MALAMA HONUA WORLDWIDE VOYAGE: SCIENCE AT SEA

Our Polynesian voyaging canoes, Hōkūleʻa and Hikianalia, are journeying around the world to learn, create global relationships, and explore how to care for our oceans and Island Earth. Sailing in the wake of our ancestors, we are travelling through 47,000 nautical miles and visiting 85 ports and 26 countries. Hōkūleʻa carries a message of mālama honua (caring for Island Earth and each other) on this Worldwide Voyage (WWV). Through partnerships with various researchers, non-profits, schools, and Government agencies five experiments have been specifically designed for the WWV that will allow us to passively collect marine acoustics, marine debris and plankton, survey pelagic fish, and sample water quality from the canoes. The common objective for each experiment is to investigate and share what is observed about the changing conditions of our oceans and marine life.

A portion of the data that are collected by our vessels will be made available to teachers, students, and community members on our website www.hokulea.com. The data will be accompanied by lessons and interactive tools that will help the public better understand the importance of caring for the world’s oceans. While in port the crew from both vessels will conduct community educational outreach activities centered on the science projects conducted at sea, as well as traditional Polynesian Navigation, and canoe tours. Using our canoes as a platform, we hope to bridge tradition and technology, timeless values and new visions, and to inspire the next generation of leaders that can build hopeful solutions for Island Earth’s future.