PAF’s Work Featured by National Geographic
In a recent feature by National Geographic, the story of Hawaiʻi’s ocean restoration is told through a powerful blend of ancestral wisdom and modern practice—highlighting the work of Kapono Ciotti and the Pacific American Foundation (PAF). The feature shines a light on how traditional Hawaiian marine technology, rooted in deep observation and relationship with ʻāina, is helping restore balance to fragile ocean ecosystems.
At the center of this work is a simple but profound idea: our kūpuna already understood how to care for the ocean in ways that sustained life for generations.
Through practices like fishpond restoration and place-based stewardship, Kapono and PAF are helping to bring these systems back as living solutions for today’s environmental challenges.
The feature captures how PAF’s programs go beyond conservation. They are about education, identity, and responsibility. Students and community members are invited into hands-on learning experiences where they reconnect with land and sea, understanding not just how ecosystems function, but why they matter. This is knowledge that is felt, practiced, and carried forward.
Kapono Ciotti is interviewed for a National Geographic feature sharing how culture, stewardship, and education are helping restore balance to Hawaiʻi’s oceans.
Kapono’s leadership reflects this deeply rooted approach. His work bridges ancient wisdom with contemporary science, showing that innovation doesn’t have to come at the expense of tradition. Instead, it can grow from it. By restoring fishponds and teaching sustainable practices, he and PAF are cultivating the next generation of young people who see themselves as part of the solution.
For PAF, this recognition by National Geographic affirms what communities across Hawaiʻi already know: that caring for ʻāina is not just environmental work, it is cultural survival. Healthy reefs, thriving fishponds, and abundant resources are all connected to the well-being of people.
