The Hawaiʻi Forest Industry Association (HFIA), Hawaiʻi
Forest Institute (HFI) and community partners are planning the Honolulu Zoo
Children's Discovery Forest, which will be created at the Honolulu Zoo in
Waikīkī on Oʻahu.
The project site is near the zoo entrance and adjacent to
the future site of a Native Hawaiian Village. The Discovery Forest will be a
representation of natural systems, creating a scene of Hawai'i before the
arrival of humans.
The exhibit will be designed to demonstrate culturally
significant Hawaiian plant species, the significance of place, and the kuleana
of mālama ʻāina (responsibility to care for the land) by integrating
traditional Hawaiian forest ecosystems, forest stewardship opportunities, and
innovative land-based education for residents and visitors.
The Discovery Forest will reconnect urban visitors with the
Hawaiian forest through three demonstration zones: strand vegetation, dryland
mesic forest species, and Polynesian-introduced species and cultivars.
The Discovery Forest will be a place that serves as an
ongoing outdoor educational setting in which visitors will learn about the
importance of the sustainability of native and Polynesian plantings within a
framework of Hawaiian cultural values.
The vision is one in which the vast cultural, natural and
historical attributes of Hawaii's endemic and indigenous coastal flora and
geology is shared, demonstrating the bond that must be formed between people
and 'āina if both are to thrive.
HFIA was recently awarded a Hawai'i Tourism Authority (HTA)
Natural Resources Program grant, administered by the Council for Native
Hawaiian Advancement (CNHA), for the Discovery Forest.
Other project partners include Paepae o Heʻeia, Conservation
Council of Hawaiʻi, Scenic Hawaii, Inc., Mānoa Heritage Center, Kualoa-Heʻeia
Ecumenical Youth Project (KEY Project), Polynesian Voyaging Society and O'ahu
Resource Conservation & Development Council.
"We extend our mahalo to community partners, HTA and
the CNHA for recognizing the importance of helping visitors, island students
and kamaʻaina expand their appreciation for Hawaiʻi's forest ecosystems,"
said HFIA Executive Director Heather Simmons.
"Through the Honolulu Zoo Discovery Forest, we have an
opportunity to promote forest awareness and significance to thousands of
people."
I am proud and honored to serve on the Board of Directors of
the Hawai‘i Forest Institute.
