A send-off for the voyaging canoe Hokule‘a before it is shipped to Alaska to embark on a four-year circumnavigation of the Pacific is planned for Saturday.
The Polynesian Voyaging Society and its crew have invited the community to celebrate on the last day the Hokule‘a will be docked at Sand Island.
“We always talk about how it takes an ahupuaa to help the canoe to continue to voyage,” said Mark Ellis, captain. “We want to really honor the community and allow them also to come and honor the canoe and share their well-wishes, however that might be.”
“Moananuiakea, a Voyage for Earth,” is a 43,000- nautical-mile, 47-month circumnavigation of the Pacific by the traditional Polynesian voyaging canoes Hokule‘a and Hikianalia. The crew of 400 will visit 36 countries and archipelagoes, nearly 100 Indigenous territories and 345 ports.
The society, in a news release, said it wants the voyage to spark a movement to reach 10 million young “planetary navigators,” engaging communities along the way. The trip is being promoted as a global educational campaign on the importance of oceans and “indigenous knowledge through education.”
“Storytelling will be shared via a virtual ‘Third Canoe’ called Wa‘a Honua, meaning a canoe for the earth (waahonua.com),” the news release said.
Saturday’s attendees will be given paper to write down the ways in which they pledge to better their earth. Those who write their pledges are encouraged to take a photo in front of the Hokule‘a holding their pledge, and post the photo on social media with the hashtag #voyage4earth, Ellis said.
“It can be something really big, but it can also be something really small,” he said. “Whether it would be caring for each other or maybe to stop using single-use plastic. … All these little pieces make the difference.”
As the Hokule‘a visits the ports, the crew will continue to encourage those they meet to photograph themselves holding up their pledges. The goal is to compile all of the hashtagged photos at the end of the voyage and create a photo mosaic of everyone throughout the world who has pledged to take part in caring for the earth, Ellis said.
On Sunday morning the Hokule‘a will be shipped via Matson to Alaska, where it is scheduled to arrive June 10. The canoe will remain there for about a week while the crew participates in community and educational engagements before they begin their circumnavigation of the Pacific on June 15. The Hokule‘a will head down the West Coast and be joined by the Hikianalia in Seattle.
As it continues on its journey, the public can follow the Hokule‘a’s progress in real time on the society’s Wa‘a Honua website, said Sonja Swenson Rogers, communications director for the Polynesian Voyaging Society. The tracking map, which will be available to view once the Hokule‘a sets sail, will include the geographical coordinates of the canoe as well as daily updates on the crew’s activities and observations, she said.
The website has resources for learning about navigation, wayfinding and sustainability issues among others, said Ellis, who works for Kamehameha Schools, which has been one of the society’s main educational partners in creating content relative to the Hokule‘a and the PVS mission.
As the canoe progresses through its voyage, content related to places along its sail plan will be added to the website, Ellis said. Some of the content will be geared toward teachers who wish to incorporate curriculum on things like navigation and wayfinding, while others will be designed for families who wish to bring these lessons to their children at home, he added.
Those who are interested in learning more about Wa‘a Honua’s resources can visit the website at waahonua.com.
Saturday’s community event is from 1 to 5 p.m. and will include a blessing and brief remarks. There also will be opportunities for crew members and the Hokule‘a to receive lei, and for attendees to take photos in front of the canoe.
As parking for the send-off at 10 Sand Island Parkway will be limited, those who plan to attend are encouraged to carpool to the event.
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Linsey Dower covers ethnic and cultural affairs and is a corps member of Report for America, a national service organization that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues and communities.
