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The public is invited to a free presentation focusing on Kahoʻolawe titled, “Kūkulu Ke Ea A Kanaloa — The life and spirit of Kanaloa builds and takes form.” The talk will be presented by Dean Tokishi, Ocean Resources Specialist III, Kaho’olawe Island Reserve Commission, at the Wednesday, April 3 meeting of Maui Nui Marine Resource Council at a new venue: The Sphere at Maui Ocean Center. 

“Kanaloa Kaho‘olawe’s rich history, complex present and hopeful future can be seen and felt,” said Tokishi. “My talk will cover everything from the island’s use as a prison colony, a ranch, and military live fire training site to the extensive unexploded ordinance clean-up project and the efforts to restore an entire island ecosystem, mauka to makai.”

The meeting and presentation will take place at Maui Ocean Center at The Sphere, a new high-tech dome-shaped presentation space, offering reclining movie-theater style seats and state-of-the-art visuals and acoustics. (Learn more at www.mauioceancenter.com.)  Doors open at 5 pm; please enter by the Administrative Office entrance at Maui Ocean Center. The presentation will take place from 5:30 pm to 7 pm. Admission is free and the public is invited. By order of the fire marshal, only 118 guests can be accommodated, so admission is on a first-come, first-served basis.

“Many on Maui look across the channel to Kahoʻolawe and wonder about its history, and what the island is like now,” says Amy Hodges, Program Manager at Maui Nui Marine Resource Council. “Thereʻs also a lot of curiosity about the reefs and marine resources of Kahoʻolawe. How are they surviving after the years of extreme sediment runoff caused by the decades of military bombing of Kahoʻolawe? We are grateful that Dean Tokishi will be sharing his manaʻo and knowledge about Kahoʻolawe with us all.”

“Please join us for this free talk, which will include time for questions from the audience,” says Hodges. “Iʻm confident that weʻll all learn much and come away inspired by the work that KIRC is doing to restore and protect Kahoʻolawe and its marine resources.”

About Dean Tokishi:
Growing up on Maui, Dean graduated from Maui High School and later received a Bachelorʻs Degree in Marine Science from the University of Hawaii at Hilo. For three years he was involved in the restoration of Kahoʻolawe during the ordnance removal project. In January of 2003 he obtained a position with the Kahoʻolawe Island Reserve Commission (KIRC) in monitoring, managing and protecting all of the Reserves marine resources. Currently Dean serves as KIRCʻs Ocean Resources Program Manager where he is given the opportunity to educate others on the importance of these marine resources.

About Kahoʻolawe Island Reserve Commission (KIRC)
From its inception by the State of Hawaiʻi in 1993, KIRC was funded through the Kahoʻolawe Island Rehabilitation Trust Fund – originating from a portion of the federal funding allocated to the Navy’s unexploded ordnance clearance project (ending in 2003). In 2014, KIRC partnered with PKO (Protect Kahoʻolawe ʻOhana) and OHA (Office of Hawaiian Affairs) to publish a collaborative plan for the Kahoʻolawe Island Reserve through 2026 (entitled I Ola Kanaloa!). With refined goals and objectives adopted by each organization, KIRC presented its self-sustainability financial plan to the Hawaiʻi State Legislature in 2016. Supported by an Aloha Kahoʻolawe campaign, which called for memberships, shared information and public testimony to affirm KIRC’s restoration and access programs, the State authorized permanent funding for KIRC staff and additional CIP funding for KIRC operations in 2018. Programs that bring community volunteers to the Reserve continue to rely on funds raised through donations, grants and memberships. Learn more at https://www.kahoolawe.hawaii.gov/home.php.

About Maui Nui Marine Resource Council
Celebrating 11 years, Maui Nui Marine Resource Council is a Maui-based nonprofit organization working for healthy coral reefs, clean ocean water and the restoration of native fish for the islands of Maui County. To learn more, visit www.mauireefs.org.

Special thanks to Maui Ocean Center for donating the use of The Sphere for this presentation.