Rooted in community, growing a resilient Hawaii Island
The ʻāina has carried us for generations
Across Hawaiʻi Island, kānaka maoli are already doing the work of restoration — clearing invasive species, replanting native forest, tending loʻi and food forests, protecting wai, caring for fire-prone landscapes, and passing ʻike kūpuna (ancestral knowledge) to the next generation.
This work does not always wait for large grants or long timelines. It happens because someone in the community decided the land could not wait.
Kahua ʻĀina exists to meet that work where it already is. Rather than funding one large project, this program distributes small, direct grants to individual grassroots leaders across Hawaiʻi Island — seeding a network of stewardship rather than a single site of it.
Hawaiʻi Island
$500 - $1,000
per individual grant
3–6 months
project period
One page
Low barrier application
Photos + story
simple reporting
(Where is your kuleana?)
Choose your focus
Kahua ʻĀina supports grassroots work across three interconnected areas. A project does not need to fit neatly into one category — many grassroots efforts naturally cross all three, and that overlap is welcome.
01
Land & Watershed Stewardship
Restoring the places that hold wai, forest, soil, and life.
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Invasive species removal
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Native reforestation
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Stream & wai restoration
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Soil & erosion care
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Native plant propagation
02
Traditional Food Systems
Rebuilding food sovereignty through ʻāina and ʻike.
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Loʻi kalo restoration
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ʻUlu groves & food forests
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Fishpond restoration
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Seed stewardship
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Kūpuna-led food knowledge
03
Volcano-Adapted Land Care
Caring for ʻāina in a changing volcano landscape.
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Fuel-break creation
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Invasive grass removal
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Native & fire-resistant planting
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Vegetation management
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Community fire-resilience work
Grant range for every focus area: $500–$1,000, over a 3–6 month project period.
Mālama ʻāina.
Mālama ka wā e hiki mai ana.
The work may look different from place to place — a restored stream, a replanted forest, a thriving loʻi, a food forest tended by many hands, a fire-resilient landscape, a kūpuna teaching a keiki. Each is part of a larger responsibility: to care for ʻāina, strengthen community, and carry knowledge forward.
ELIGIBILITY
Kahua ʻĀina is designed for
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Individual kanaka maoli based on Hawaiʻi Island
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People already engaged in community-rooted land, water, food, or resilience work
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Individuals proposing a new grassroots project
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Applicants who can receive funds directly into a bank account
How to apply
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No formal budget templates.
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No letters of support.
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No multi-section narrative required.
Before you begin, make sure you can say yes to each of these criteria:
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I am a kanaka maoli individual or descedent
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I am based on Hawaiʻi Island, and my project takes place on Hawaiʻi Island
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My project relates to land, water, food systems, or fire resilience
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I can receive funds directly as an individual
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My requested amount is between $500 and $1,000
Use of funds
Can support:
Materials, tools, and supplies
Seedlings and native plants
Protective gear, mulch, and fencing
Transportation and access costs
Community workday stipends
Kūpuna-led teaching
Documentation, printing, and knowledge-sharing materials
Not intended for:
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Large equipment purchases beyond the award size
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Organizational administrative or overhead costs
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Work located outside Hawaiʻi Island
Timeline
Applications open:
October 1, 2026
Applications Close:
October 31, 2026, 11:59 PM Hawaiʻi time
Grantees notified:
November 15, 2026
Funds disbursed:
December 1, 2026, via ACH
Project period:
3–6 months from disbursement
Final report due:
By June 1, 2027
After the grant
Tell us what happened
At the close of the project, grantees will share a few photographs — before and after, when appropriate — and a short story about what was accomplished and who was involved. This is meant to honor the work, not audit it. Reporting should take minutes, not hours.
The ʻāina is already calling people into action.
Kahua ʻĀina is here to help support the people answering that call.
Small grants.
Many hands.
Deep roots.