Malama Loko Ea Foundation

What We Do

Mālama Loko Ea is an educational platform where students and community members learn and practice land stewardship, nohona Hawaiʻi (living and practicing Hawaiian culture as a way of life), and ʻike kuʻuna (knowledge of traditional Hawaiian practices). With the kuleana to mālama a rich cultural and natural resource, Mālama Loko Ea Foundation works to revive Loko Ea to once again become an abundant and thriving fishpond.

Who We Are

We are a community based non-profit dedicated to the restoration of Loko Ea, a 400 year old traditional Hawaiian fishpond located in the ahupua’a Kawailoa and the moku of Waialua.​

Waialua is traditionally known for its profusion of fresh water springs and flowing streams, its abundance and fertility, where mahiʻai (farmers) and kanaka lawaiʻa (fishermen) could sustain their families with bountiful harvests.

Loko Ea and Ukoʻa are two distinct loko puʻuone, sand-dune ponds near the ocean shore, connected to the sea by an ʻauwaikai (salt water stream). Connected physically through the streams and freshwater springs, they are also spiritually connected, as both are the home to Laniwahine, the moʻowahine female water guardian of the two fishponds. Together, they make up the third largest existing wetland on the island of Oʻahu.

Loko Ea is indeed an ancestral place of importance, a significant wahi pana to the people of Waialua. This fishpond once helped to sustain its community by providing aquatic food resources like native fish and seaweed. Over time, Loko Ea has unfortunately taken on an unprecedented amount of stress due to surrounding developments, mismanagement of resources and lack of continuous cultural practices. Today, Loko Ea is on a path to restoration with the help of the Mālama Loko Ea Foundation.

Cause Areas

Keiki, Kupuna, Environmental Conservation, Cultural Preservation, Education & Training, Community Engagement

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