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of small fish. Hawaiians believed that wasting would cause a 

 ancestor to come back and punish you. The fair distribution of 

 the catch was another major concern of the Hawaiian corrmunity . 

 The first catch was usually offered to the fishing god ('aumakua 

 or Ku'ula) on a fishing shrine called a Ko'a. Today there are 

 many fishermen who still place their first catch on shrines to 

 ensure successful fishing. After the offering the fish was 

 shared with relatives. The fair distribution of food was a 

 Polynesian tradition throughout Polynesia. 



Today, only a few practices these traditions. There is a 

 great need to educate more Native Hawaiians to these practices, 

 so that they will be more responsible not only to the land but 

 the oceans. Many Hawaiians are left with purchasing fish from 

 the store, which is so expensive, that it is only eaten on 

 special occasions. This is why so many Hawaiians have poor 

 health. We need to get back to basics so that we Hawaiians and 

 Non-Hawaiian will always have fish in the sea. Through 

 conservation and protection we can teach the children of Hawai ' i 

 to value our natural resources. 



Mahalo Nui Loa Kakou 

 Thank you, 



iia. j\-ji m 



