ABOUT us

​Ka Ipu Makani Cultural Heritage Center is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization located on the island of Moloka'i, Hawaiʻi. Ka Ipu Makani services the entire Molokaʻi population, addressing the lack of cultural resource management and heritage preservation on the island. Our organization firmly believes in community-based resource management, and we advocate the community's role as active stewards of this place by providing programs that promote traditional Hawaiian methods of preservation, restoration, and cultural perpetuation.

---

values

The values of our organization reflect the values of our island community.  Despite our differences, we  collectively honor and value the following traditional epithets  that make and keep Molokaʻi, Molokaʻi. 

 He ʻĀina Momona o Molokaʻi, Molokaʻi  is an island of abundance:
The values of aloha ʻāina and mālama  ʻāina are foundational elements that guide the stewardship of Molokaʻi's abundant natural and cultural resources. We understand that the health of the land reflects the health of our people. We foster this delicate reciprocal relationship between  ʻāina and kānaka by upholding our kuleana to actively preserve, protect, and restore Molokaʻi's resources and traditional Hawaiian food and eco-systems.  

Oʻo Ka Pule o Molokaʻi, Powerful are the prayers of Molokaʻi:
The values of ʻike kuʻuna (traditional knowledge), loina (traditional customs and protocol), pili ʻuhane (spirituality), and ʻōlelo Hawaiʻi (Hawaiian language) foster our unique ideology, beliefs, and community identity. We understand that  a thriving community  depends on thriving traditional knowledge. We honor and respect our island's traditional Hawaiian cultural heritage and history and remain steadfast in the protection, perpetuation, and elevation of these values and cultural practices.  

Molokaʻi He  Kama Nui a Hina, Molokaʻi, the great child of Hina :
​The values of ʻohana and moʻokūʻauhau unite and strengthen our island community. We are resilient because of our ancestral connections to this island. We cherish and mālama our kūpuna, those with us and those whom have passed. We nurture and educate our keiki and the future generations of this island by cultivating a strong cultural identity and connection to this place we call home. We are Molokaʻi, the  great children of Hina. 

---

Programs

Ka Ipu Makani has three main program focus areas:
​Restoration & Stewardship, Heritage Preservation, and Culture & ʻĀina Based Education.
Click on the photos below to learn more about each program focus area.

---

BEHIND THE NAME

The name Ka Ipu Makani, was inspired by the mo'olelo, Ka Ipu Makani a La'amaomao (The Wind Gourd of La'amaomao). The mo'olelo references three generations of kahu iwikuamo'o, or chiefly attendants (Kūanu'uanu, Pāka'a, and Kūapāka'a) that were dedicated to their kuleana of mālama ali'i, mālama kūpuna, mālama 'ohana, and mālama ho'oilina. The epic mo'olelo is set mainly on the islands of Kaua'i, Moloka'i, and Hawai'i and portrays the significance of ancestral heritage and responsibilities. According to the mo'olelo, Ka Ipu Makani refers to the receptacle containing all the winds of the Hawaiian Islands, as well as the iwi, or bones of La'amaomao, the ancestor of the main characters and the controller of the winds. Symbolically, the ipu represents a vessel that stored ancestral knowledge and resources vital to the success of the kahu iwikuamo'o, as well as the health and well-being of the people of Hawai'i. As we seek to steward and care for our kuleana: our island communities, our families, and our cultural heritage here on Moloka'i, we hope to resemble the perseverance, skill, wit, and knowledge of these kahu iwikuamo'o, while providing a repository, an ipu, of resources to better ʻauamo  our kuleana. "Ola nā iwi kūpuna", may the heritage of Hawai'i live on.

House site of pākaʻa and kūapākaʻa,
​ located on the southeast end of molokai

nā kahu o ia ipu

Meet the Team