Landscapes & Learning

Educational offerings at Kalukalu continue to grow

By Audrey Blair, Public Programs Manager, and Carolyn Lucas-Zenk, Community Engagement Manager

Storytelling at Kona Historical Society’s Kalukalu Headquarters is growing!

On the southside of the H.N. Greenwell Store Museum, the Society has been diligently reviving the Native Forest Exhibit with the hard work and generosity of the Ama OluKai Foundation, project contractors, community partners, and nearly 100 volunteers. Over the past several months, the once half-acre overgrown exhibit has transformed into an inviting, peaceful open space showcasing the beauty and diversity of Hawaii’s native forests. Yet, this is not a static exhibit. Instead, it’s a living place filled with experiential learning, civic engagement, and pure connection to nature and each other.

In order to move from just providing yet another place for consumption of education to one of innovation to that of stimulating hands-on ideas, creativity, community and ownership, the Society’s talented Programs team met in January to receive updated training on the interpretation of Kalukalu. The team focused specifically on some of the Society’s most beloved visitors, local school children. Together, they learned how to teach children of all ages about the Society’s living collections and what these native plants can teach us about Kona’s unique history. They also expanded their knowledge on how to share the Kingdom of Hawaii’s place in the global economy through the H.N. Greenwell Store Museum and how communities in Kona were knit together though communal experiences like bread baking in a traditional Portuguese stone oven, or forno. These updates were then put to good use on Feb. 13, when Kona Historical Society welcomed the year’s first group – Innovations Public Charter School – to Kalukalu.

These fifth and sixth graders from Innovations Public Charter School participated in the Society’s first pilot test of the new education program for the Native Forest Exhibit. While getting their hands in the dirt, the students learned to differentiate between native plants, Polynesian introduced plants, and invasive plants. This education program encourages big themes about environmental stewardship and human impact on our ‘āina. The students were challenged to answer the following question: Why should we have native forests?

Through this new education program, Kona Historical Society hopes to help students understand the importance of land stewardship and the natural legacy that surrounds us here in Kona. Alexis Ching, the contracted project coordinator for the revitalization of the Native Forest Exhibit, was key to helping the Programs team develop the curriculum used for this new program.

Over the coming months, the Society will welcome more than 200 students to Kalukalu, where they will learn more about this Native Forest Exhibit and the place we all call home.