BFCC Lab | Research

Waiale'e Lako Pono- Kalou Fish Pond

This research collaboration explores the biocultural processes and outcomes for community resilience connected to the restoration of a traditional Hawaiian fishpond on the North Shore of O‘ahu. In partnership with the leadership of Waiane‘e Lako Pono, a project of the community-based non-profit North Shore Community Land Trust, we will seek to understand the non-material motivations and perceived benefits, or cultural ecosystem services (CES), that restoration volunteers identify as they help to restore a lo‘i kalo (taro garden) and loko i‘a (fish pond). Our goal is to provide empirical research that explores the social and cultural impacts of restoration efforts on the participating community, and to examine how these efforts may contribute to greater community resilience and food sovereignty. Our findings will be shared with the community, public, and policy makers to inform public policies for food sovereignty and environmental management, among Hawaiian communities.  

This research is generously supported by the HPU Trustees' Faculty Research Grant. Mahalo!

Coastal Community Resilience and Adaptation

The peoples of the Pacific region have navigated and weathered environmental change for centuries. Increasingly, their ways of knowing, observational practices, and situated environmental knowledge- rooted in a deep cultural heritage and sense of place- is being called on to steward our seas and islands today. With partners within the Islands of Opportunity Alliance (IOA), Dr. Quimby is helping to initiate an undergraduate student research project that will foster community-engaged research experiences for students across the Pacific Islands Using oral histories, students will explore communities' experiences of adaptation and innovative use of traditional ecological knowledge.