Kamehameha Schools recently hosted two ecosystem summits bringing more than 80 natural resource industry leaders together to strengthen the stewardship of conservation land across the state.
Leaders from The Nature Conservancy of Hawaii, the Army Natural Resource Program, Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park and other organizations attended summits on Oʻahu and Hawaiʻi Island to share best practices and explore new paradigms in land stewardship.
“Kamehameha Schools values highly the lands it manages,” said KS Natural Resource Manager Mililani Browning. “We seek to better understand how that management can contribute to the overall heath and sustainability of our communities, and to find additional, appropriate, ways to support the conservation of our lands.”
The summits, coordinated by KS’ Natural and Cultural Resources Department, were created in partnership with scientists from the he Spatial Informatics Group which helps land stewards make informed and sound land-use and policy decisions.
“The summits were a way for us to gather information from a variety of stakeholders on ecosystem services they value in Hawai‘i,” Browning said. “We also hoped to gather general information from everyone about ecosystem services potential in Hawai‘i and future ways to describe the benefits of those services to others.”
Summit attendees took part in half a day of presentations followed by site visits. Oʻahu attendees toured various environmentally focused projects on KS land including Kawailoa Wind Farm, ʻUko‘a Marsh and Loko Ea Fishpond. Hilo attendees visited the Keauhou Bird Conservation Center and KS’ forestry operations in Keauhou.
KS’ ecosystem management programs are guided by the belief that the health Hawai‘i lands directly impacts the health of its people. Since the year 2000, KS has increased its active stewardship of native ecosystems from 3,000 to 136,000 acres.
For more information on KS’ natural resource management efforts, visit the Land Assets Division website.
Protecting Hawai‘i’s Natural Resoures
KS’ natural resource management programs are guided by the principle: I Hawai‘i nō nā Hawai‘i i ka ‘Āina – Hawaiians are indeed Hawaiian because of the land. Since the year 2000, KS has increased its active stewardship of native ecosystems from 3,000 to 136,000 acres.
The summits included tours of KS conservation land on Oʻahu and Hawaiʻi Island.
KS Ecologist, Nāmaka Whitehead chats with scientists from the Spatial Informatics Group.
KS Land Operations Manager, Kaniau Meyer and Natural Resources Manager, Mililani Browning lead a tour of Kawiloa Windfarm.
TAGS
CATEGORIES
Kaipuolono Article, Newsroom, Department News, LAD News
Print with photos
Print text only
