NORTH SHORE — Pre-colonial Hawaiian life was based around the ahupua‘a system of land and resource management, which evolved to protect the water and other resources that sustain all life. A typical ahupua‘a, or land division, extended from the highest
NORTH SHORE — Pre-colonial Hawaiian life was based around the ahupua‘a system of land and resource management, which evolved to protect the water and other resources that sustain all life.
A typical ahupua‘a, or land division, extended from the highest point in the mountains down to the sea. Ahupua‘a boundaries often followed watershed lines, providing each community with fresh water, fertile land, abundant marine life and forest resources. Working in concert with the other ahupua‘a within a moku (district), the Hawaiians created a community-based system of self-sustaining resource management.
Traditional Hawaiian ways of knowing, interacting with, and relating to the environment reflect a sustainable resource management ethic. The ahupua‘a system recognizes the connection between the health of the mountains, the ocean and the community; and the vital role that fresh water plays in linking it all together. Reflecting the value of water in Hawaiian culture, the word for fresh water is “wai,” and the word for wealth is “waiwai.”
Principles of ahupua‘a management enabled Hawaiians to sustain large and healthy populations without compromising ecosystem integrity. In fact, traditional agriculture and resource management methods actually increased biodiversity and key natural resources. Hawaiians developed agroforestry systems that minimized soil erosion, facilitated the emergence of water springs, and maintained high species diversity. Not only is biodiversity essential to nutrient cycling and ecosystem resilience, but it also provided Hawaiians with the resources to live in abundance and comfort.
To ensure adequate space for forests and agriculture in each ahupua‘a, pre-colonial Hawaiian communities applied careful land-use planning. Valley floors, where the most fertile soil is concentrated, were reserved for agriculture. They often included walled-terraces developed to grow kalo (taro), the most important staple food crop for Hawaiians. Houses were built on hillsides and in sandy areas in order to save prime agricultural lands. As contemporary Kaua‘i attempts to move towards more self-sufficient communities, we can look towards this model of reserving prime agricultural lands for agriculture to perpetuate our ability to feed ourselves.
Fundamental to the ahupua‘a system was community involvement. Everybody was responsible for upholding the principles of sustainable resource management and for participating in the work it took to maintain the ecosystem and community health. It was understood that ecosystems provide important services to society, including necessary resources, nutrient cycling, and a sense of place and well-being. Today, with over half of the world’s population living in cities, there is a severe disconnect between people and the environments and resources that sustain them. By looking to the ahupua‘a system and the values associated with it, we can gain knowledge and inspiration for creating the models that will sustain us in the 21st century and beyond.
An upcoming permaculture design course will be looking in greater depth at ahupua‘a resource management (activatekauai.org). The course will culminate in a two-day public forum of all agricultural stakeholders to identify challenges, design solutions, and implement food self-sufficiency on Kauai. To get involved with or learn more about the forum, contact andrea@malamakauai.org
• Andrea Brower works for Malama Kaua‘i, a local nonprofit sustainability group, and Kawika Winter is executive director of Limahuli Garden and Preserve, a branch of the National Tropical Botanical Garden.
