Hahai no ka ua i ka ululāʻau. The rain follows the forest. 

As reflected in this well-known ‘ōlelo noʻeau, our ancestors inherently knew what hydrologists study today; the cyclical, inextricable relationship between forests and rainfall. Rain nurtures the forest. A thriving forest attracts more rain clouds.  

Conversely, a diminished forest means fewer rain clouds. That is the current state of affairs in Lahaina and much of West Maui. In just a couple of centuries, this area once known as a verdant food basket for all of Maui, has become hot and parched.  

Lahaina lineal descendant Kaulana Kapu has seen the decline up close.  

“When I was a kid, I used to run through sugar cane. As I got older, I started to see more of the guinea grass and the buffelgrass, and it’s now a dry landscape.” 

Kapu, who works with ʻĀina Pauahi Group partner Ku‘ia Agricultural Education Center, is part of a network that has begun a cutting-edge reforestation effort to bring nahele — and ua — back to the ma uka sections of Lahaina. 

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Puʻuwai 

One focal point of restoration is a ma uka section of KS’ Kuʻia lands dubbed Puʻuwai. In an area adjacent to the slopeside “L” above Lahainaluna, the ‘Āina Pauahi Group has overseen the installation of a protective fence that keeps deer, goats, cows and pigs out of a 200-acre area. Free from the threat of voracious grazers, a coalition of KS ‘āina stewards and community members have begun the arduous work of bringing native lāʻau back on a large scale. 

“We’re using a strategy where we plant heavy densities of drought-tolerant plants so they can come in and provide some cover and make the climate a little bit gentler. They are tough and can handle the harsh conditions and once established, we can interplant other species over time and diversify the forest,” said Mililani Browning KSK’02, a natural resources manager with KS’ ʻĀina Pauahi Group. 

Since few restoration initiatives have worked in landscapes this harsh in Hawaiʻi, the reforestation effort is undergoing what might be considered beta testing in an approximately four-acre section within the 200-acre confines of Puʻuwai. After using various methods to control the invasive grasses, native ʻaʻaliʻi, wiliwili and Polynesian-introduced kukui grown at the Kuʻia Agricultural Education Center were planted in four different sections utilizing four different planting techniques. 

“What we're trying to do is find methods that are scalable, feasible and just healthier overall,” said Daniel Kahaialiʻi, a field technician with Kuʻia Agricultural Education Center. 

Much of these plantings happened in late February 2026. That’s when limahana from KS’ ‘Āina Pauahi natural and cultural stewardship team joined members of KAEC in planting seedlings into the ground in a grid-like pattern. 

“Working alongside Kamehameha Schools in this effort to reinforce the kuahiwi areas of the ‘āina, I see that their passion for cultivating their ‘āina and their push for more water resiliency,” said Kapu. 

The ultimate vision for KS’ ma uka lands is to see a return to a resilient, native dominated landscape incorporating agroforestry and important food crops. And from that ʻōlelo noʻeau, we know what kind of power that restoration will unlock. 

“The dream is that through our work of restoring native species to these lands, we’ll once again have abundant water in these areas.  And that as our places thrive, so will our people,” said Browning.  

For more information on the vision to bring abundance back to Lahaina ma uka to ma kai, visit: ksbe.edu/lahaina 

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lahaina, imua kamehameha, ʻāina pauahi

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