Allison Young of the current Leadership Kaua‘i was thrilled when Jodi Matsumoto showed up at the Kaua‘i Community College with two armfuls of plastic planting containers.
“The Hoku Foods locations have been collecting pots,” Young said. “This is part of a Leadership Kaua‘i service project where we’re collecting people’s unused plastic containers to turn over to Malama Kaua‘i that will use them to plant fruit trees toward their goal of getting more fruit trees planted at schools.”
The Leadership Kaua‘i station was just one of nearly two dozen stations at Ho‘olaule‘a No Ka Honua on Saturday that was part of Kaua‘i’s celebration of Earth Day that fell on April 22.
Another station housed under the big tent set up on the west end of the college campus furthered the goal with the addition of appropriate fruit trees to the mini forests being worked on in the landscaping of Rice Street in downtown Lihu‘e.
Ho‘olaule‘a No Ka Honua, a collaborative effort between the County of Kaua‘i Office of Economic Development, the Kaua‘i Community College, and the Kaua‘i Economic Development Board, and several community sponsors, including Wailua Meat Company, Kekaha Agriculture Association, Grove Farm Foundation, Menehune Water and more, ties in with the international effort to protect our planet.
“Ho‘olaule‘a no ka Honua exemplifies out island’s strength in collaboration,” said Margaret Sanchez, the interim Kaua‘i Community College chancellor. “It’s a testament to what we can achieve when we work together towards a common goal.”
On Kaua‘i, Ho‘olaule‘a No Ka Honua took time to honor sustainability, food and agriculture with a pinch of touch toward caring for the ocean and water as well, melding with the global concerns of plastics and babies, The Great Global Cleanup is geared toward the creation of a waste-free world and climate education.
The international celebration had a theme of reducing plastic, and that theme was carried out with the Leadership Kaua‘i station of reusing plastic planting containers, and the Surfrider Foundation’s beach cleanup area focused on eliminating microplastics from the beaches and oceans.
Attendees of all ages from keiki to kupuna had ample time and space to network at the awareness raising event over a bowl of chili (yes, a vegan option was offered) and awa spiced with the many prize giveaways.
