Background / justification
The Hawaiian Islands have legislation that supports community-based management of marine resources; however, no such legislation currently exists for community-based management of forest resources in Hawai‘i. This research explores the underlying conditions for the successful implementation of community-based management of forests in Hawai‘i, exploring the emergence of CMFs across the Pacific Islands, and opportunities for CBFM within different land tenure arrangements in Hawai‘i.
This research has been influenced by involvement with an emerging community-based forest management area, the Kaiāulu Pu‘uwa‘awa‘a Community-Based Subsistence Forest Area (P-CBSFA). Supporting the P-CBSFA effort has informed and shaped the research questions and design of this dissertation, which aims to support on-the-ground efforts and better understand the context of community-based forest management (CBFM) in Hawai‘i.
This research explores the potential for community-managed forests in Hawai‘i, asking:
1.) How is community-based natural resource management of forests emerging in the Pacific Islands?
2.) How can the lessons learned from international and local collaboratively managed forests and community-based subsistence fishing areas be applied to the development of CBFM in Hawai‘i?
3.) What are the opportunities for the development of CBFM in Hawai‘i? How do these opportunities differ depending on land tenure? and
4.) How is community-based natural resource management emerging in Hawai‘i?
Project objectives
The principal objective of this research is to better understand and support community-based forest management in Hawai‘i through research and to increase awareness of steps that could increase the capacity for the development and successful implementation of community-based forest management in Hawai‘i.
Approach
- In “Community-Based Forest Management of the Pacific Islands: Approaches, Lessons Learned, and Applications for Hawai‘i” (chapter 1), we provided a synthesis of literature that shares contextual characteristics with Hawai‘i through a systematic literature review of Pacific Island examples of community-managed forests. The goal of this chapter was to better understand how CBFM is emerging across Pacific Islands, and how various approaches might inform CBFM in Hawai‘i.
- “Pathways and Opportunities for Community-Based Forest Management in Hawai‘i: a qualitative approach” (chapter 2), explores pathways and opportunities for CBFM in Hawai‘i, looking specifically at lessons learned in current community-based stewardship efforts in Hawai‘i. This research utilizes semi-structured interviews with leaders of large landholding groups in Hawai‘i and with people engaged in community-based stewardship in Hawai‘i.
Key findings / accomplishments
In 2024, with the support of her PhD graduate committee, Rebekah successfully defended and deposited her dissertation:
Ohara RD. 2024. Pathways and opportunities for community-based forest management in Hawai’i. Ph.D. Dissertation, Purdue University. 217 p.
Findings highlight the diversity of potential approaches to CBFM in the state, the importance of centering Indigenous Knowledge and Hawaiian stewardship practices and values, the need for clear land tenure rights and transparent governance arrangements, the need for advancement of legal mechanisms to empower Native Hawaiian communities, and the critical role of partnerships among agencies and local groups in fostering the success of CBFM. By addressing the legacies of colonization and supporting community-based biocultural approaches to forest stewardship, CBFM has the potential to support ecological, economic and cultural resilience in Hawai‘i.
Partners / collaborators
This research was supported by Rebekah’s committee (listed above), by all of the interview participants who have made this work possible, and by the Kaiāulu Pu‘uwa‘awa‘a Community-Based Subsistence Forest Area Hui, who dedicate their time, energy, mana‘o and mana to the sacred lands of Pu‘uwa‘awa‘a. The Board of Directors of the Akaka Foundation for Tropical Forests likewise supported Rebekah in her effort to complete this research.