To actualize inspiring experiences rooted in ʻIke Hawaiʻi that challenge and empower Hawaiʻiʻs communities to take action in the protection, restoration and revitalization of Hawaiʻi.
As the world begins to re-open, we are excited to open a new primary learning center in ʻĀhualoa with five other satellite sites in December 2022. These spaces will continue to host the wide range of community activation opportunities we are best known for including, hula, oli (chanting), hana noʻeau (arts and crafts), ʻaha (ceremony), moʻolēlo (history and storytelling), mahiʻai (food security), kahu ʻāina (land stewardship), hoʻokipa (community events), kūkūlu kaiaulu (community building) and many more!
Our Mission
Lanakila Mangauil
founder
Growing up in the forests of ʻĀhualoa and down in Waipi‘o Valley, he was raised by and able to learn from a wide range of Hawaiian practitioners.
After graduating from Kanu O Ka ʻĀina NCPCS in 2004, he went on to teach in the DOE system, and continues to do so nearly two decades later. Upon founding The Hawaiian Cultural Center of Hāmākua (2016) he expanded his reach of cultural education locally, nationally, and internationally. A lifelong student of Hula and ritual, Lanakila received the title of Kumu Hula through the ceremonial right of uniki under Kekuhi Kanahele and Taupouri Tangaro.
He is best known for his activism and leadership in the movement to protect Maunakea and has served on the official Hawaiʻi State appointed Maunakea Working Group charged with the creation of a new management body for wahi kapu. Committed not only to activism but also solution creation, Lanakila was proud to co-author the revolutionary economic reform document: ʻĀina Aloha Economic Futures.
Our Roots
HŌʻĀ (formerly known as Hawaiian Cultural Center Of Hāmākua or HCCOH) was founded by Lanakila Mangauil in collaboration with other visionary community members eager to support Hawaiian cultural education.
We opened our doors in 2016 in the historical Botehlo Building of Honokaʻa town, packing in people for classes in hula, hana noʻeau, papa oli, ʻōlelo Hawaiʻi and hosted many art and music exhibitions.
During the COVID-19 Pandemic, the physical center was shut down and all educational programs were conducted online and the majority of our focus shifted to providing food and resources to grow and prepare food for our community. Over the years we've been honored to partner not only with pillars of the community, like the Council for Native Hawaiian Advancement or the County Of Hawaiʻi but alongside local schools like Kanu o Ka ʻĀina NCPCS or community mission-based non-profits like Hāmākua Harvest. We have also been able to service our diasporic Hawaiian community with federal partnerships like with the USDA and international entities like The Asian Pacific Museum of Warszawa.
"Lanakila’s students are grateful for his teachings. Kayla Sinotte, a garden teacher at Kohala Elementary School, attended a course on Hawaiian agriculture that Lanakila taught in 2014. “It was the best professional development that I could have done as a garden teacher in Hawai‘i,” she says, and recommends it to others.
- KE OLA MAGAZINE, MĀLIELANI LARISH HAWAII ISLAND 2017 NOV-DEC