ka-ehu_profile-header_a2-1024581
ka-ehu_profile-header_a2-1024581

Wailuku, Hawaii

KAʻEHU

KAʻEHU is on a mission to restore the natural resources around Hawaii’s Kaʻehu Bay and preserve traditional Hawaiian culture with a community-based, family-oriented approach to environmental stewardship and sustainable agriculture. Founded to help protect the Paukukalo Coastal Wetlands and significant cultural sites in the area, KAʻEHU members have been working for three decades to maintain and preserve resources for traditional and cultural practices for the community. Activities include promoting sustainable management of the land and bay, utilizing those resources in conjunction with other agencies and cultural organizations to promote and preserve traditional Hawaiian cultural activities, and providing fiscal sponsorship to native Hawaiian and indigenous nonprofit organizations with needed services for their community. As a steward for the area’s natural wonders and culture, KAʻEHU provides a home base for citizens to preserve all that makes Ka’ehu Bay a special place.

Volunteer at beach cleanup in May 2023.

KAʻEHU is a nonprofit organization that partners with other nonprofits and businesses to help restore and preserve the Ka’ehu Bay region while promoting cultural practices along with sustainable agriculture and development. Partners include the Trust for Public Lands, Kauahea Inc., Hale Hoʻolana, Makahiki Athletic Association (MAA), Aloha Missions, and Planning Innovative Kommunities & Opportunities (PIKO). Programs include monthly community work days that involve the restoration of streams and native plants, removal of invasive species, and beach cleanup of debris along the shore of Kaʻehu Bay. The Community Environmental Stewardship Program provides training in traditional shoreline and land stewardship, while the KALO Healthy Families Program hosts workshops to promote healthy relationships within the home and community. The Mālama Hawaiʻi Program offers tourists a discount on lodging or even a free night’s stay in exchange for volunteering with Ka’ehu during their visit.

Contact
Keolamau Tengan, Executive Director
Climate impacts
Drought, Earthquakes, Erosion-Subsidence, Flooding, Hurricanes/Tropical Storms
Strategies
Community Land Trusts/Land Conservation, Community Organizing and Education, Legal/permit challenges to development, contamination, pollution, etc, Nature-Based Solutions, Risk mapping and/or monitoring e.g. flooding/contaminants etc
Environmental Justice Concerns
Fighting Development/Destruction of Wildlife/Extinction of Species, Groundwater Contamination, Hazardous/Toxic Sites
501c3 Tax Deductible
Yes
Accepting Donation
Yes