Resources for the Future

What will we do when the canoe-building trees are gone? Hawai`iloa dramatically brought home the loss of kumu waiwai (native resources). The giant koa trees needed for the canoe hulls were long ago logged or cleared for ranching. The plants needed to make the strongest aho (cordage) were hard to find.

To insure that native Hawaiian plants and animals are not lost, conservation plays a major role in Hawai`iloa educational programs. Key traditional kumu waiwai, like koa, olona, ipu (gourds), and wauke (paper mulberry), are being replenished through cultivation programs. It is important that the kumu waiwai, which are so much a part of the Hawaiian heritage, survive for our mamo (descendants).

Visit the ethnobotanical garden outside to learn more about traditional Hawaiian plant resources.

Hokule`a: Star of Joy
Front Gallery of the Hawai`iloa Exhibit

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Revised on August 29, 1996 by mcb