Making a Difference on the Island of Maui
Have you ever wanted to take part in an initiative that promotes protecting wildlife and the environment?
We can all agree that taking a vacation or taking on a new adventure can be very exciting! Travelling is a fantastic way for us connect with family, explore new landscapes and can enable us to help communities around the world through volunteer work.
Being strong advocates for the environment has motivated us to take that extra step in finding a sustainability-based community opportunity this summer! There was no better way to dedicate our time to help clean beaches and save sea turtles on the most beautiful Hawaiian Island, Maui!
Throughout this post, we will be sharing all the details about our life changing volunteer experience. From learning about the Hawaiian culture to why sustainability is widely promoted all over Maui.
What makes Maui so special?
For many of you who have never visited Maui before, you may wonder “what makes Maui so special?”. For starters, Maui, is widely known for its diverse natural landscapes and some of the greatest beaches in the world. It offers most spectacular views of sunrises, sunsets, hiking trails, a long highway that stretches across the entire island. One of our personal fav locations on the entire island is Haleakala National Park. :)
Maui Fun Facts:
Haleakala is considered to be the largest dormant volcanoes in the world
10,000 humpback whales migrate to Maui every year!
Maui is home to the largest Bayan Tree in the USA
The Hana Highway includes 59 bridges and 620 curves
The Hawaiian Culture
As you can see, the list of fun facts can go on and on and on. There are just so many things to see on the Hawaiian island of Maui and it truly is the perfect place to visit. However, our experience on the island would not be quite the same without learning and fully embracing the Hawaiian cultural values.
One of the important lessons we learned from the Hawaiian culture while being on the island was the people’s deep sense of responsibility for nature. Hawaiian’s see themselves a part of and not separate from nature as they believe everyone lives in a shared world with plants and animals. As a result, it is Hawaii’s mission to help protect the lands that is shared amongst other living organisms on the land and ocean. A traditional proverb in Hawaiian culture is “malalma keahi I kekahi”, which means take care of each other.
Within a day of being on the island, we quickly learned how devoted Hawaiian communities are in promoting land preservation and wildlife protection. We consistently saw large educational signs at beaches informing visitors and reminding natives to the island to be mindful around wildlife on beaches and to wear zinc safe sunscreens to preserve coral species. Additionally, we noticed that communities installed fishing line recycling stations to prevent marine pollution and save wildlife from being harmed by these fishing lines.
Our Experience as Honu Heroes
When we were in the midst of planning our trip to Maui, we came across the “Honu Hero or Turtle Hero” program supported by the MOC Marine Institute. This program focuses on gathering visitors and community members to take on a hands-on approach towards creating a cleaner and more sustainable marine environment for future generations. Recording the amount and types of marine pollution on Maui beaches is useful for marine researchers and policy makers to implement new laws in Hawaii.
Beach Cleanup #1: Kealia Coastal Boardwalk
We received our beach cleanup gear and marine pollution log sheets and were off to clean a few of Maui’s public beaches. Our first stop was the Kealia Coastal Boardwalk. It stretches 0.8 miles and is near the largest natural pond in Maui. It is the home to many native and visiting birds. On our trek to explore the boardwalk and beach, we noticed there were some marine pollution burrowed near small shrubs trees and coastlines. The majority of the debris we found included plastic utensils, children’s toys and rubber plastics.
Beach Cleanup #2: Kamaʻole Beach III
The next beach we decided to continue our clean up adventure was Kama’ole Beach III. This beach provided the most spectacular views of Molokini, Kaho'olawe and Lana'i islands. It stretches 0.7 miles and provides the perfect opportunity for locals and visitors to partake in lots of fun water sporting activities. However, we were very surprised how much plastic debris washed up on score and on the grasslands. We found plastic flops, numerous plastic masks, gloves and water bottles.
Why become a Honu Hero?
As more year’s progress, human actions of plastic pollution are continuously harming oceans and aquatic life. In fact, plastics are the largest threat to the ocean today killing almost 1 million marine animals each year. In turn, the need for mankind to be more careful about plastic usage and littering is increasing. It is truly amazing how much of a positive impact a small act such as cleaning up marine pollution can truly have on the lands and millions of organisms living in our oceans.
We are forever grateful for taking part in this opportunity and cannot wait to visit again! Hopefully, this post prompts you to volunteer on your next trip!
