Mission
Mission
Mission
Kua`aina’s mission is to perpetuate Indigenous cultures through the practice of artmaking, aesthetic activism, and cultural practices that “Uplift Indigenous Stewardship” in response to the natural world that requires harmony with its inhabitants – humans and all living things. Through the practice of art, our intentions are to protect the vital ecosystems of Papahānaumoku (Earth Mother) and the cultural integrity and self-determination of Indigenous Peoples.
Goals
Mission
Mission
We achieve our mission by assisting artists, cultural practitioners, and community cultural groups in exploring the expansive reservoir of knowledge and deep connection to land and culture that keeps Indigenous communities strong, resilient, and productive. By supporting the vision and work of indigenous artists and cultural groups, we help stimulate the memory banks of indigenous peoples who are working on Indigenous knowledge recovery through traditional and contemporary art, performing arts, storytelling, oral history projects and language revitalization efforts.
Services
We provide capacity-building assistance to Indigenous-led cultural organizations as well as program support to individual artists, cultural workers, and cultural masters. We produce special art and cultural projects, and provide consultation to funders, art institutions, and museums.
To provide these services, our team brings to a project an array of expertise:
- program development and management
- event coordination
- technical and cultural writing
- marketing and public relations
- fund development
- visual and performing arts
- traditional arts
- Indigenous knowledge and language
- healing arts
We believe that working collectively on a project provides an opportunity for a more monumental outcome and integrates the lifeways of cultural and artistic expression.
our team
Carolyn Melenani Kuali`i
Co-founder / Executive Director
Carolyn was born on the island of O`ahu to a mother of both Native Hawaiian and Apache ancestry and raised by her Native Hawaiian grandmother. She brings to Kua`aina her background in program development and management, and her extensive experience in providing capacity-building assistance to community-based organizations and individual artists. Carolyn had the great fortune to serve under the mentorship of two cultural masters: Sam Kaha`ieuanalio Ka`ai, awardee of Nā Mamo Makamae o Ka Po`e Hawai`i: Living Treasures of the Hawaiian People, and Katherine Siva Saubel, Cahuilla historian and language scholar and the first American Indian woman inducted into the National Women’s Hall of Fame.
Moana Swan
Co-founder
Moana is Māori from the Ngāti Tūwharetoa and Ngāti Porou tribes of Aotearoa. As a Polynesian cultural specialist, Moana has worked extensively with Polynesian traditional artists to perpetuate and showcase their various art forms. Moana served as the producer of the Lahaina International Canoe Festival that has been instrumental in reviving the art of traditional canoe building throughout the Pacific.
Sekio Fuapopo
Board of Directors
Sekio was born in Utulei, Tutuila, America Samoa and raised and educated in San Francisco. He brings to Kua`aina his expertise and networks in the Pacific Island communities and his experience and connections to cultural masters from the Pacific and the Pacific North West. After serving in the military during the Vietnam War, Sekio went back to school on the GI Bill and earned his MA in painting from Sacramento State University and a BFA from the San Francisco Art Institute in painting. Sekio continues to paint and is influenced by the traditions of his Samoan heritage, navigating the seas and humanity by the stars, winds, and songs. He is an advisor for Samoan Solutions and Camp Unity, a community-based Samoan youth organization in San Francisco.
Paul Kealoha Blake
Board of Directors
Paul was born on Maui and raised on O`ahu. He brings to Kua`aina experience in nonprofit management, and media and new technology production. A Hawaiian videographer, musician, and cultural activist, Paul has collaborated on numerous media projects across the U.S. and internationally. He is the co-founder and the co-director of the East Bay Media Center in Berkeley, Califorian, which provides technical and educational access to communities with a special emphasis on communities of color. Paul pioneered the camcorder and personal computer video revolution by being the first production/post-production organization to offer integrated video/computer workstations. He created specialized training programs to provide independent producers and organizations with the necessary tools for navigating new technologies and developed training programs for people with disabilities. With the grant support of the California Arts Council and the Vanguard Foundation, Paul provided the basis for a variety of programming including African Connections, Pacific Wave, Barrier Free TV, Video 99, and Berkeley MuzikTV. Paul is also the co-curator of the Berkeley Video & Film Festival.
Jeanette Acosta
Board of Directors
Jeanette is a Filipina and an adopted daughter of a Chumash family. Jeanette brings to Kua`aina her experience and knowledge of the performing arts world along with the blend of artistic expression and indigenous land use management. A lifelong student of music, she began her music career as a child prodigy performing throughout Europe and later studied music at Cal Arts and UCLA. Jeanette has played keyboard for artist such as Taj Mahal and John Trudell and composed music for TV shows such as "Falcon Crest" and "Murphy’s Law," which she was nominated for an Emmy Award. Jeanette’s many accomplishments also include working for MBST Entertainment, where she managed the careers of John Pizzarelli, Bucky Pizzarelli, Mindi Abair, and assisted with the business affairs of Woody Allen, The Beatles, The Estate of George Harrison, and The Estate of Frank Zappa. Jeanette’s life journey has brought her to the practice of Kundalini yoga and meditation, and she is currently a certified permaculture instructor designer of permaculture principles, and specializes in maritime culture, herbalism, ethnobotany, and biodynamic principles. In her work, she emphasizes humankind’s symbiotic relationship between earth and sky.
SUPPORT THE LEGACY AND EXCELLENCE OF INDIGENOUS ART AND CULTURE
Your donation will be used to support Kua`aina’s general operations and projects. 10% of Kua`aina’s revenue goes to our “Aloha an Artist” fund that provides honoraria to artists in need.
