Hui Mālama O Ke Kai Foundation to administer educational program for the storied nature preserve

The City and County of Honolulu’s Department of Parks and Recreation (DPR) is proud to announce a new provider will be guiding the educational programming for the Hanauma Bay Nature Preserve beginning May 2026.

The Hui Mālama O Ke Kai Foundation is tasked with implementing and guiding the preserve’s educational program, which will now be referred to as “Papahana Hanauma.” This new coastal and marine interpretive program aims to support and broaden Hanauma Bay’s education and conservation goals by further teaching the natural, historic, and cultural significance of Hanauma Bay to visitors and locals alike. In particular focusing on:

• The importance of marine resources and coral‑reef preservation.
• Traditional Hawaiian stories, language, and cultural practices.
• Human impacts on the marine environment and best‑practices for stewardship.

“Our hui is grateful to auamo this kuleana and honor those who have come before us,” said Maile Vickery Ah Sam, Executive Director of the Hui Mālama O Ke Kai Foundation. “Hanauma is a wahi pana with deep cultural and ecological significance, and Papahana Hanauma is designed to ensure that we, collectively, understand our kuleana to mālama this place. Guided by ʻike kūpuna and contemporary science, we aim to create impactful ʻāina-based learning experiences that strengthen stewardship and protect the bay for future generations.”

The program will also include community-based events and a quarterly lecture and film series, Pilina Kai, to deepen engagement beyond the visitor experience. Focusing on educational elements of Hanauma Bay both inside and outside the nature preserve, Papahana Hanauma will additionally help recruit volunteers and docents to enhance the nature preserve’s educational video and staff the beach-side kiosk, providing immediate assistance to Hanauma Bay beach-goers.  

“We are truly excited to embark on this new journey with Hui Mālama, while also giving a fond mahalo to Hawai‘i Sea Grant for their nearly four decades of support,” said DPR Director Laura H. Thielen. “Papahana Hanauma will give every Hanauma Bay visitor, students, families, and tourists, an engaging, culturally‑rich understanding of the nature preserve’s ecosystems. Ultimately, emphasizing the responsibility we all share to protect them now and into the future. The program also creates lasting partnerships with schools, community groups, and Hawaiian cultural practitioners, incorporating more of our island into the shared kuleana of caring for this wahi pana (storied place).”

The University of Hawai‘i Sea Grant College Program previously operated the Hanauma Bay Education Program, serving and expanding the nature preserve’s educational goals for 36 years as the original educators who launched the initiative in 1990. Mahalo to Hawai‘i Sea Grant for their service to our community, and for facilitating with the transition to the new program administered by Hui Mālama.

“Hawaiʻi Sea Grant is proud to have partnered with the City and County of Honolulu for nearly four decades to educate the public about the natural wonder that is Hanauma Bay,” said Darren Okimoto, Principal Investigator of the Hanauma Bay Education Program. “Thank you to the City and all of our partners for helping to provide this important service.”

A historically significant location for Native Hawaiians paddlers, and a favorite fishing location for some Hawaiian Royalty, Hanauma Bay was deeded to the City from the Bernice Pauahi Bishop Estate in 1928. HBAY was designated the state’s first Marine Life Conservation District in 1967, growing in popularity during the 1970’s and 1980’s when visitor attendance peaked at an estimated 10,000 people a day. A management plan implemented in 1990 helped to mitigate this human impact by: reducing visitation, improving facilities, banning the feeding of fish, and educating bay visitors. In 2019, average daily attendance was almost 3,000 people, with nearly 845,000 tourists and residents visiting the nature preserve that year. Today, average daily attendance is roughly half of that amount, with 400,776 total visits to HBAY recorded in 2024. For more information about the Hanauma Bay Nature Preserve please visit its official website at: bit.ly/HanaumaBAY

If you need an auxiliary aid/service, other accommodations due to a disability, or an interpreter for a language other than English in reference to this announcement, please contact the Honolulu Department of Parks and Recreation at (808) 768-3003 on weekdays from 7:45 a.m. until 4:30 p.m. or email parks@honolulu.gov at least three business days before the scheduled event. Without sufficient advanced notice, it may not be possible to fulfill requests.

—PAU—

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