Watch: Hula Opens Native Hawaiian Convention

The 21st annual Native Hawaiian Convention hosted by the Council for Native Hawaiian Advancement (CNHA) continued this week with more than 1,500 community members attended. The third day of the convention on Wednesday opened with protocol and hula by Ka Lā ʻŌnohi Mai ʻŌ Haʻehaʻe and Piʻikea Lopes, Miss Aloha Hula 2022.

See the video here.

The morning plenary session included a panel with the four county mayors discussing the relationship of regenerative tourism with community, culture, and the environment.

“Aloha is the essence of Hawaiʻi, and regenerative tourism really means being aloha. The hospitality industry needs to give back more than it takes and recognize that each community is unique. What works in south Maui may not work in Molokaʻi or Hāna. We have to build connections with our communities,” said Mayor Michael Victorino of Maui County.

An in-depth discussion about Red Hill then followed with the following panelists:

• Wayne Tanaka – Director Sierra Club of Hawaiʻi
• Kathleen Ho – Deputy Director for Environment Health, Hawaiʻi State Department of Health
• Ernie Lau – Chief Engineer, Honolulu Board of Water Supply
• Rear Admiral Stephen Barnett – Commander, Navy Region Hawaiʻi

Ernie Lau emphasized the urgency of continued engagement noting that everyone, “will have to find a way to work together for the good of our people, for the good of the wai, to protect it, to clean it up, to empty out the fuel as soon as possible.”

This evening, major party candidates for governor and lieutenant governor will participate in a super debate explaining their vision for Hawaiʻi’s future. The debate will be broadcast live beginning at 6:30 p.m. on KGMB, K5, and online at HawaiiNewsNow.com.

About the Council for Native Hawaiian Advancement

The Council for Native Hawaiian Advancement (CNHA) is a member-based 501(c)3 non-profit organization with a mission to enhance the cultural, economic, political, and community development of Native Hawaiians.