First Cohort in Kaiāulu Hoʻokipa Program Announced
Nonprofits, community groups selected
December 1, 2021
By Travel2Change and NaHHA
The Native Hawaiian Hospitality Association (NaHHA) and travel2change (T2C), a Hawai‘i nonprofit advocating sustainable travel, today announced their first statewide cohort in the Kaiāulu Hoʻokipa Impact Studio program. The new initiative will help non-profit organizations and community groups build capacity to host experiences for both kamaʻāina (residents) and malihini (visitors) in a manner that advances the community’s vision and aspirations for regenerative tourism.
Starting in September, the cohort of 29 organizations received six weeks of training to be followed by three months of support and additional educational opportunities, to include sessions to develop their organizational capacity and customer service experience. Cohort participants will also have the opportunity to list their activities on travel2change’s booking platform. Cohort members will meet with business development experts, NaHHA’s team of cultural trainers, and other professionals tailored for their success.
A diverse range of organizations from across the islands are represented in this inaugural cohort including groups dedicated to ʻāina aloha (caring for the land), arts and culture preservation, and those specializing in the mālama (to care for) and education of important wahi pana (sacred places).
Today, the program also announced Hawaiian Airlines’ support as a Premier Sponsor of the first cohort. Hawaiian will provide direct and in-kind support to help facilitate the program and will work with travel2change to promote cohort member experiences in its channels. “We believe that the future of the visitor industry in our home state lies in building a more sustainable and equitable tourism economy that drives economic diversification and resilience,” said Avi Mannis, Hawaiian’s Senior Vice President of Marketing, “and programs like this one are an important step toward that future.” Hawaiian joins other existing industry and community sponsors in supporting this program.
“Designing for community in mind means that everyone should be a part of it; to have a stake. We’re so excited to partner side-by-side with industry partners like NaHHA, the Hawaiʻi Tourism Authority (HTA), Hawaiian Airlines, Alaska Airlines, and other visitor industry and community organizations. The Kaiāulu Hoʻokipa Cohort is truly a collaborative effort that is in the best interest of our community,” said Mondy Jamshidi Kent of travel2change.
Mālia Sanders, Executive Director of NaHHA noted, “It has been inspiring to hear the history, moʻolelo (stories), and hana (work) that is being done with all of our cohort members in our community. The fact that we have representation from each major island area and a range of activities illustrates the need for this opportunity in Hawaiʻi by both new and existing regenerative organizations.”
Thanks to efforts such as the Hawaiʻi Visitors & Conventions Bureau’s Mālama Hawaiʻi initiative, and the desires of communities across Hawaiʻi expressed in the Destination Management Action Plans, HTA and NaHHA saw an opportunity for non-profit organizations and community groups to further develop experiences that support and advance their work while engaging kamaʻāina and malihini. The Kaiāulu Hoʻokipa Cohort Impact Studio increases the capacity of our community to support a greater number and quality of regenerative experiences.
For more information on the Kaiāulu Hoʻokipa Cohort visit https://www.travel2change.org/apply
Kaiāulu Hoʻokipa Cohort Impact Studio Participants:
Kuleana Coral Reefs
Laʻakea Village
Hui o Koʻolaupoko
Ulu Aʻe Learning Center
Starseed Ranch and the Hawaiʻi Institute of Pacific Agriculture
Mālama Learning Center
Mālama Nā Honu
Hawaiʻi Grown 808
Hawaiian Music Hall of Fame
College Directions Hawaiʻi
Hawaiian Music Perpetuation Society
Polipoli Farms, LLC
Koʻolau Foundation
Hanalei River Heritage Foundation
Kīpuka Olowalu
Leimamo Tours Maui Inc.
ʻĀina Alliance
Hawaiʻi Farm Trails
Noʻeau Designers, LLC
Kaiāulu ʻo Kahaluʻu
Friends of Waialua Courthouse
Mālama o Nā Keiki, Hālau Hula o Nāmamaoakeakua and Queen Julia Kapiʻolani HCC
Waimea Sugar Mill Museum - West Kauaʻi Heritage Center
Hawaiʻi Institute for Human Rights and Mālama Lēʻahi Millennium Peace Garden
Nā Mea ʻIke ʻIa
Mālama Kauaʻi
Native Stories
EHK Hospitality, LLC
Green Dream, LLC