Waimea Middle School Career Day

When it comes to solving our sometimes daunting wildfire issues, we need a whole collective of individuals and groups from a wide spectrum of disciplines and backgrounds. On Wednesday, February 15, HWMO’s Community Outreach Coordinator, Pablo Beimler, shared this important lesson with Waimea Middle School students at Career Day. To get the message across, Pablo tapped into the creative and artistic minds of the students. 

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Emoji created to express sorrow over a wildfire-ravaged island.

After starting with a viewing of the Prevent Wildfires to Protect Our Ocean YouTube video produced by HWMO, Pablo had the students draw their ideal Big Island complete with healthy watersheds and thriving communities. Each student was then asked to create an emoji that best expressed how the island scene made them feel. 

Then, it was time to introduce wildfire to the picture. The students were asked what impacts a wildfire could have on the island. With each impact, whether it was smoke, burnt forests, polluted waterways, or damaged powerlines, the students wreaked havoc on their island by drawing fiery scribbles over the resources affected. By the end of the exercise, their islands had gone through a rough time. The students then developed new emojis to express how they felt about their new island scene. 

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Adding ideas for people/careers that can contribute to a Fire Adapted Community.

To wrap it up, Pablo had each of the students write or draw two types of people or activities on Post-it notes that could help create a Fire Adapted Community. A whole range of amazing, creative ideas were developed, including having politicians, celebrities, family members, scientists, botanists, and gardeners be a part of the big picture. Each student was asked to place their Post-it note on a poster of an island scene to demonstrate that it will take all of us to keep this waʻa afloat. 

Wiliwili Festival 2017

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Young artist creates a beautiful "Prevent Fires to Keep Ocean Clean" sign.

In the first big event of 2017, HWMO joined a number of other organizations in hosting an informational booth at the Wiliwili Festival, usually held in September. The festival, put on by long-time HWMO partner Waikoloa Dry Forest Initiative, was delayed until January due to an unusually late bloom for the storied wiliwili trees of Waikoloa. Throughout the day, serene live music filled the air as hundreds upon hundreds of visitors of all ages strolled through the Waikoloa Stables to learn about conserving natural resources and protecting our forests and watersheds.

HWMO introduced a brand new booth layout in conjunction with Pacific Fire Exchange (PFX) and the Waikoloa Village Fire Management Action Committee. With many helping hands, HWMO held several fun activities for keiki: wildfire prevention sign making and a new game called "Building and Testing a Strong Fire Adapted Community." The game attracted young builders and creative minds who constructed bridges or buildings out of craft sticks and binder clips. In order to receive a set of building materials, the young builders had to answer a series of scavenger hunt questions all related to information at our booth (including who is the owl you see all over our booth? - answer: Kaleo the Pueo). Once the keiki built their structures, none identical to the other, they had to carefully place hot embers (secret revealed: heavy river stones painted with fiery colors) on the structures to test their strength. Each craft stick had an important contributor of a Fire Adapted Community labeled on it. In the end, we were amazed by the strength of the Fire Adapted Community structures created. All of them withstood the ember attacks!

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A big mahalo to Waikoloa Dry Forest Initiative for the opportunity to share information about wildfire prevention and preparedness with the community, including during a one-hour workshop in the afternoon. Find out more about the great work WDFI does in the community here: http://waikoloadryforest.org/

Method to the Madness Podcast - HWMO Interview

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HWMO Community Outreach Coordinator, Pablo Beimler (left) and Method to the Madness host, Niklas Lollo

On December 23, just before the holiday season was in full swing, HWMO's Community Outreach Coordinator, Pablo Beimler visited his alma mater, University of California, Berkeley, and was interviewed by Niklas Lollo, a current graduate student and co-host of the Method to the Madness podcast. The show, which airs regularly on KALX 90.7FM (staffed by students and community volunteers), celebrates "the innovative spirit of the Bay Area." Each episode, they "explore the people behind the ideas, what makes them tick, and why so many of them have come out of" the beautiful Bay Area.

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Pablo Beimler was interviewed about various topics including the work HWMO does in the Pacific and his past experiences in the fire world.

During the interview, Pablo talked story about how HWMO came to existence and the innovative work our organization is doing to safeguard communities and natural areas in Hawaii. Topics ranged from the differences between wildfire behavior on the islands and on the mainland, Firewise Communities, the Pacific Fire Exchange, and what to expect in the coming years for wildfire management in Hawaii. Tune in and you'll also hear about some of Pablo's past experiences working in the Stephens Fire Science Lab at UC Berkeley and Lake Tahoe for CAL FIRE.

Big mahalo to Niklas Lollo and the folks over at KALX for dedicating a half hour of their air time and inviting us to be on the show!

Water Heroes Performances

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Water Heroes sing a song about coral reef protection. 

