Unlike Western perspectives that view the oceans as a separator of islands and continents, the Oceanic perspective understands that the ocean is what connects us. It is our highways and byways. It is also our fields of oceanic livestock that feeds our people, and a source of medicine for spiritual and physical healing.

The Tamalpais Trust currently prioritizes funding in our three focused regions of Turtle Island which includes North America and the Arctic, Abya Yala which is comprised of Central & South America, and Moananuiākea which generally aligns with the Pacific Austronesian Migration route (with a few exceptions) that started in Taiwan and spread throughout most of the Pacific. Moananuiākea is a Hawaiian term that roughly translates to the “great and vast ocean”. Our hope is to fund in Moananuiākea in a way that supports the movements, needs, and intentions of our Pacific partners. We look for opportunities to fund that range from specific focused needs through larger movements that impact a broader section of the region to build capacity and sustainability. There is a Hawaiian ʻŌlelo Noʻeau, or wise proverb that states “Ma ka hana ka ʻike”, or by engaging in the work one learns and gains knowledge. It is our hope that by sharing a quick glimpse into the purposes and the hana (work) of a few of our partners that you will gain ʻike (insight/knowledge) of the good work they do, as well as a glimpse into our funding strategy.

ʻOhana Waʻa (www.ohana-waa.org)

The ʻOhana Waʻa is an organization led by a council that is comprised of the leadership of all of the deep-sea voyaging organizations in Hawaiʻi. The ʻOhana Waʻa was created to leverage the skills and expertise of the various member organizations to build capacity amongst each other in order to better serve their individual communities while bringing a unified voice for the continuum of voyaging and navigation in Hawaiʻi, and its interconnectivity to other arts and practices that are foundational to the Kanaka Hawaiʻi, the indigenous peoples of the islands of Hawaiʻi.

Te Toki Voyaging Trust (www.tetoki.org)

Te Tokiʻs vision is to build sustainable communities using traditional environmental practices and all forms of traditional canoes (waka) as a platform for the revival of traditional knowledge, language, and culture. Based in Aotearoa, Te Toki serves indigenous nations and communities across the Southern Pacific islands in strengthening their practice, traditions, and communities. Their programming brings together cultures and intergenerational participants and provides opportunities to learn by taking on responsibilities for their communities, their peoples, and their islands.

HuiMAU (www.alaulili.com)

Hui Mālama i ke Ala ʻŪlili is a community-based nonprofit organization whose mission is to re-establish the systems that sustain their community through educational initiatives and land-based practices that cultivate abundance, regenerate responsibilities, and promote collective health and well-being. They see ola (health and well- being) as the balanced convergence of abundant ʻaina (land) and thriving people, as each grows as a reflection of the other. They reach this state through their “Ka Maha ʻUlu o Koholālele” program that Restores abundance and food sovereignty by growing food and the material resources and provisions necessary to procure, process and distribute food and well-being in their community which they achieve by restoring the indigenous ʻulu, or breadfruit groves, once found in abundance in the area along with restoring a heiau, a spiritual structure that was used to train masters in farming and fishing while providing the spiritual connection to the lands and gods to ensure good harvest.

Tamalpais Trust is humbled to support these partners and the other dedicated organizations we are blessed to share good space and resources with. We seek to understand the needs and desires of our indigenous partners in realizing their sovereign rights and in guiding their communities, tribes, and nations based on their worldviews. With that understanding we bring to the feast the food that our creators have entrusted us to humbly share.