Hawaii, Taiwan Indigenous leaders sign kinship declaration to strengthen cultural education

HONOLULU (HawaiiNewsNow) – A new commitment to strengthening Indigenous education is underway.

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Kamehameha Schools, the Polynesian Voyaging Society and Taiwan’s Council of Indigenous Peoples signed the Declaration of Austronesian Kinship and Pacific Unity.

The declaration affirms the shared kuleana of the Indigenous peoples of Hawaiʻi and Taiwan to preserve and promote their cultures and advance the well-being of their peoples.

Dr. Kaiwipunikauikawēkiu Punihei Lipe, poʻo kula (head of school) of Ke Kula ʻo Kamehameha ma Kapalama (Kamehameha Schools Kapālama), noted that connecting Indigenous movements worldwide can help prepare their students for the future.

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“When they get to see the struggle for language and cultural revitalization is not only here in Hawaiʻi, but also across the world with places like Taiwan… I think that helps them to understand the kind of responsive leadership they’re going to have to engage in and participate in now and into the future,” said Lipe.

More than 100 people attended the formal signing ceremony on Friday, including 12 mayors and four acclaimed scholars from throughout Taiwan.

The declaration was also presented in ʻŌlelo Hawaiʻi, Paiwan, English and Mandarin languages for signatures.

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