Before Polynesians arrived in Hawai’i there were no amphibians, reptiles, or freshwater fish, and only two mammals, the ancient Hawaiian monk seal and the small Hawaiian Hoary Bat (Ope’ape’a). Early Polynesian settlers brought key plants and animals with them and after their arrival well over a thousand years ago these new species gradually but significantly changed the native Hawaiian environment. Though Hawai’i still provided the seafood protein that the Polynesians had depended on in the Marquesas and Society Islands, the Polynesians introduced protein sources that included taro, chickens, dogs and pigs.

323 people responded to our 'ulu survey - well beyond our expectations! Please see below for survey highlights. Here are some ways for people to participate in revitalizing breadfruit:

1. Save the date: Saturday, September 24, 2011, we will have a Breadfruit Festival at Amy B.H. Greenwell Ethnobotanical Garden in Captain Cook.
2. We are looking for farmers who are already producing 'ulu to participate in a project to improve management practices and marketing. Please email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. by Wednesday, November 23, 2010 if you are interested in participating.
3. If you have 'ulu fruit that is going to waste and you would like it to be harvested by skilled professionals and be given to people who want and need it, please click here to participate in a gleaning project to help those who are hungry.

Just the other day, while I was eating my supper in one of my “doom and gloom” modes, it occurred to me that I have no idea what sort of a safety net exists globally in terms of food supply. How much food is stored up? My answer could have been three months, or three years. I had no clue. So, I went on a few government web sites to look at the official statistics. As it turns out, since 1999, global grain production has consistently fallen short of demand. 2008 was the largest worldwide grain harvest ever, but it failed to break even. So right now we are left with a 59 day buffer. Two months, then we are running on empty (empty bellies, that is).

For the first time since its beginning, the 4^th annual Hamakua Alive! Festival was held at a new location. Sponsored by The Tom Kadooka Foundation, the festival was held in the beautiful Pa’auhau Community Park just outside Honoka’a. Farmer-vendor displays, cooking contests, games, music by John Keawe and Cyril Pahinui, and lots of ono food tastings were just some of the Hamakua Alive! activities on Saturday, October 23, 2010. Jim and Tracy Reddekopp, owners of the Hawaiian Vanilla Company, formed the Tom Kadooka Foundation to honor the man, his family and his life’s work in developing Hawai’i-grown vanilla. The foundation has become a vehicle to give back to the agricultural community. 

A while back, we got two young female ducks from a friend, and one of them flew off and got lost in a real thick part of the woods east of our land. I felt sad about her plight, and went out calling and quacking after her. I was practically swimming in an ocean of vines and logs and brush for an hour or so. She must have froze with panic in this strange and foreign environment, because I was unable to get any sign of her. I gave up and began work on our house, when suddenly I heard her call. I rushed back, but she clammed up when she heard me coming. I waited for a time in the warm sun on a high log, to see if she might forget I was there and start calling again for her friend. I felt a connection to her fear and helplessness. I really wanted to rescue her and get her into our pond with her duck friends. I eventually gave up, though, and resumed my construction project.