Educating our youth about the environment can come in many forms, whether in the classroom or out in the field. But, it can also take form through performance arts. The Honolulu Theatre for Youth (HTY) is doing just that. Known for their intricate costumes, lyrical flows, and ability to communicate important lessons to the keiki of Hawaii, the HTY Tour Company visited each of the main islands to perform their new show, H2O: The Story of Water and Hawaii. Through playful songs and skits, the group of five performers brought their show to Waimea at the Kahilu Theater on October 17. Hundreds of students from North and South Kohala schools watched, sung, laughed, and learned as the Water Heroes, dressed in metallic superhero costumes of various shades of blue and white, shared stories about water’s importance in our lives in Hawaii and how our water quality has been diminishing over time. 

Students pick up HWMO stickers and bookmarks after the show.

Towards the end of the show, the Water Heroes comically introduced the keiki to water saving measures they could do in their own home. They then invited HWMO’s Pablo Beimler to the stage (for two different shows) as a local Water Hero. Pablo shed light on the impacts wildfires have on our watersheds and coral reefs and emphasized that each and everyone of those in the room could make a significant difference protecting our lands and waters by preventing wildfire and sharing those messages with their ʻohana. As Pablo left the stage, the performers gave him a watery salute by spraying water on him. At the end of each show, Pablo handed out native Firewise plant bookmarks and Kaleo the Pueo stickers. 

Mahalo nui loa to the HYT Tour Company for an amazing show and for the opportunity to share our message with the keiki. 

NAAEE Community Climate Change Meeting

HWMO's Executive Director, Elizabeth Pickett, is co-authoring a book about environmental education and climate change as part of her Community Climate Change Fellowship with the North American Association for Environmental Education (NAAEE), which was funded by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and EE Capacity. 

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Elizabeth Pickett meets with another Community Climate Change fellow in Port Townsend, Washington.

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The intersection of art and climate change.

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Example of an illustration from the work session.

On the weekend of August 5th, Elizabeth sat down and worked with another fellow at a coffee shop next to the Point Townsend (Washington) ferry dock to have the book illustrated as one of the final steps toward publication. In the book, Elizabeth highlights the community-based work of HWMO as making important strides towards local hazard resilience. 

As the climate changes and drought episodes increase, wildfire mitigation is becoming increasingly important in Hawaii. HWMO is prioritizing its programming accordingly.

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2014 Community Climate Change Fellows.

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Community Climate Change Fellows gathered at a conference.

Waimea Middle School - Mālama Honua Event

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Pablo Beimler shares information about Ready, Set, Go! program with Waimea Middle School ʻohana.

According to the Polynesian Voyaging Society: “Mālama Honua is simply translated as ‘to care for our Island Earth’, but the Hawaiian language is beautiful and complex. Mālama Honua means to take care of and protect everything that makes up our world: land, oceans, living beings, our cultures, and our communities. It means learning from the lessons of islanders to take care of your limited resources, as though you were living on a canoe in the open ocean or an island in the middle of the sea. On a canoe, water, food, plants, and other basic needs are in limited supply and are tended to with great care; so too we must tend to our resources on islands, and for all of Island Earth.”

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Waimea Middle School student gets dressed in wildland fire gear.

HWMO joined a number of other organizations aligned with these values at the Waimea Middle School’s end-of-the-school-year event to celebrate Mālama Honua. Each organization was able to host a booth on May 18th at the WMS gymnasium and give a brief presentation to visiting ʻohana and WMS kumu. HWMO’s Pablo Beimler shared about the new Wildfire & Drought Look Out! campaign and background on the Ready, Set, Go! program. 

Students and their families stopped by the HWMO booth to learn more about wildfire readiness and take home free giveaways and Ready, Set, Go! Action Guides. Pablo even worked to spark some of the students’ memories by quizzing them on the components of the fire triangle (and all of them remembered from their classes with Pablo a couple months ago!) Teachers and students also took part in the Wildland Firefighter Photo Shoot, dressing up in wildland fire gear and taking home a Polaroid to post on their fridge. 

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Fire prevention signs made by students at Waimea Middle School.

During the wildfire lessons a few months ago that Pablo held at the school, students were asked to make fire prevention posters as part of a mock social media campaign. Some of the incredible posters were displayed for all to see at the event, which was definitely a highlight for HWMO to see!

Mahalo to Waimea Middle School for such a great partnership this school year.

Poetry Slam (Featuring Kaleo the Pueo)

Kaleo the Pueo continued to break through the media circuit, this time through a unique blend of the arts and wildfire prevention. Our new wildfire prevention mascot could be spotted all across the island in a beautiful flyer put together by Poetic Connect's Cassandra Wagner and Josh Horan. Kaleo was front-and-center on the flyer, showcasing his colorful, fiery wings in front of a microphone, holding water in one wing and fire in the other. Poetic Connect is "a movement to promote the performance and creation of poetry while cultivating literary activities and spoken word events." If you want to get a better sense of what they're about, there are a number of videos from their island-wide poetry slams, some of which include HWMO's very own Education & Outreach Coordinator, Pablo Beimler. 

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The flyer that helped make Kaleo the Pueo famous!

On April 25th, HWMO co-sponsored the latest poetry slam, which took place at the "Green Church" in Waimea. Dozens of poets and supporters took part in the performances. Many stopped by our outreach table to learn more about wildfire prevention and what Kaleo the Pueo was all about. The Fourth Place runner-up even received a free Kaleo the Pueo t-shirt and hat! 

