Islanders from across the Pacific Rim gather to share Indigenous Knowledge, climate adaptation practices

From July 23-30, a diverse group of Pacific Islanders working on traditional forms of aquaculture and navigation across the Pacific Rim came together for a knowledge exchange at the Ebiil Society in Ngarchelong State, Palau. The exchange was hosted by Ann Singeo, Executive Director of the Ebiil Society, an NGO that runs educational programs centered around environmental protection and proper management of natural resources through Indigenous Knowledge. The meeting brought together participants from Hawaiʻi, Guam, Palau, FSM, and the Pacific Northwest, who sought to support the re-learning of Indigenous technology; explore Indigenous coastal solutions for climate change mitigation, adaptation, and resilience; and reestablish ancient alliances as well as build new ones for a united Pacific. In addition to the host organization the exchange was also supported by the Indigenous Aquaculture Collaborative, Purple Maiʻa, Pacific RISA, Local2030 Islands Network, Global Island Partnership, Polynesian Voyaging Society, Hawaiʻi Sea Grant, Washington Sea Grant, and KUA. Pacific RISA Project Specialist Paula Moehlenkamp attended as a representative of the collaboration between Pacific RISA and the Local2030 Island Network, a project that aims to support climate resilience and adaptation management in the Pacific Region through the UN Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) framework.

One focus of the exchange was on traditional fishing methods, modern threats to fisheries, and finding solutions. Participants visited Ebiil Channel, which has been documented as an important aggregation site for groupers and other species of reef fish. While exploring Palau’s diverse and rich marine life, the group learned how the reef in Ebiil Channel was impacted by Typhoon Surigae in 2021, and how it continues to be threatened by the impacts of climate change, such as warming sea surface temperatures and ocean acidification. The importance of management by the local fishing community in order to maintain sustainable fish stocks for local communities was highlighted. The group was excited to join one of the marine restoration work projects led by the Ebiil Society—the outplanting of giant clams in Ebiil Channel. Palau is home to eight of the ten known species of giant clams, a species of great cultural importance, and Ngarchelong is known for its giant clam populations. High demand for Ngarchelong’s giant clams both in subsistence and commercial fishing caused their numbers to decline. Now the local fishing community is helping grow the clams to a reasonable size so they can be replanted, with the goal of replenishing the reef and increasing wild populations.

Participants also visited Ngkeklau, the birthplace of the “Beng”, a form of traditional Palauan fishing weir. The Beng was designed to direct the passage of larger pelagic fish from deeper waters outside the reef crest through the reef into shallower areas, where they could be easily fished. This practice provided access to pelagic fish from nearshore and allowed for consistent fish supply—even when weather did not allow going out to sea. Currently, the Palauan Beng is not being utilized by the community, and the Ebiil Society is seeking to revitalize this traditional Palauan form of aquaculture. Participants, which included loko iʻa (Hawaiian fishpond) practitioners, identified the remnants of the Beng and exchanged experience on the science of wall building and rock weaving.

Another highlight was visiting a traditional milkfish aquaculture pond in Peleliu, which continues to provide a consistent food source for the local community. The group met with the Governor of Peleliu and the caretaker of the milkfish farm, and learned about its history, science, social benefits, and natural dynamics. Similar to Hawaiian loko iʻa (which also targeted milkfish among other local herbivorous fish) this pond was designed to recruit smaller fish through a weir-type structure. Inside, the pond provides ideal conditions for herbivorous fish to thrive and grow to harvestable size. Similarly, loko iʻa were sophisticated aquaculture systems across Hawaiʻi, and were vital to the sustenance of an ahupuaʻa—an integrated agricultural and ecosystem management regime. Along with providing an environmentally regenerative way to increase access to local food, as well as a way to develop place-based management and a sense of connection to the land, these traditional forms of aquaculture also have the potential to create new green jobs and community-based economic development opportunities. Being able to offer traditional aquaculture as a viable career path would be a critical step towards increasing food security and food sovereignty across the Pacific.

Another component of the knowledge exchange  was traditional navigation/ wayfinding and boat building in the Pacific. Among the participants were Larry Raigetal (a Pwo master navigator and boat builder as well as the co-founder of Waa’gey), two Polynesian Voyaging Society/Hōkūleʻa crew members, as well as Sesario Sewralur, master navigator Mau Piailug’s son, who is also a master navigator and instructor at the Palau Community College. The group learned about star navigation and was honored to meet Sesario’s family and the crew of the Palauan 56-foot long double-hulled voyaging canoe Aligano Maisu (above, right). Maisu was built by Na Kalai Waʻa Moku o Hawaiʻi at Kawaihae Harbor as a gift to Mau so he could carry on his legacy of navigation in Micronesia. As part of the workday, which consisted of conversations around aligning voyaging missions and the potential to sail together as part of Hōkūleʻa’s upcoming Pacific voyage, Moananuiākea, the group also helped clean Maisu’s hull of barnacles. Sesario shared the meaning of the Satawalese name Aligano Maisu with the group: to share the beauty of the fallen breadfruit. According to tradition, breadfruit on your neighbor’s tree is off limits, but the ones that have fallen to the ground are free for the community to take and share. This lesson struck a meaningful chord with the gathering’s participants, who then further applied its meaning. All Indigenous and traditional practices are different breadfruit from the same tree. And since the survival of these practices is in jeopardy, they have essentially fallen to the ground. Gatherings like this, therefore, need to continue around the Pacific, to unite and share the fallen breadfruit with the Pacific community.

On the last day, with the fallen breadfruit in front of mind, the participants held a debrief to further advance Indigenous programs across the Pacific. Some key stakeholders who were not able to attend the exchange in Palau in person, including Nainoa Thompson (master navigator and President of the Polynesian Voyaging Society), joined the discussion remotely. The importance of building partnerships for a united Pacific through exchange and re-learning of Indigenous technologies was discussed. Tangible next steps included joining efforts with Hōkūleʻa’s upcoming Moananuiākea voyage, attending meetings and conferences such as the Pacific Forum and IMPAC5, and identifying funding for future exchanges. Together, these efforts aim to create sustainable, Indigenous-led economies in natural resource management, provide solutions for climate resilience and adaptation, advance food security and sovereignty, and achieve a safe, just, and secure ocean.