Mālama Honua Public Charter School Foundation, located in Waimānalo, O’ahu, supports Mālama Honua Public Charter School, which provides education that cultivates the caring, compassionate, and astute “mind of the navigator” in students and teachers alike by the appropriate application of indigenous Hawaiian values, inclusive of 21st century skills. Its values-based and placed-based learning environment emphasizes learning with and from the ‘āina.
Aligning with the school’s six core values, particularly Ola Kino Maika’i (healthy living), MHPCS’s ‘Ai Pono Initiative (‘API) was created to support the school’s culture of health and well-being through nurturing relationships with traditional Hawaiian foods and food practices by growing awareness of food sovereignty and food security as determinants of health, and their impact on our island communities, families, lands, and resources. An HPF Urgent Action Grant assisted in continuing access to locally-sourced, ‘ai pono meals for at-need keiki and ‘ōpio through the remainder of the school year.