Kaleomanuiwa Wong | Polynesian Voyaging Society || Radcliffe Institute

In 1975, when the Hōkūleʻa was built and launched from the shores of Hawaii and set course for the nearest landfall 2,500 miles away with no GPS, no compass, and no modern day navigational assistance, both Hawaiian and non-Hawaiian spectators were convinced the project would be a failure. But thanks to traditional navigation techniques, which use the stars along with ocean swells, the canoe was able to successfully traverse through the middle of the ocean from Hawaii to Tahiti.
Forty-one years later, Hōkūleʻa is in the midst of a three-year, worldwide voyage established to create global relationships and explore how to care for our oceans. Sailing in the wake of its ancestors, the Polynesian Voyaging Society carries a message of mālama honua, caring for Island Earth and each other. Using their canoes as a platform, its members hope to bridge cultural tradition and modern technology, timeless values and new visions-and to inspire the next generation of leaders to build sustainable solutions for Island Earth’s future.