Getting dirt under your nails while on vacation is always a good sign that you’ve climbed a mountain, built a sandcastle, or scurried over a fallen log. During my family’s last trip to the big island of Hawai’i, we got dirty nails by planting koa trees in a large native forest restoration project. Little did I know, that bit of dirt would have a bigger story to tell.
Read MoreSince the arrival of man in the Hawaiian Islands, over half of the native forests have been lost. Since its inception in 2014, The Hawaiian Legacy Reforestation Initiative (HLRI) has been working hard to reverse this trend and return these forests to the native landscape. Working together with community minded businesses, non-profits and individual Legacy Tree sponsors, more than 400,000 endemic trees now cover nearly 1200 acres in the state’s first Hawaiian Legacy Forest.
Read MoreRenowned woodworker Scott Hare is among a group of talented local artisans working with the nonprofit Hawaiian Legacy Reforestation Initiative to raise awareness around native forests and wildlife.
Read MoreWith growing interest from government agencies and local landowners, the rare 'Iliahi tree (Hawaiian sandalwood) is poised for a comeback in the islands.
Read MoreThis fall, more than two dozen Hawai'i Island youth trekked up the slopes of Mauna Kea to plant hundreds of koa seedlings. They are the latest in a long line of environmental stewards who are taking part in an ongoing demonstration of social ecological responsibility. In just six years, hundreds of businesses and tens of thousands of individuals have helped plant more than 350,000 endemic koa, sandalwood and other native trees in the state's only Hawaiian Legacy Forest.
Read MoreTo hear Brook Kapukuniahi Parker tell the story of the Battle of Moku‘ōhai, instrumental in Kamehameha the Great’s rise to power in the late 1700s, is to feel the personalities, strengths and struggles of Hawai‘i’s legendary leaders come alive.
In his 2012 debut oil painting “Ahu‘ula O Kamehameha Kunuiākea” and a subsequent collection of 6-by-8-foot original works of art being installed throughout Hawai‘i, Parker has visually depicted some of the islands’ most iconic historical events and leaders.
Read MoreHawaiian honeycreepers have lived in the islands’ tropical forests for millennia, but the colorful finch-like birds are facing “imminent collapse” on Kauai, experts say.
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