Kilo ʻĀina: Health Connections to ʻĀina

flier for Kilo Aina

What can ʻāina tell us about our own health and healing? Everything!! The ahupuaʻa is a way to look at the impacts of trauma and ecosystems of care toward mauliola. It provides a resonant model of a Native system that is grounded in the reciprocal relationship of kānaka to ʻāina and spirituality in order to achieve collective healing or mauli ola. The ahupuaʻa is a living, breathing example of a thriving, healthy Native system, all connected through wai (water), following through every interconnected system.

What will participants learn?

  • Learn about the ahupua’a model for cultural healing and the impacts of trauma on our kanaka ecosystems
  • Discuss ways the model can be applied to the self, ‘ohana, kaiaulu (community), as well as larger care systems in Hawaii.
  • Provide their lens of how this model resonates and applies in their own, everyday life, community, ‘ohana, or organization.

Who is this workshop for?

  • Health workers
  • Social service workers
  • Behavioral health workers
  • Community members
  • ʻĀina practitioners

EVENT LOCATION

Kūlana ʻŌiwi Hālau (next to Nā Puʻuwai on Moloka‘i)
602 Maunaloa Hwy
Kaunakakai, HI 96748 United States + Google Map

There is no registration for this event, it is open to the public. Come if can!

This event is brought to you in partnership with AANHPI ‘Ohana Center of Excellence, Papa Ola Lōkahi, and Ho‘aka Mana.

Workshop Presenters

Lilinoe Kauahikaua, MSW uses she/her/ʻO ia pronouns and is from Piʻihonua, Hilo on Moku o Keawe (Hawaiʻi Island) but has lived and grown in many other spaces throughout her journey, including Oʻahu, California, and Arizona.

Lilinoe serves as program coordinator with Papa Ola Lōkahi, for all substance use and mental health projects, as well as the AANHPI ʻOhana Center of Excellence for behavioral health project manager. Her work focuses on cultural approaches in healing.

Lilinoe was appointed by Governor Ige to the Hawai’i Advisory Commission on Drug Abuse and Controlled Substances and serves on the boards of ʻEkolu Mea Nui, Going Home Hawai’i, Kinohi Mana Nui, and the cultural committee co-chair for The Going Home Hawaiʻi Consortium, organizations serving the Native Hawaiian community impacted by incarceration and substance use.

Lilinoe also serves on committees for the Institute of Violence and Trauma (IVAT), and Hawaiʻi SUPD (Substance Use Professional Development) initiative.

Kumu Kanoelani Davis is a Kama a MolokainuiaHina and an established Kumu Hula of Ka Pā Hula O Hina I Ka Pō La‘ila‘i and Ho’a Mana Practitioner in the healing arts. She draws from the immense knowledge and wisdom passed down to her by her Papa, Sifu/Kahupono/’Olohe Francis Clifford Leialoha Wong.

Her martial arts training is rooted in the understanding of life and death, with the teachings of Lua, Lomilomi, La’au Kahea, and La’au Lapa’au. Kanoelani shares the traditional methods of her family to help others ignite the fire within and heal themselves.

Kanoelani is the Executive Director of Ho’aka Mana – Native Hawaiian Organization that believes in strengthening indigenous identities. She is a single mother of four daughters and the CEO/Owner of multiple small businesses; one being PoMahina Designs.

Davis is deeply invested in the community, advocating for cultural preservation, conservation, and the protection of natural resources. She has worked as a Cultural Health Navigator with Molokai Community Health Center, coordinating programs and integration between the behavioral health, medical, and dental departments.

Kanoelani has also served on the Executive Board of Directors and is now a part of the Cultural Committee at Molokai Community Health Center. Kanoelani has dedicated her time and efforts to serving the Molokai community and its youth, which is demonstrated in her work with the University of Hawaii’s Department of Psychiatry for seven years as a cultural advisor and community P.I. Puni Ke Ola was the vision of the kupuna who desired culturally integrated substance use prevention resources. 

Kanoe’s dedication shaped the Western modalities into Native Hawaiian thought processes. Through the evolution of the Puni Ke Ola she built & incorporated makawalu & kilo into the Ho’a ‘Ike curriculum which is utilized to create meaningful and transformative learning experiences. By connecting unique perspectives with knowledge of one’s physical and mental environment, teachers can create a learning experience that is both culturally relevant and academically enriching. A train-the-trainer certification program was developed for the education system (K-12 and College Professors) & substance abuse councils. There are now 20+ certified trainers across Hawaii who utilizes Ho’a ‘Ike. 

