About Us

The story of land dispossession across Hawaiʻi begins with settler colonialism in the 18th century and continues to this day. Long-time ʻohana (families) on Kauaʻi face rising land values, taxes and pressure to sell their homes as lands on Kauaʻi become the some of the most coveted and expensive on the planet.  

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Founded in 2018 by four mothers, Kīpuka Kuleana is a 501(c)(3) Hawaiʻi nonprofit organization that protects ancestral lands under threat and restores relationships between people and ʻāina (lands and waters; that which feeds) on Kauaʻi. 

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As a land trust, we grow kīpuka (spaces of community caretaking) to seed education, perpetuate kuleana (responsibility), and honor connection to place across generations.

Mission

​Perpetuating kuleana, ahupuaʻa-based natural resource management and connection to place through protection of cultural landscapes and family lands.

Vision

Long-time families continue to live in, share the practices and history of, and care for every ahupuaʻa on Kauaʻi.

Ahupuaʻa: social and ecological boundary from mountains to sea guiding community use of and caring for ʻāina