Kīpahulu ʻOhana focuses on shoreline and near-shore stewardship as one of the integral parts of the ahupua‘a approach to resource management. Through a two-year process facilitated by The Nature Conservancy (TNC) – Maui Marine Program (with the support of NOAA’s Coral Reef Conservation Program) involving extensive stakeholder input through a series of community meetings and site visits, involving more than 50 community members, fishermen, scientists, managers, and teachers, we developed our Kipahulu Malama I Ke Kai Community Action Plan (CAP) which guides our projects and priorities for our shoreline management efforts.

Among the projects of our Mālama I Ke Kai program are our 'Opihi Rest Area along the shoreline adjacent to Haleakalā National Park, and the proposal to designate Kipahulu Moku as a Community-Based Subsistence Fishing Area (CBSFA).

Through our participation in community-based resource stewardship networks in the islands, we seek to share with and learn from other communities who are pursuing similar goals and projects in their own areas. In 2012, Kīpahulu ʻOhana was one of six community organizations to cofound the Maui Nui Makai Network. Kīpahulu ʻOhana is also a member of the E Alu Pū Network and The Limu Hui.  In 2014, Kīpahulu ʻOhana hosted the annual gathering of the statewide E Alu Pū network of communities engaged in local management efforts, attended by over 150 people from over 30 communities around the islands plus collaborating agencies and organizations.

We appreciate the support for our Mālama I Ke Kai programs from the Harold H.K. Castle Foundation, the Hawaii Tourism Authority (HTA), Texas A&M University Corpus Christi, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), and The Nature Conservancy Maui Marine Program, among others.