Aside from her dedication to strengthening indigenous identities via Ho’a Mana, Kanoe finds peace with the elements. She can be found in the highest parts of the forest to the depths of the sea, she enjoys fishing, hunting, and hana no’eau from traditional tools and weapons to dyes and ho’oni’o.

Cultural Approaches to Reducing Harm Across Moanānuiakea

Screen shot of presentation: Cultural approaches to reducing harm across Moananuiakea

In 2022, Papa Ola Lōkahi and Hawaiʻi Health & Harm Reduction Center release E hui ana nā moku: A harm reduction toolkit for Native Hawaiian communities.
Harm reduction through a Native Hawaiian lens embraces returning to the source. It’s a process to elevate Hawaiian ways of knowing and being, which are strongly connected to (w)holism, spirituality, and relationship to land.

According to FNHA, “culture is a medicine that can help us heal… In exploring culture as a strength, a source of resilience, a way to connect, and as medicine, we must consider how we can include people who use substances within our work by increasing access to culture.”

We are excited to share with you all, what a potential template for weaving in cultural practices throughout the pacific could look like when reducing harm in our communities. This will look different as every community has unique cultures and traditions.

Learning Objectives:

  • Engage: participants will review the resource E hui ana nā moku: A harm reduction toolkit for Native Hawaiian communities and glimpse what a template for weaving in cultural practices throughout the pacific could look like when reducing harm in our communities caused by historical, cultural and intergenerational traumas.
  • Identify: participants will identify the strengths, protection and resiliency within their own cultural practices as they embody social, emotional, mental, and physical health and healing.
  • Understand: participants will understand how to weave their own cultural practices into the template provided.

REPLAY

This event has passed. You can watch the replay on our YouTube, or here on the website.

Addressing Racial Trauma among Asian American Men through Acceptance and Commitment Training (ACT) – Part II

This two-part workshop series aims to address the critical but neglected issue of race-based trauma among Asian American men particularly of East Asian origin such as Korea, Japan, and China. It will suggest some practical strategies to promote wellness and empowerment using the principles of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT). ACT is a non-pathologizing approach to therapy and skills building that emphasizes mindful acceptance and meaningful action rather than symptom reduction. This approach, alternatively known as Acceptance and Commitment Training, can also be utilized in non-clinical settings (e.g., church, temple) by practitioners who are not necessarily therapists (e.g., ministers, coaches, etc.)

Acceptance and Commitment Training is very compatible with indigenous Asian wellness practices such as mindfulness, acceptance, and compassion/wisdom traditions and can be well-suited for individuals who are less likely to seek mental health services due to stigma. When used in conjunction with communal support within an intersectional framework, ACT can be an effective approach for addressing racial trauma among Asian American men.

Who is this workshop series for?

This workshop series is for anyone interested in addressing racial trauma. You do not need to be a therapist nor an Asian American man. This workshop can benefit coaches, ministers, community organizers, healthcare workers, researchers, and anyone interested in understanding and dealing with racial trauma within an Asian American context.

Format of the workshop series:

This workshop series will utilize a qualitative method known as autoethnography and will include a case presentation using the presenter’s own lived experience with racial trauma.

What you will learn in Part II (September, 26, 2023)**  of this workshop: 

  • Understand how the six processes of ACT can mitigate hurtful racial stereotypes
  • Learn a simple way to implement ACT skills tailored for Asian American men
  • Explore ways to use ACT as a supplement to indigenous Asian practices and cross cultural community-building

**Important: For those who have not attended Part I (August 29, 2023) of this series, it may be helpful to watch the recording of that session prior to attending Part II.

This event has passed. You can watch the replay on our YouTube, or here on the website.

Workshop Presenters

Phillip Cha, MFT, is a licensed Marriage and Family Therapist with over 20 years in community mental health. He holds the position of clinical supervisor at UCSF Citywide Case Management where he oversees and guides the work of intensive case management within a culture-focused milieu.

In addition, Phillip maintains a part-time private practice in San Francisco where he provides therapy services to individuals, couples, and families specializing in Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), a therapeutic approach that focuses on mindfulness, acceptance, and values-based action.

Phillip’s expertise in ACT has led him to offer training and consultation internationally with mental health professionals around the world. Phillip has been an adjunct faculty member at the Myanmar Clinical Psychology Consortium from 2018 to 2022.

He is passionate about exploring ways in which contextual behavioral therapies can be applied across diverse communities and contexts and in ways that promote wellness and justice particularly for those who are marginalized.

