2023 Lei Mei Competition is now open!

In honor of May Day, CNHA’s Kilohana Division is partnering with Hui Kū Maoli Ola to present the Lei Mei Competition, which celebrates Hawaiian lei making traditions while promoting mālama ʻāina (stewardship) best practices. Hawaiʻi residents are invited to showcase their creativity and talent by crafting lei in any style for the following two categories.

CATEGORY #1: NATIVE HAWAIIAN PLANT LEI. Lei must be made exclusively using Native Hawaiian plants gathered from your or your family’s garden. This category will highlight the beauty of Hawaiʻi’s native plants; encourage planting natives in yards to promote a more Hawaiian sense of place in urban areas; and support mālama ʻāina efforts by reducing the impacts of gathering native lei material from our fragile forests. Lei entries for the Native Hawaiian Plant Lei category of the Lei Mei Competition must contain exclusively endemic or indigenous Native Hawaiian plants. For a list of such native plants visit: hawaiiannativeplants.com/ourplants/

CATEGORY #2: INVASIVE SPECIES LEI. Lei must be made exclusively using invasive or naturalized plants gathered from the wild. This category will raise awareness about the identity of non-native plants and contribute to the management of invasive species to help preserve native ecosystems.

How to Enter the Competition

Post a photograph or video of your lei entry on public Instagram or Facebook accounts, accompanied by the hashtag #LeiMei and tags to @hawaiiancouncil and @hui_ku_maoli_ola. The caption must indicate the lei category. Participants may enter one or both lei categories. In order to claim their prizes, contest winners must be able to provide photographic or video evidence that their lei material was sourced according to the requirements of the respective categories.

Submissions are accepted now through midnight, May 1.

Winners will be announced on May 4 via @hawaiiancouncil’s social media accounts.

The competition will be judged on creativity, use of materials, and overall appearance, with winners selected by the CNHA and Hui Kū Maoli Ola teams.

The winners will be awarded with a box of native plants from Hui Kū Maoli Ola, a signed copy of Robert Cazimero’s latest CD “MINE,” a bag and $75 gift card from Kaulua’e Hawai’i. 

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