The Aha Moku System

For more than 10 centuries, the Hawaiian system of natural resource management has been handed down in oral tradition and practice. It is based on the concept of `ahupua`a, the traditional land and ocean tenure system of Hawaii.  There are five elements in the system of best practices for traditional management of Hawai`i’s natural and cultural resources:

• An adaptive management regulatory system,;
• Codes of conduct, a non-regulatory process to support the regulatory system;
• Community consultation to insure management of resources benefits the people;
• Education to support natural and cultural resource management, and;
• Eligibility criteria to participate in resource management.

Eligibility criteria to participate in resource management is knowledge, recognized and verified by the community whose resources are being managed.