As we enter Week 10 of PIPES kauwela, we’re excited to officially introduce our PIPES 2025 cohort! Check out this post to learn more about our incredible interns and the organizations they’ve been working with this kauwela.
With the Intern Symposium just around the corner (August 6–7), you’ll have the chance to hear all about the amazing projects they’ve been working on! Presentations will be open to the public, and the schedule will be shared on our story soon—so stay tuned, ʻohana!
Graduation season is upon us! We’d like to take this moment to say HOʻOMAIKAʻI, Congratulations, to all of our PIPES interns and alumni who have reached this milestone.
Your hard work, growth, and dedication have brought you to this point, and we’re so proud of all that you’ve accomplished along the way.
This is truly just the beginning of your kaʻao, and we look forward to witnessing your continued growth and the paths you create for yourselves and your communities. No matter where life takes you next, PIPES will always be here to support you.
#PIPESAlumni
The Mauna Kea Forest Restoration Project (MKFRP) has been a host organization for PIPES interns for over 12 years. Their mālama ʻāina efforts are integral to the longitudinal well-being of our mauna-centric native species who are the cornerstones of Mauna Kea’s precious watershed. We’re grateful to have continued this partnership throughout the years, as they have been consistent supporters of PIPES’ mission and students. Mahalo MKFRP for our continued pilina and all that you collectively do to grow ʻāina and people abundance!
KAʻAO MOMENTS OF ʻAPELILA
April flew by for our PIPES team, and now there’s less than a month before PIPES Summer 2026 is in motion! This month brought more amazing opportunities for some of our moʻo ʻāina interns and team.
Kamaka Frasco and Kamaile Scholtz, with PIPES alum ʻĀina Perry, presented their work with the UHH Coral Nursery and Keaukaha community at the UH Hilo TCBES Symposium. Their connections to the keiki and ʻāina/kai of Keaukaha were displayed so clearly and we are proud of their dedication.
Moʻo ʻĀina interns and staff also joined this month’s food distribution with huiMAU! Getting to assist the Paʻauilo and Hāmākua community in this way helped us to deepen our understanding of kaiāulu as a support system.
Leinalu also had the beautiful opportunity to participate in the Waimānalo Limu Festival. Being surrounded by people of all ages brought together for one purpose: limu! Mahalo to Uncle Wally, Aunty Pam, and Uncle Aliʻi for the new memories, laughter, and incredible hospitality. He ʻono maoli nō!
This monthʻs Mentor Highlight features ʻO Makuʻu ke Kahua (ʻOMKK), rooted in the Makuʻu homestead community, where ʻāina, culture, and ʻike are practiced and passed down. Their work is centered on perpetuating Hawaiian values while building pathways toward self-sustainability for families in Puna. Mahalo to ʻOMKK for continuing to open their space to PIPES interns and shaping the next generation of aloha ʻāina!
Aloha kākou from our PIPES staff! As summer gets closer, here’s the team behind it all. Wishing you all the best, we’re excited to meet you and build pilina together this kauwela!!
UH Giving Day is TOMORROW, April 8!
Support PIPES in our mission of growing generations of ʻāina and people abundance through our summer internship program. Every gift makes a difference, no matter the size, and this year your impact and kōkua go even further.
Every dollar donated to PIPES will be matched, doubling the support for our interns and the work happening across Hawaiʻi Island.
Your gift directly elevates our programming, allowing us to support haumāna, grow community partnerships, and mālama the health of Hawaiʻi’s ecosystems.
Click the link in our bio to donate. Mahalo nui for your continued kōkua!
KAʻAO MOMENTS OF MALAKI🌱
This past mahina has been full of movement, connection, and growing pilina across our pae ʻāina. Here’s what our Moʻo ʻĀina interns and staff have been up to…
From our cross-ahupuaʻa exchange between Kahaluʻu Kūāhewa and Kanaaho Kahulimanu, it showed how strong pilina can be when we come together as stewards of different places, yet feel so aligned in purpose. A kaʻao moment while planting kalo was feeling that excitement of building new relationships while continuing to nurture the ones we already hold. There is so much to dream and envision together when we show up in that way.
During NAKA, our time with our Kauaʻi and limu ʻohana grounded us in more reflection. Using waʻa and navigation as a metaphor, we were asked to think about our own vessels, our safe harbors, and the futures we are working toward. At the same time, being in the intertidal zones reminded us that the places with the most movement and agitation are often where life thrives the most. Growth doesn’t always come from stillness, but from those in-between spaces that challenge us to adapt, reflect, and continue forward.
Some of our Moʻo ʻĀina interns, Waileia and Leinalu, also had the opportunity to support community through HuiMAU’s food distribution!
Across all of these moments, one thing continues to stand out: whether we are planting, navigating, or serving kaiāulu, we are constantly learning how to better care for our places and each other. The work is not always easy, but it is alive, generative, and rooted in pilina.
UH Giving Day is coming up on April 8th! We invite you to support PIPES and help us continue to grow ʻāina and people abundance.
Your gift directly uplifts our programming, allowing us to support students, strengthen community partnerships, and contribute to the health of Hawaiʻi’s ecosystems.
Click the link in our bio to donate. Mahalo nui for your continued kōkua!
A quick recap of Moʻo ʻĀina interns Kamaka and Kamaile in action last month at their host organization, @uhhcoralnursery !
In celebration of ʻŌlelo Hawaiʻi Month this past Pepeluali, they led elementary students mai ke kula ‘o Ka ‘Umeke Kāʻeo ma ka ʻŌlelo Hawaiʻi to teach them the importance of pH to our corals health. We love seeing our interns step into these spaces where their dedication is reflected in the excitement and engagement of the next generation.
The moʻolelo of 2 Kahaluʻu!
We've dreamed of this convergence for a while and thanks to the @pipes_hawaii Moʻo ʻĀina internship, it has been made possible! Waileia Tupou is helping us to connect with Kahaluʻu in Kona, Hawaiʻi. We got to host @kahaluukuahewa and PIPES staff today for our community workday at the Kahaluʻu Loʻi in ʻĀhuimanu, Oʻahu. And later this month, our core crew will huakaʻi to the other Kahaluʻu. At the end of this collaborative project, we hope to have educational kaiāulu resources across both orgs and Wailea is helping us find the similarities and differences that makes both Kahaluʻu so special. Mahalo nui to all of our volunteers for making this day so great! Thanks @mina.uhmanoa as well for coming to our workday and working so hard!
This week marks the start of PIPES mentor interviews for applicants who advanced to the next round! Interviews will run March 3–24, giving applicants and mentors time to connect and find the right fit. Good luck to everyone!
