Maui Huliau’s Vision for a Sustainable Future: ‘Āina-Based Education Rooted in Respect for Culture
“Maybe this has to be my job.”
It started with a youthful, almost fanciful leap of faith for Malia Cahill.
Malia admits that when she dreamed up the Maui Huliau Foundation, she was fully aware of the immense challenges involved in running a nonprofit, having worked for one at the time. Understanding the demanding path ahead, she was initially hesitant to move forward but after the first six months, operating essentially as a volunteer, she says she realized that given how much need there was in the community that “maybe this has to be my job.”
Now, 14 years later, Maui Huliau is a vital node in the expanding network of organizations bringing culture and environmental stewardship together in ways that protect the future through ‘āina-based and culturally-grounded programs.
The word huliau—which means “turning point” or “time of change”—was meant to capture early on both the transformative character of adolescence and the broader environmental and cultural changes occurring in Hawai‘i. “That word just spoke to me a lot, about what we do and of being in a time of rapidly changing ecosystems,” she said, describing the deliberate use of the word. “It applies to our communities in Hawai‘i and then, also, teenage years in their own way are a time of change.”
At the heart of Maui Huliau’s mission is a commitment to nurturing deep connections between young people and the ‘āina, ensuring that future generations have the skills, knowledge, and desire to protect and sustain their communities.
For Malia, the work and Maui Huliau’s mission are deeply personal, rooted in her own experiences growing up on Maui. “Reflecting back, I realized how lucky I was to have a community that helped shape me, beyond just my family,” she shared. Those formative experiences inspired her to create an organization that would offer similar opportunities for the island’s youth—particularly teenagers—to connect with the ‘āina and learn from it. Maui Huliau provides students with experiences that build a sense of responsibility and pride in their cultural identity, all while preparing them to face the challenges ahead.
‘Āina-Based Education: The Core of Maui Huliau’s Mission
At its core, Maui Huliau is about connecting students to the land in ways that are culturally relevant and meaningful. In Native Hawaiian culture, the land is more than just a resource to be used—it is a sacred source of identity, history, and life. ‘Āina-based education cultivates the bond between environmental stewardship with cultural knowledge, providing youth with a deeper understanding of both the natural world and their place within it.
“In Hawai‘i, you can’t do environmental education without cultural education,” Malia emphasized, noting that the two are inextricably linked.
Through Maui Huliau’s programs, students not only learn about sustainability but also gain a greater appreciation for the interconnectedness of all things. They explore where their food and water come from, the impact of human activity on ecosystems, and how cultural practices can inform modern approaches to environmental stewardship. For Malia, these lessons are critical, especially as Maui faces increasing challenges related to climate change and overdevelopment.
A Journey Born From Community, for the Community
Malia’s journey to founding Maui Huliau began with a realization: While there were environmental education programs for younger children on Maui, there was a gap for teenagers—those in the critical 12–18 age group. She saw an opportunity to engage this demographic through experiential, place-based education, which she knew from personal experience could be transformative.
Building the organization was not without its challenges, especially for someone who was also relatively young when she began. Malia initially ran Maui Huliau on a volunteer basis, operating out of a small upstairs space at the Hawaiian Canoe Club. For the first eight years, she worked other jobs to support herself while building their offerings and learning how to listen deeply to community. It was a challenging path but one she felt compelled to continue because of the profound impact on students that she was witnessing.
Malia believed that these formative experiences could steer young people in new directions, even if they didn’t end up in careers directly related to conservation or ‘āina-based work. The goal, she says, is to provide opportunities for youth to connect with their culture, their land, and their community in ways that will shape them for the rest of their lives.
To support youth across the continuum from their teenage to young adult years, Maui Huliau has deployed a comprehensive set of programs that seamlessly weave literacy and leadership skills with experiences that are grounded in culture, learning, and the environment. For good measure, they’ve also integrated professional development programs for teachers as part of a comprehensive educational ecosystem. It’s an impressive array of offerings for any nonprofit organization, but even more so for one that’s staffed by less than a handful of people.
“So I just had this crazy idea sitting in a community film showing at Seabury Hall, and they were telling really good stories. 26-year old me, with no filmmaking experience, thought ‘Maybe I’ll try that,’ because film was a way to give students a voice.”
