Guided Cultural Tour of the Niaulani Forest

Guided Cultural Tour of the Niaulani Forest

Friday, July 26, 2019

9:30 – 11:30am

 Join Kumu Hula Ryan McCormack for a special tour of the Niaulani old growth forest, with a Hawaiian cultural emphasis.  The tour will focus on Hawaiian protocol, traditional chants, history and lifeways, as they relate to the native forest ecosystem.

Topics will include protocol for “asking permission” to enter the forest and gather plant material, traditional knowledge and uses of forest plants, and local history and lore from the uniquely Hawaiian perspective.  The tour may include examples of traditional Hawaiian oli (chants) and hula that relate to the forest.

Ryan McCormack is an ʻŪniki ʻAi Lolo of Unukupukupu, having completed his formal rites of passage under the tutelage of Dr. Taupōuri Tangarō.  He is Kumu Hula of Māunuunu and a Lecturer in the Hawaiʻi Life Styles department at Hawaiʻi Community College. Originally from Waimānalo, he now calls the rainforest of ʻŌlaʻa, Hawaiʻi Island, his home. His ongoing passion for hula and community wellbeing has been supported by a lifetime of dancing and an educational journey that has most recently culminated in a Masters degree in Depth Psychology, with an emphasis in Jungian and Archetypal Studies, from Pacifica Graduate Institute. He delights in sharing the mythology, history, music, and dance traditions of Hawaiʻi, both here at home and around the world.

This tour is free and open to the public. This is a first-time event and we hope to continue these programs monthly through 2020. Please come and show your support!