Hālau Lahaina, malu i ka ‘ulu
Lahaina Homecoming reunited displaced families on Front Street, demonstrating how healing and long-term recovery are strengthened by reconnecting people with one another and the place they call home.
Lahaina community members reflect on their town's history and how reconnecting to language, culture, and ʻāina can help restore the community's ea after the August 2023 fires. Produced by the Kaʻiwakīloumoku Pacific Institute Center and the Hoʻokahua Cultural Vibrancy Group of Ke Kula ʻo Kamehameha Kapālama.
An innovative effort to reforest the ma uka areas of Lahaina has reached an important milestone with the planting of native and Polynesian-introduced species in an approximately four-acre section of KS ‘āina
The Ka Malu community site on ʻāina Pauahi in Lahaina continues to flourish and grow since its inception in 2024. Hard work and dedication from community volunteers have proven to be a key ingredient in the success of this unique space.
Supported by Kamehameha Schools, interns with Huliauapaʻa Wahi Kūpuna program uncover Lahaina’s ancestral water and food systems to help guide the town’s ‘āina-based restoration and future planning.
Nearly 100 Kamehameha Schools Maui alumni joined Summer Bridge activities designed to keep graduates connected to ʻāina, community and campus support before returning to college or work.
The restoration of Lahaina marked a significant milestone with the selection of Ke Aliʻi Pauahi’s ʻāina in Kuʻia as the future site of King Kamehameha III Elementary School.
In Lahaina, families are reconnecting to ʻāina, culture, and each other through hands-on papa and pōhaku workshops that support healing and community restoration.
In Lahaina, families are reconnecting to ʻāina, culture and each other through hands-on papa kuʻi ʻai and pōhaku kuʻi ʻai workshops that support healing and community restoration.
Kamehameha Schools Maui students led a compelling discussion on Hawaii News Now about Lahaina’s restoration.
Efforts to restore Lahaina’s native ecosystem are underway with removing invasive eucalyptus trees, installing conservation fencing and replanting native species.
Kamehameha Schools Maui haumāna recently planted native ʻaʻaliʻi and wiliwili at the Ka Malu site on ʻĀina Pauahi in Kuʻia, Maui. The plants were carefully propagated at the ʻAʻapueo campus. Their hana is part of a bigger community-focused restoration effort ma uka to ma kai.
The first planting at Ka Malu in Lahaina kickstarts a major restoration effort by Ke Kula ʻo Kamehameha, revitalizing the land with native dry forest species and traditional canoe crops. Through deep community collaboration and love for ‘āina, the heritage site will honor the stories of Lahaina’s past while creating space for healing and renewal.
In Lahaina, resilience is taking root once again. Kamehameha Schools Maui students and educators teamed up with community leaders to launch restoration efforts in Kuʻia. Through the sowing and planting of strong species like ʻaʻaliʻi and wiliwili, the project blends environmental healing with cultural pride – one seed at a time.
Sixth graders from Kamehameha Schools Kapālama traveled to Maui to deliver their “love letter to Lahaina” in the form of a theatrical performance. “Ka Malu Ulu o Lele” is an entertaining, emotional journey that tells of Lahaina’s prestigious history, and the forces that worked to erase its Hawaiian culture and abundance. Haumāna also shared common-sense solutions, in a way only ʻōpio can.
The ma uka to ma kai restoration of Kamehameha Schools’ lands in Kuʻia, Lahaina mirrors the efforts to restore kaiāulu there. With her people leading the way, KS envisions the return of Lahaina to the “breadbasket of West Maui.” And those seeds of change are being planted now.
As the year comes to an end, we proudly share the latest edition of I Mua magazine — now online and soon to arrive in the mail. Read more about ‘āina restoration happening in Lahaina and how alumni are helping to reshape narratives of our lāhui.
Kamehameha Schools remains focused on rebuilding Lahaina, following the community’s vision and lead. While the wildfires displaced Lahaina families throughout Maui and beyond, our hope is to rebuild a community that welcomes them back home.
A part of Kamehameha Schools’ reimagination of its Kuʻia lands is already beginning to take shape ma waena, just above the Lahaina Bypass. That’s where native trees and food crops are about to be planted on a one-acre parcel, with plans to add more food trees on an adjoining parcel in 2025.
Discussions are underway to rebuild the elementary school on Kuʻia acreage, along with Hawaiian learning centers and ʻāina-based programs to revitalize the community and preserve Lahaina’s educational legacy.
As we huipū in observance of the one-year remembrance of the Maui fires, we hold close the precious lives lost and send our deepest aloha and pule to their ‘ohana, friends, and the larger Lahaina community. Their strength and resilience through the tragedy, and this difficult past year, remind us of the importance of standing together, supporting one another, and embodying the spirit of aloha that defines our Kamehameha Schools ʻohana.
Lahaina ʻohana and KS land stewards take cues from the hearty ʻaʻaliʻi plant as they holomua toward restoration.
Aloha nō e ka ʻohana o Kamehameha. As promised, the Board of Trustees and I are writing to offer a detailed update about the Lahaina global settlement. Our joining this settlement ensures the restoration of Lahaina’s people and community, protects Ke Aliʻi Pauahi’s trust, and offers future opportunities and hope.
Hui o Waʻa Kaulua offers cultural education programs that foster resilience and joy for families impacted by the Maui wildfires.
Nearly two dozen high school haumāna, most from West Maui, embarked on a summer camp-style learning journey in Honokōhau Valley. Funding for the camp was made possible by Kamehameha Schools Kaiāulu through a Summer Boost program.
Two KS Maui haumāna have earned yet another honor for a groundbreaking environmental invention. Their biofiltration sock prototype using live pili grass garnered a prize at an international science fair on the continent.
"Ka Malu ʻUlu o Lele" transports the audience to Lahaina's prosperous past.
Though nearly nine months have passed since the tragic Lahaina fires, our hearts and attention remain with all those affected as we see the ongoing need to mālama Lahaina and its ʻohana and kaiāulu.
An award-winning project developed by two Kamehameha Schools Maui haumāna utilizing lāʻau ʻōiwi Hawaiʻi is showing promise in aiding toxic cleanup in places like fire-ravaged Lahaina.
With KS Maui’s trades program, students receive construction skills and a path to serve their communities during the Lahaina recovery and rebuilding process.
Kamehameha Schools’ policy is to give preference to applicants of Hawaiian ancestry to the extent permitted by law.