Malia Cahill, Maui Huliau Foundation
Responding to Community Needs: Partnership and Flexibility
One of Maui Huliau’s defining characteristics is its flexibility and responsiveness to community needs. The organization is deeply rooted in pilina—the Native Hawaiian concept of relationship and connection. From the beginning, Maui Huliau worked in close partnership with other community organizations, schools, and the Department of Education, facilitating collaborations that enhance environmental education and community engagement.
While ʻāina-based lesson plans have been a key focus, the current approach shifts toward fostering school-wide practices that align with and reinforce these cultural and educational outcomes. The Kūkulu Pilina program now emphasizes campus-wide programs, policies, and practices aimed at strengthening the HĀ (B-R-E-A-T-H) outcomes, which align with the Office of Hawaiian Education’s Nā Hopena Aʻo (HĀ) framework.
This work—while essential—hasn’t been easy. Malia and her team have navigated systemic challenges within Hawai‘i’s public school system, as most nonprofits working this space have, including overcrowded classrooms, teacher turnover, and limited resources. Despite these obstacles, they’ve made significant progress in demonstrating that ‘āina-based education is not just an extracurricular activity but a critical part of developing well-rounded students who are connected to their place and culture, key cornerstones of Nā Hopena A‘o.
Malia and her team have also had to be both flexible and nimble. In response to the devastating 2023 wildfires and the ongoing effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, Maui Huliau quickly adapted its programs to continue supporting students and the wider community. “We’re a mobile organization and always have been, which allows most of our funds to go directly into service, and that mobility served us well during COVID,” Malia recalled. “The lessons we learned during that time, responding to our community’s needs in a crisis, strengthened our organization. The skills we developed in logistics and connecting partners with youth enabled us to quickly step in and support recovery efforts. We emerged more resilient and even more convinced that our community partnerships are one of our greatest strengths.”
From addressing climate change connections to the fires—such as the impact of invasive grasses and water diversion—to focusing on long-term recovery, Maui Huliau supported teachers and students at Lāhaināluna through ʻāina-based sessions, on-campus events with community partners, and the implementation of school-wide practices. The organization’s ability to pivot demonstrated its strong relationships and commitment to supporting the community in meaningful and lasting ways. “It’s also a whole lot easier to pivot and put those relationships together when you have flexible funding that you can move or share with partners,” Malia emphasized.
Empowering Maui’s Future Leaders
Perhaps one of the most significant measures of Maui Huliau’s success is the number of alumni who’ve returned as volunteers or staff members. Malia speaks with pride about the students who now serve on Maui Huliau’s alumni council or work as program leaders, helping to mentor the next generation of youth. Many of these alumni have gone on to successful careers in various fields, from law to conservation, carrying with them the values and lessons they learned through Maui Huliau’s programs.
This commitment to fostering leadership is central to her vision, because she’s always believed in the power of youth to lead the way in creating a more sustainable future for Maui. Through hands-on environmental projects, filmmaking programs, or leadership development, Maui Huliau equips students with the skills and confidence to take on leadership roles in their communities.
The Importance of ‘Āina-Based Education for Hawai‘i’s Future
Malia and her team at Maui Huliau are working to show that ‘āina-based education can be a model for how learning can be rooted in place, culture, and community. For Hawai‘i, where land plays such a central role in identity and livelihood, this approach can be essential for preserving the environment and for ensuring that future generations are prepared to care for their island home.
Through its partnerships, Maui Huliau is weaving a network of support for students across Maui and beyond. These collaborations and the relationships they foster are crucial, as they allow Huliau to scale its impact without sacrificing its nimble, community-driven approach.
As she looks to the future, Malia is optimistic about the role that Maui Huliau and its partners will play in shaping the next generation of leaders. “It’s not about us doing everything ourselves,” she said. “It’s about facilitating connections and empowering young people to take the lead.”
A Lasting Impact
In just over a decade, Maui Huliau has transformed from a small, volunteer-run initiative into a powerful force for change, helping to protect the island’s environment and ensuring that future generations are equipped to navigate the shared challenges ahead. This work is a testament to the mix of community, culture, and education in creating a more sustainable future for Hawai‘i.
With each student who passes through Maui Huliau’s programs, Malia’s vision of a more connected, resilient, and culturally grounded Maui moves closer to reality: “I was talking to one of our alumni who’d recently begun working for us about how I am now the only staff member who is not in my 20s, and he said ‘Isn’t that the point; we’re supposed to replace you?’ And I was like ‘yes, yes, you are.’ Working alongside alumni makes me even more excited about our work than I was at 26.”
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