Impact Story
Hui Maka’āinana o Makana in Hanalei, Hawaii, is strengthening and sustaining their Pāpala Lele Internship Program, engaging Native Hawaiian high school and college students as the next generation of environmental stewards through place-based learning across the Hāʻena ahupuaʻa.
Sophia Harder-Pua’oi, Executive Administrator of Hui Maka’āinana o Makana
In this video, Sophia Harder-Pua’oi, Executive Administrator of Hui Maka’āinana o Makana, describes how the internship recognizes the powerful intersection of cultural identity, heritage, and connection to land as the foundation for overall well-being of people and communities.
Through the five-week program, youth learn hands-on about climate-responsive stewardship, rotating through five pathways: watershed restoration, native plant horticulture, fisheries management, and community-based resource management.
It is vital education and intergenerational learning that First Nations has helped support since 2024 through our Stewarding Native Lands Nurturing Future Ancestors project, part of our focus on Community Pathways.
The program is designed to introduce students to career opportunities in conservation and environmental careers. Moreover, the program sets up to ignite a passion for stewardship and underscore students’ relationship with the land.
“We give them the resources to be able to give back to the community, the community that they are a part of, the community that raised them,” says Harder-Pua’oi. “We want the internship to light a fire for the students and to be the spark for their future.”
Indeed, program evaluations to date show that 100 of interns say they would share the knowledge gained with others, 93% developed a clearer understanding of career and college pathways in conservation, and every participant confirmed a deepened interest in environmental careers.
Harder-Pua’oi says these findings are an indicator of the program’s success in providing opportunities to connect with and love the land.
“That’s what we’re about,” she says. “Making sure these youth have every chance they can have to succeed and be our next stewards.”
