Ready to volunteer? These organizations are ready for your kokua.
Check out our Watershed Stewardship Events Calendar to find to what’s happening when & where.
West Maui Mountains Watershed Partnership (WMMWP)
The goal of the West Maui Watershed Partnership is to protect the native forest that supplies us with fresh water. They do this by building fences, removing invasive weeds, controlling feral animals, and managing human activities. So how does a native forest supply us with clean water? A healthy native forest has multiple layers that can collect water like a sponge—think tree canopies to moss—allowing water to slow down long enough to seep into our natural aquifers.
Volunteer work
With WMWP, you can go on a field day on the Waihee Ridge trail to help clear highly invasive strawberry guava from the area. (The species spreads quickly and aggressively and pose a major threat to the majority of the watershed.) Other volunteer opportunities, particularly those in the West Maui area, are to come! Contact WMWP for more details.
Maui Cultural Lands (MCL)
Maui Cultural Lands is a Maui-based grassroots land trust organization whose mission is to stabilize, protect, and restore Hawaiian cultural resources. MCL was established as a nonprofit organization in February 2002, and is one of the few land trust organizations on Maui targeting Hawaiian cultural lands along the coast and inland areas.
Volunteer work
Every Saturday the public is invited for maintenance work in Honokowai Valley. MCL’s primary goal is to reforest the area with native and endemic Hawaiian plant species, as well as to stabilize important archaeological sites for future generations. Meet at the Puukolii “Sugar Cane Train” Station parking lot. Groups and families are welcome. Call or email MCL for more details.
Contact: Ekolu Lindsey
Phone:
Email:
Website: http://www.mauiculturallands.org
Division of Aquatic Resources (DAR), Maui
The DAR manages the state’s aquatic resources and ecosystems through programs in commercial fisheries and resource enhancement; aquatic resources protection, habitat enhancement, and education; and recreational fisheries. DAR is currently collecting information about herbivorous fishes – fish that eat seaweed, such as surgeonfish, parrotfish, and chubs — which play an important role in keeping coral reef ecosystems healthy.
Volunteer Work
Volunteers can provide managers with information on our herbivores by documenting what they see while snorkeling. Collecting data is simple and fun, and you can get trained on-site. To join, volunteers must have their own snorkel gear, be proficient swimmers and snorkelers, and have basic fish identification skills. Survey supplies and a fish ID sheet will be provided. To sign up for a training, and find out about other opportunities throughout Maui, send an email to Darla White at . http://www.state.hi.us/dlnr/dar/
Hawaiian Islands Humpback Whale National Marine Sanctuary
The Hawaiian Islands Humpback Whale National Marine Sanctuary lies within the shallow (less than 600 feet), warm waters surrounding the main Hawaiian Islands. Through education, outreach, research and resource protection activities, the sanctuary strives to protect humpback whales and their habitat.
Volunteer Work
The Sanctuary is looking for volunteers to provide whale and coral reef talks to visitors at the Whalers Village Museum. These trained docents will also assist with community outreach events and programs held at other West Maui venues. To learn more stop by the Sanctuary’s Maui Visitor Center in Kihei or contact Bo Petty at . http://hawaiihumpbackwhale.noaa.gov/involved/volunteer_maui.html
