush, Jr.; Charles E.M. Bush; Palmroy Bush; Bernard Y.T. Ho; Grace Kinohi Simon; Bernard P. Ho; Lindsay N. Ho; David Rocky Ho; Davis K. Ho; Inez Dos Remedios; James Dos Remedios Sr.; Jaqueline Pung; Sonia Leilani Case; Sandy Shore; Hana Camara; John Shore; Barnette Fischer; Rosalia Kaluapanaio Luka; Joseph L. Wharton; Teta Wharton Koga (w); Mele Kaiaikawaha (w); Ana Honu (w); Rebecca Aina; Hana Kapeliela (w); Daniel Kaiaikawaha; Poaka Kealoha (k); Rebecca P. Akioni; Lemon Wharton (k); Lusia Kuaimoku (w); Meleaka Kahoiwai Jones (w); Emily Kaiaikawaha (w); Kapeliela (k); their respective Heirs or Assigns; Doe Defendants 1-50; And All Whom It May Concern: YOU ARE HEREBY NOTIFIED that Plaintiff, North Shore Land and Farming Company LLC, has filed a complaint in the First Circuit Court, State of Hawaii, Civil No. 05-1-2127-11, to partition and quiet title to: (1) Grant 1649, at Waialua, Oahu, Hawaii within TMK (1) 6-6-028-003; (2) Grant 1667, Apana 2, at Waialua, Oahu, Hawaii within TMK (1) 6-6-028-007; and (3) Grant 1337, Apanas 1 and 2, at Waialua, Oahu, Hawaii within TMK Nos. (1) 6-6-028-008 and 009. YOU ARE HEREBY SUMMONED to appear in the courtroom of the Honorable Karen S. S. Ahn, Judge of the First Circuit Court, on February 21, 2006 at 9:00 A.M., or to file an answer or other pleading and serve it before said day upon Plaintiff's attorney, Philip J. Leas, whose address is Cades Schutte LLP, 1000 Bishop Street, Suite 1200, Honolulu, HI 96813. If you fail to do so, judgment by default will be rendered against you for the relief demanded in the Complaint. DATED: Honolulu, Hawai i, December 19, 2005. F. OTAKE CLERK, FIRST CIRCUIT COURT (Hon. Adv.: Jan 2, 9, 16, 23, 2006) (A-272834) Posted on 1/2/2006
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In recognizing that ka olelo makuahine o Hawaii nei was an oral language and that there were varying dialects among the islands, CNHA has adopted a policy of excluding diacritical markings in our publications.
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