Big mahalo to Poetic Connect for their amazing support for our efforts and for getting Kaleo the Pueo's name out to the public!

HWMO Denny's Fundraiser and Outreach Night

For over a decade, HWMO has been tasked with the mission of protecting Hawaii's communities and natural resources from the growing threat of wildfire and its impacts throughout the state. We've made immense strides over the past few years towards reaching our goals even as a small non-profit organization with no more than 5 staff members at any given time. We've been fortunate enough to secure grant funds for our projects, however, our operations and outreach capabilities rely on your continual support. 

To help keep our engine running, we held a fundraiser and outreach event at Denny's Restaurant in Kona on Sunday, April 19th. We teamed with Rotary Club of Kona and Denny's to host Project Compassion, a program that holds monthly events that raise awareness for many Hawaii-based non-profits and thousands of dollars to support their programs.

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Future Wildland Firefighters blend right in with the HFD engine.

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Goat Dozer Petting Zoo helped us connect kids to the idea that goats can reduce wildfire hazards around communities.

Our event attracted local residents and visitors who were drawn-in by Hawaii Fire Department fire engine tours and a Goat Dozer Petting Zoo outside of the restaurant. Throughout the evening, people filtered through the doorways of Denny's to dine. Each person who dined contributed to our fundraiser. We collected 20% of the dinner profits and 100% of the tips that night, all going towards our wildfire safety efforts. The catch? We had to earn our money. HWMO staff and Board members donned aprons and put on a smile to help host and serve customers, talking wildfire prevention whenever possible. Customers were also treated to hours of live music entertainment put on by a local HFD firefighter and our very own, Tom Loomis (harmonica virtuoso.)

Before customers entered or left the restaurant, they had the opportunity to stop by our informational booth where we passed out Ready, Set, Go! programs and gave out Kaleo the Pueo hats and T-shirts to generous donors. We even held a silent auction that featured some great items: Red Water Café dinner certificate for two, KTA certificates, Leche de Tigre merchandise and concert tickets, Snorkel Bob's merchandise, and beautiful coral reef artwork from Waikoloa native Rick Turnbow. 

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Our staff, Board, and volunteers (some of whom are pictured above) would like to say mahalo to all who helped contribute to our efforts!

In total, we made $2,500 in donations thanks to generous customers, silent auction bidders, and our incredible sponsors: Adventure X Boat Tours, Laughing Stock Farms, Red Water Café, and Snorkel Bob's. Thanks also to our silent auction contributors: Red Water Café, KTA, Snorkel Bob's, Leche De Tigre, and Rick Turnbow.

 A big mahalo also goes out to Hawaii Fire Department, Big Island Goat Dozers, Rotary Club of Kona, Project Compassion's Holly DeGeal, Denny's Restaurant and our hard-working staff and Board members who helped make the night a success!

If you missed out on the event, but would still like to contribute, please visit:
http://www.hawaiiwildfire.org/donate/

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Ocean Warriors Showcase and Kaleo the Pueo Skit

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Kaleo the Pueo (right) finds out about Humuhumunukunukuapuaa's struggles with coral reef pollution due to wildfire runoff.

On April 4th, Hawaii Wildfire linked up with Malama Kai Foundation's Ocean Warriors (http://www.malama-kai.org/ocean-warriors.html) for a unique event at Parker School Theater in Waimea. The Ocean Warriors program, an experiential youth program for local middle school students that engages them in "coastal stewardship and protection," put on a showcase to demonstrate all they had learned about climate change and its causes, impacts, and solutions.

The showcase, with the theme of "It's All Connected; We're All Connected," featured performances by the Waikoloa and Kohala Middle School students. The event began with the dozens of performers getting up on stage and singing a heartfelt song written by Elizabeth Pickett about the Big Island's beautiful landmarks, concluding with the words: "Malama Ka ʻAina I Ke Ka." Students than gave presentations and sang additional songs to paint the picture of the climate change issues we all face as a local and global community. In between these performances, local poets Josh Horan and Pablo Beimler shared their slam poetry about a Poetry Tree and Hokupaʻa, respectively. They handed off the mic to some of the students who performed their own haiku poems that they wrote during a service project day in Oʻahu (with their beautiful artwork featured on the screen behind them.)

During the last part of the showcase, representatives from local community organizations gave background to the audience about their programs and upcoming volunteer opportunities. The organizations that presented were: South Kohala Coastal Partnership, Waikoloa Dry Forest Initiative, Mālaʻai Garden, and Hawaii Wildfire Management Organization.

HWMO's Pablo Beimler helped write and direct a skit for the Ocean Warriors students that they performed to round out the showcase. The skit featured Kaleo the Pueo and his friends as a way to release Kaleo to the public in a creative fashion. The kids dressed up in great costumes and did an amazing job performing "Kaleo the Pueo Finds His Voice." 

We had such an amazing time rehearsing with the students and teaching them about wildfire impacts and solutions this past year. In the end, the students were the ones who taught their parents and communities about the lessons they had learned. We take comfort in knowing these students will be leading the charge in the very near future!