17 



There is another way that is tremendously important to helping 

 the community come in contact with the importance of protecting 

 our natural resources and that second one is one that Hawaii is 

 blessed to still have. That comes from the kind of indigenous cul- 

 tural ethic in States such as ours where we're lucky enough to have 

 an indigenous culture that is still in contact with its heritage. It 

 provides a fantastic opportunity, in a more practical way, to let 

 people know what it means to understand Hawaii's resources and 

 take care of them. 



To give an example of that, we have obviously a lot of young peo- 

 ple in Hawaii that can react very quickly and in a way that might 

 even affect their life views in trie future very quickly when they 

 have a good example of how to conduct themselves when they get 

 into the water, protect reef systems and how to fish. It's easier for 

 them to do that when they have someone that is a great teacher 

 and someone who comes from a coherent culture with a conserva- 

 tion ethic than it is to sit down in the classroom and have some 

 scientists explain to them all the background and whatnot and 

 then try from that point of view to have them conduct themselves 

 in a way that shows they understand the resource. 



We have, at the Department of Land and Natural Resources, 

 been able to take advantage of some of the great teachers, well- 

 known teachers in the Hawaii community in the conservation ethic 

 and marine resources. Mac Poepoe, it's always great to see him, is 

 a very good example of that type of leader. He has provided us with 

 a specific proposal at the Department of Land and Natural Re- 

 sources from the Hawaiian community on Molokai, the community 

 centered around Moomomi Bay. This is a bay surrounded by Ha- 

 waii homelands; it's also the site of Hawaiian people who are intact 

 with their Hawaiian heritage. In this instance Mac and also some 

 of his friends there, Wayne Lee, being one of them. 



Mac and others are part of ancient Hawaiian fishing families. 

 When they go into the bay they really understand the resource in 

 a way that would allow them to teach others what it means to pro- 

 tect the resource. 



I've had the pleasure of seeing Mac and what happens when he 

 goes in the water and what nappens when he walks around 

 Kahoolawe. I sit on the Kahoolawe Island Reserve Commission, 

 which is a great honor, and I had the chance to go to Kahoolawe 

 with Mac and some others. 



His understanding of natural resources is such that we, at the 

 State, would like to be able to show our confidence in his abilities 

 and get his help in managing the resource by putting together a 

 formal program where we delegate some of the authority to actu- 

 ally regulate the resource to Mac and also the native Hawaiians in 

 that community. What they would do is actually, on behalf of the 

 State, come in contact with people that want to use the Bay, speak 

 to them about the proper areas in the Bay to fish, explain those 

 areas that should be used as a sanctuary and also be able to pro- 

 vide us with information about how the Bay is being used. 



We have other youth programs that we want to include with the 

 kind of work that Mac is going to be doing in the Bay so that young 

 people will circulate through Molokai, circulate through Mac s pro- 

 gram and in that sense, we believe, come up with at least as pow- 



