Hawai’i Ancient Cultures & Wild Environments: The Hawai’i Project
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Team members will take part in an intimate, comprehensive examination of Hawai’i’s island ecosystems, the diverse cultures they support, and the contemporary challenges they face. Our interdisciplinary investigation features back-country exploration of cultural and ecological systems on the Big Island, as we experience a broad range of island environments from the alpine to the shoreline.
The islands of Hawai’i form one of the most beautiful and dynamic island chains on earth. It has the world’s most active volcanoes, tropical rainforests, and at certain times of the year it snows. Some extraordinary geology has taken place there: the Hawai’i Island Chain spans over 2,000 miles in length and 30 million years in age. It is also a showcase of evolutionary biology. This combination has led to the appearance of unique and diverse creations of plants and animals found in Hawai’i and no where else on earth. The topography and weather are also extremely diverse: Hawai’i has 11 of the world’s 13 climate zones, varied ecological systems, and elevations on the island of Hawai’i range from sea level to 13,967 feet. The combination of age, volcanism, climate, evolution, and human impacts have made Hawai’i an excellent outdoor laboratory for field studies such as ours.
Team members will investigate many of these unique ecosystems, such as lava flows, rain-forests, and wild coastal areas. They will also discover how humans have impacted the land,
beginning with ancient cultures and culminating in present day Hawai’i. Our explorations will take us to untouched corners of the islands. They will also show us places where environmental change is undeniably clear.
THE PROJECT
Team fieldwork will take place on the “Big Island” of Hawai’i—geologically one of the youngest spots on earth—an island that boasts a compelling human history to match its natural drama. With active volcanoes, lava landscapes, and black sand beaches the intrigue and mystery remains as alive today as in ancient Hawai’ian society. Here the team will study, explore, live in, and interact with both the environment and its inhabitants. Together we will closely explore Hawai’i Volcanoes National Park and its special geology/biology, including a backcountry hike to a remote location in the Park to assess flora and fauna, discuss ecology, and explore ancient cultural uses of the area.
The team will also visit ancient cultural sites around the island, and through field studies, readings, and seminars, will understand how the most remote island chain in the world was discovered and nurtured by a unique Polynesian people. There will be research and discussion on how Hawai’ians related to their “aina” (land), including mythology, ethnobiology, life in the “ahupua’a”(traditional ecosystem divisions), religion, and taboos. Reef ecology will also be studied and team members will discover the biodiversity of Hawai’i’s coral reefs. The team will also discover how Hawai’ian cultural beliefs united beings of the ocean with their counterparts on land, and how the parallels of rainforest and coral reef diversity unfolds. Other remote coastal areas of cultural and ecological importance will also be studied on-site.
Together we will contrast traditional and modern concepts of wilderness and discover how humans have impacted Hawai’i’s wildlands as we learn about the spirit of “lokahi” or balance, and how the ancient Hawai’ians managed their environment. Through our explorations, we will come to better understand how islands have, can, should, and should not be used, and how the needs of Hawai’i’s urban and wildland communities must balance if the Hawai’ian Islands are to remain a paradise and the Aloha Spirit is to survive.
Full information available on request.
PROJECT LEADER
Stephanie Olsen is a Marine Wildlife Biologist, specialzing in marine conservation. She has taught, studied and worked in many Pacific Rim countries including Western Canada, Hawaii, Alaska and Thailand.