Photo by Serah Florendo-Iboshi
Amidst a concrete jungle of buildings and busy streets lies a small, but resilient farm working to restore life and traditional cultural practices to the ahupuaʻa of Kalauao. Kaʻōnohi is a 3 acre loʻi kalo (freshwater taro) system maintained by mahiʻai (farmer) Anthony Deluze, his family, and the community organization Hoʻōla Hou iā Kalauao. On his farm, Deluze grows traditional Hawaiian food staples such as kalo and ‘ulu, as well as heirloom crops, which are plants that have been passed down from generation to generation. The farm aims to feed the community while restoring identity and abundance to both people and ‘aina.
Being located in between the two Pearlridge shopping buildings might make Kaʻōnohi seem out of place. However, this little green patch of land is what the entire “Pearlridge”, or more accurately Kalauao, area used to be before modern urbanization and colonization of Hawaiʻi. Kalauao is part of a much larger moku (district) of ‘Ewa, a place that used to be known for its abundance of wai (water). And where there is water, there is life.
Due to its significant location and pristine resources, Kalauao was once a thriving agricultural food hub rich with lo‘i kalo (irrigated taro fields taro) and loko iʻa (fish ponds). It was even the chosen home of Kalanimanuia, mōʻī wahine (queen) of Oʻahu. Today, much of the area’s rich history is buried beneath concrete, making Kaʻōnohi one of the few remaining places that uphold this abundant past.
The farm faces a plethora of challenges around them, from mismanagement of resources, climate change, and loss of culture. As many of our communities have seen, water is under constant threat. The sheer number of buildings and apartment complexes in the area demand more water from the aquifer below land, which directly affects Kaʻōnohi’s spring-fed loʻi. Additionally, factors such as sea level rise are causing an increase in water salinity that Deluze has been actively observing since he first began farming at Kaʻōnohi back in 2013.
In addition to persevering through the changing landscape, Kaʻōnohi is also a native space that is fighting to restore and perpetuate Hawaiian culture and knowledge that has been lost and forgotten. Through growing ancestral foods, Deluze wants Kanaka Maoli (Native Hawaiians) and others in the community to be, “grounded in traditional practices that are sustainable and nurturing”. In this sea of challenges, advocacy, community involvement, and the teaching of cultural values are vital to the work done on the farm.
Deluze and Program Director Dani Espiritu both emphasized the importance of building kaiāulu (community). Espiritu wants people to remember that the abundance that once supported the thriving ‘Ewa moku still exists. Kaʻōnohi is proof of it and it is worth restoring and protecting. However, it takes a community to create change. Hoʻōla Hou iā Kalauao hosts community work days in which volunteers can connect with ʻāina while building and restoring identity and relationships within the community. A range of groups from keiki, college classes, to kūpuna help out at the farm. Deluze’s hopes are that Kaʻōnohi will continue to be nurtured, loved, and cultivated in traditional practice so that future generations can thrive.
Kaʻōnohi hosts community work days every 3rd Saturday of the month!
If you have interests in mālama ʻāina and volunteering, their schedule can be found on Instagram @hoolahouiakalauao or their website https://hoolahouiakalauao.wordpress.com/ .
Please email info@kalauao.org if you have any questions.
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