Native Hawaiian communities on Maui and Molokai received a total of nearly $200,000 to aid in conservation efforts.

Conservation and youth education nonprofit Kupu announced a grant award this week totaling $413,243 to support communities on Maui, Molokai, Hawaii island and Kauai through the Office of Hawaiian Affairs 2021-22 COVID-19 Response Grant.

With an award of $140,088 for Maui and $48,731 for Molokai, Kupu will provide rigorous, entry-level employment opportunities for Native Hawaiian early and developing professionals ages 17 or older who want to commit to a career in conservation through its Conservation Leadership Development Program.

Native Hawaiians possess skills and knowledge that are ideally suited for conservation careers, however, most paid positions are currently held by non-Hawaiians, Kupu said in a news release. Kupu will address the barriers to entry that limit Native Hawaiian access to these kinds of jobs.  

“This partnership gets Native Hawaiian future leaders working today as many ‘ohana struggle to recover from the COVID-19 economic downturn,” Kupu CEO John Leong said. “All of Hawai’i will benefit from the opportunities these young people will be given to apply their knowledge and love of the ‘aina to positions that we hope will become their careers.”