Native Hawaiian Methodologies to Community Engagement

This presentation explores the Nā Mea Kanu Series at the Laka me Lono Resource Center at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa and its process for creating and implementing an innovative Native Hawaiian methodology for community engagement in libraries based around traditional Hawaiian gods and their kinolau (plant body forms). Examples of how this approach to programming successfully increased community engagement with collection materials, built traditional food literacies among patrons, and offered opportunities for native language use and growth among students and faculty will be given. Tools for creating Indigenous and institution specific methodologies will also be explored.

This session was part of the ATALM annual conference held in Temecula, California, on October 25-27, 2022.