Our office focuses on implementing report recommendations from the last 30+ years that guide UH Mānoa in becoming reflective of Hawaiʻi's language, culture, values, and knowledge systems from which all people learn, connect, grow, and heal:

• Hawaiʻi-Guided Student Success
• Hawaiʻi-Grounded Staff and Faculty Development
• Cultivating Hawaiʻi Environments 
• Hawaiʻi-Reflective Community Engagement

We cannot do this work alone. It is our mission to foster the potential within each of you to positively contribute to our collective kuleana to make UH Mānoa reflective of Hawaiʻi. These monthly newsletters, with written reflections that cover the preceding month's happenings, are meant to keep you connected, highlight your work and continue to inspire you.

NHSS Lāhui Hawaiʻi Research Center Conference

by Kawehi Goto

The LHRC Student Conference's 2025 theme was "He Aupuni Palapala Koʻu."

From this year’s Lāhui Hawaiʻi Research Center (LHRC) Student Conference, I heard stories of the important strides and struggles across generations of Hawaiian education, learned about solutions embedded in the richness of our moʻolelo, and wondered about how we can best draw from the history of Hawaiian education to inform what we do on our Mānoa campus every day. While these are not new or novel ideas, I appreciated the reminder from those who took the time to share their knowledge, research, and expertise. In particular, in the second day’s keynote, I held onto the manaʻo shared that “people do well with kuleana” and invite you to reflect on one kuleana you have been gifted and will “do well” this week, this month, and into the future. 

Mahalo nunui to Native Hawaiian Student Services and the many hearts and hands that made this year’s conference a success! For more information about the conference, visit the LHRC website and subscribe to the NHSS newsletter. We hope to see you at the LHRC Student Conference next year!  

Place-Based Book Club on Kanaka ʻŌiwi Methodologies: Moʻolelo and Metaphor

by Punihei Lipe

The panel of Kanaka ʻŌiwi Methodologies contributing scholars.

On April 16 I had the great opportunity to sit alongside four esteemed colleagues, including Drs Nalani Balutski, Summer Maunakea, Maya Saffery, and Kahunawai Wright in a presentation at the Center for Teaching Excellence's place-based book club. We presented on our book Kanaka ‘Ōiwi Methodologies: Mo‘olelo and Metaphor, edited by Drs Kahunawai Wright and Kapā Oliveira. Our audience included graduate students, high school teachers, as well as UH professors and staff. As I listened to the wisdom of my fellow presenters, one of the things that I really appreciated were the multiple applications of their research methodologies. For example, Dr. Saffery presented on mele and Dr. Maunakea on ‘āina, and while their work resonated with hula practitioners and/or ‘āina-based practitioners, others connected with some of the more meta points that were shared. We heard from those studying library science and others who are in the field of psychology and lessons also resonated with them. Hence, I am continually inspired by the Hawai‘i-grounded approaches being utilized across the university in areas including but not limited to research methodologies because their application is both vast and deep. Main lesson learned: We can all learn from Hawai‘i, so let's go! 

Kamana Beamer Book Launch, Waiwai: Water and the Future of Hawaiʻi

by Pua Souza

Contributing Waiwai authors celebrating their book launch at Ka Waiwai.

Last month, Pōʻai ke Aloha ʻĀina and Dr. Kamana Beamer celebrated the launch of their book Waiwai: Water and the Future of Hawaiʻi. Hosted at Ka Waiwai at Mōʻiliʻili, the event gathered water advocates, scholars, and community members to honor this collaborative work, which unites experts from diverse fields to address the complex challenges of water management. The book aims to answer the central question, "What do people need to know about the future of water in Hawai'i, and what can they do to enable a better future?" As a call to action and a guide, Waiwai invites community members, academics, scientists, policymakers, and aspiring visionaries to participate in ensuring a legacy of abundance for future generations.

Check out the book here: Waiwai: Water and The Future of Hawaiʻi

Photo Credit: TianiStudios (@tianistudios on IG)

Nohelani Teves Book Launch: The Māhele of Our Bodies

by hope matsumoto

A full room of audience members listening to a panel discussion facilitated by Professor Lani Teves and featuring kūpuna Kuʻumeaaloha Gomes, Aunty Kim Haʻupu, and Nawahine Dudoit.

Hoʻomaikaʻi and congratulations to Nohelani Teves for a wonderful book launch of The Māhele of Our Bodies: Nā Moʻolelo Kūpuna Māhū/LGBTQ+! I truly appreciate spaces on campus where we have the opportunity to hear stories from elders and community members who have dedicated so much of their lives to planting the seeds of survival for future generations. As the stories of the kūpuna reminded me, now is the time to water and nurture our seeds because, in the words of Kuʻumeaaloha Gomes—We are love. We come from love. We live and practice aloha.

Listen and read along to the library-access interviews with each of the ten kūpuna, and don’t forget to get your copy of this exciting and important new book!