With the IUCN World Conservation Congress currently gathering over 8,000 delegates from nearly 160 nations, Hawaii is at the forefront of demonstrating leadership on global environmental issues.

For many nations, long-term ecological balance is the cornerstone for sustainability efforts: renewable resource harvesting, limiting pollution and ending the depletion of nonrenewable resources. Complete self- sustainability may appear to be a lofty, unattainable goal, but community involvement and an emphasis on responsibility are the catalysts for establishing long-term sustainability.

Through the perspective of kanaka maoli, the indigenous people of Hawaii, being sustainable is seen, done, and felt at a deeper level. All indigenous cultures emphasize the innate connection that one has with nature. Spiritually and physically, it is a living connection to the past, present and future. This is a step beyond the changes that the mundane tasks of recycling and reducing waste offer. In order for us to be better stewards, it’s important to first recognize that we are a part of this very earth.

The special phrases of malama aina, aloha aina, and malama honua connect us to our kuleana (or responsibility) to care for and love the land that provides for us, as well as the earth, sea and atmosphere.

To understand this spiritual connection, it is vital to first understand the six senses Hawaiians use to experience the world, including seeing, smelling, hearing, tasting and touching.

These senses are heightened to the point where sight becomes acknowledgment, smell becomes breath, hearing becomes listening, tasting becomes experiencing and touch becomes connection.

The sixth sense is na‘au. It connects the brain and heart to the piko, the spiritual connection to our past through our ancestors, as well as the present and future. Na‘au is not to think with the brain or to feel with the heart — it is to know in the gut.

One of the many partner organizations of the U.S. Department of Interior is Kupu, a nonprofit organization dedicated to fulfilling the community’s increasing need to train the next generation in natural resource management, renewable energy, energy conservation, and other green job skills. Kupu in Hawaiian means to “sprout, grow, or germinate.”

Kupu’s motto of “learn, serve, restore” is predicated on the Hawaiian concept of ma ka hana ka ‘ike (“in working one learns”). The organization provides summer and year-round service-learning programs in hopes of uniting the larger community and bringing life back to the people, land and ocean.

Throughout this past summer, Kupu’s Hawaii Youth Conservation Corps interns worked on Kauai, Oahu, Molokai, Maui and Hawaii island. Kauai interns worked in collaboration with the state Department of Land and Natural Resources, Kokee Resource Conservation Program, Limahuli Garden and Preserve and the Waipa Foundation. Together they eradicated invasive species, worked on trail maintenance and performed archaeological mapping, flagging and bagging of historical artifacts, harvesting seeds and outplanting native species at work sites from Na Pali to Haena.

The ability to identify numerous native and invasive plants — along with their usage, impact and significance — was instilled into their memories. Having experienced something many could only dream about, these interns now are inspired to volunteer in this field, pursue higher education and — most important — reciprocate the same knowledge and awareness bestowed upon them.

Today, our actions directly influence the future of the islands, the world and the world’s people.

Education and community involvement are integral in facilitating a colla- borative and successful effort. There’s no denying that Earth and its resources are finite. However, as a group of people, our potential to create positive changes is nothing short of infinite.

Carolyn Price is a student at Island School in Lihue, Class of 2017. Daezsa Nahenahe Tomas is a Kauai High School graduate, Class of 2013.