ʻĀina Acknowledgement

The University of Hawai'i conference sponsors acknowledge that the ‘āina on which we gather is part of the larger territory recognized by Indigenous Hawaiians as their ancestral grandmother, Papahānaumoku. We recognize that her majesty Queen Lili‘uokalani yielded the Hawaiian Kingdom and these territories under duress and protest to the United States to avoid the bloodshed of her people. We further recognize that Hawai‘i remains an illegally occupied state of America. We recognize that each moment we are in Hawai‘i she nourishes and gifts us with the opportunity to breathe her air, eat from her soils, drink from her waters, bathe in her sun, swim in her oceans, be kissed by her rains, and be embraced by her winds. We further recognize that generations of Indigenous Hawaiians and their knowledge systems shaped Hawai‘i in sustainable ways that allow us to enjoy these gifts today. For this we, the planners of the Continuums of Service Conference, are grateful and seek to support the varied strategies that the Indigenous peoples of Hawai‘i are using to protect their land and their communities, and are commit to dedicating time and resources to working in solidarity.

— Land Acknowledgement derived from Native Hawaiian Place of Learning Advancement Office at the University of Hawaii.