Hānai Ahu: Anchoring Culture in Substance Use Treatment & Prevention Models – Trauma Tips and Tools

Hawaiʻi Opioid Initiative (HOI) Workgroup members, social workers, health care providers, and community members will learn about the importance of a cultural foundation when applying trauma tools and tips to self care, community care and professional care in response to collective trauma and grief. The connection between trauma informed care and to substance use and recovery will be discussed in its applications to The Impacts of Colonization on Ahupuaʻa. Conceptualization, V3.0. This is the 12th session of the Māpuna Lab’s virtual summer training series Hānai Ahu which focuses on adopting cultural anchors for substance use treatment and prevention strategies. This series provides a tri-lens cultural view of substance use emphasizing “The Impacts of Colonization on Ahupuaʻa. Conceptualization, V3.0” framework that recently launched with the Hawaiʻi State Plan for the Alcohol and Drug Abuse Division of the Department of Health.

What will attendees learn?

  • Participants will learn how to utilize The Impacts of Colonization on Ahupuaʻa. Conceptualization, V3.0 to understand the historical importance of the impacts of colonization on the indigenous connection to ʻāina and the disconnection to ʻāina, as it relates to substance use and recovery.
  • Participants will identify strategies related to culturally anchored trauma-informed care in response to acute, collective trauma and grief as primary prevention for substance use and mental health disparities.
  • Participants will apply trauma tips and tools to self care, community care and professional care in response to collective trauma and grief guided by the clinical expertise of a licensed clinical social worker.

Who should attend?

  • Hawaiʻi Opioid Initiative (HOI) Workgroup members
  • Social workers
  • Health care providers
  • Community members

This event has passed. You can watch the replay on our YouTube, or here on the website.

Workshop Presenters

Christy Werner is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker who was born and raised on Maui, and has been living on Oʻahu for the past 20 years. She is a mother of two wild boys, a wife to a hard working sawyer, the daughter of a retired ER nurse mom, and construction worker dad. She has 3 siblings. Her life’s work has thus far been dedicated to helping others heal from trauma. She is a feeler of feels and a lover of humanity, despite how complicated humans can be. Her invitation to joining you all at this event is not taken lightly and she hopes her offerings are helpful.

Addressing Racial Trauma among Asian American Men through Acceptance and Commitment Training (ACT) – Part 1

This two-part workshop series aims to address the critical but neglected issue of race-based trauma among Asian American men particularly of East Asian origin such as Korea, Japan, and China.  It will suggest some practical strategies to promote wellness and empowerment using the principles of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT). ACT is a non-pathologizing approach to therapy and skills building that emphasizes mindful acceptance and meaningful action rather than symptom reduction. This approach, alternatively known as Acceptance and Commitment Training, can also be utilized in non-clinical settings (e.g., church, temple) by practitioners who are not necessarily therapists (e.g., ministers, coaches, etc.)

Acceptance and Commitment Training is very compatible with indigenous Asian wellness practices such as mindfulness, acceptance, and compassion/wisdom traditions and can be well-suited for individuals who are less likely to seek mental health services due to stigma. When used in conjunction with communal support within an intersectional framework, ACT can be an effective approach for addressing racial trauma among Asian American men.

Who is this workshop series for?

This workshop series is for anyone interested in addressing racial trauma. You do not need to be a therapist nor an Asian American man.  This workshop can benefit coaches, ministers, community organizers, healthcare workers, researchers, and anyone interested in understanding and dealing with racial trauma within an Asian American context.

Format of the workshop series:

This workshop series will utilize a qualitative method known as autoethnography and will include a case presentation using the presenter’s own lived experience with racial trauma.

What you will learn in Part 1 (August, 29, 2023)  of this workshop:

  • Understand the basic components of racial trauma among Asian American men
  • Explore the role of language in perpetuating dangerous stereotypes
  • Learn about the six ways that individuals internalize racial trauma from a language-based (ACT) perspective

This event has passed. You can watch the replay on our YouTube, or here on the website.

download the slides here

Workshop Presenters

Phillip Cha, MFT, is a licensed Marriage and Family Therapist with over 20 years in community mental health. He holds the position of clinical supervisor at UCSF Citywide Case Management where he oversees and guides the work of intensive case management within a culture-focused milieu.

In addition, Phillip maintains a part-time private practice in San Francisco where he provides therapy services to individuals, couples, and families specializing in Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), a therapeutic approach that focuses on mindfulness, acceptance, and values-based action.

Phillip’s expertise in ACT has led him to offer training and consultation internationally with mental health professionals around the world. Phillip has been an adjunct faculty member at the Myanmar Clinical Psychology Consortium from 2018 to 2022.

He is passionate about exploring ways in which contextual behavioral therapies can be applied across diverse communities and contexts and in ways that promote wellness and justice particularly for those who are marginalized.