(ABOVE) The Polynesian Voyaging Society's canoe Hokulea (seen above at left, also on pages 14-15) returns to Hawaii in 2017 after sailing around the world, accompanied by her sister canoe, Hikianalia (at right).
Launched last April, Waa Honua is the Polynesian Voyaging Society's digital platform, a resource to share the achievements of Polynesian voyaging, inspire future navigators and spread the society's message of malama honua, or caring for Earth.
PVS formed fifty years ago to build Hokulea-the first voyaging canoe to be constructed in Hawaii in six centuries-and sail it to Tahiti. The crew used only traditional wayfinding, navigating without modern instruments, proving that early voyagers had the ability to find and settle islands flung across thousands of miles of ocean. The successful voyage from Hawaii to Tahiti in 1976 helped spark a wave of cultural pride, both in Hawaii and throughout Polynesia. Since then Hokulea and its sister canoe, Hikianalia, have traveled hundreds of thousands of miles; they have recently sailed around the world.
After visiting more than three hundred communities across the globe, PVS wanted to share its successes with a wider audience. Senior navigator and PVS CEO Nainoa Thompson calls the platform the PVS' "third canoe. It does what PVS' two canoes can't," he says, "reaching millions with its mission of stopping extinction by voyaging, navigating and teaching, and creating momentum for global change."
Waa Honua is still growing, but it already has partners such as the University of Hawaii, Arizona State University, Bishop Museum, Nakupuna Foundation and Kamehameha Schools. The platform, which hosts videos, lessons, profiles and resources, "can be a catalyst to bring people from around the world together," says Dean Tomita of Kamehameha Schools, which provides the voyaging and wayfinding education resources, lesson plans and activities accessible on Waa Honua. In 2023, Waa Honua will be a portal for those who want to follow Hokulea and Hikianalia on Moananuiakea, an ambitious three-year journey around the Pacific Rim.
Waa Honua gives "a voice to diverse people around the world," says Thompson, "whether they are scientists, indigenous peoples, policy makers, educational institutions-all those who share the values of caring for Earth and the future of our children."
