Hawai’i Pacific University is located in the heart of the city of Honolulu, a great metropolitan hub for international business and trade. Honolulu is an ever-growing city that is known as a “melting pot” which brings together race diversity from both the East and West, cuisine, art, adventure and culture. For us HPU students, most of our concept of “time” and “seasons” have basically meshed into one mentality: Spring Break forever! With an average of about 80 degrees year round, we can sometimes forget that the rest of the world is actually experiencing a winter… Hey East Coast, are you getting chilly yet over there? The Aloha Tower Marketplace, newly renovated by HPU, borders the Pacific Ocean for great views and brews what with Hooters and Gordon Biersch located at the first floor. A major benefit of coming to HPU besides the obvious tropical lush greenery, white sand beaches and great night life is the close proximity of each of the Hawaiian islands. What are your Spring Break plans this 2017? Camping O’ahu's North Shore? Procrastinating that communications 300 paper or statistics homework? This year try something new and take up Drake’s offer to go to Maui with your girlfriends. Island hopping is very popular among students and most residents of O’ahu. The Big Island, Maui, Kauai, The Road to Hana, Kona and the Na Pali coast; whatever destination within the islands that you can dream of, is right here in this beautiful Hawaiian archipelago. Being located within this “melting pot” of a city, Hawai’i Pacific University also very much prides itself on its diversity of its students and provides ways in which each individual can emerge into the Hawaiian culture while also cultivating a means to keep their culture personal to them. Division 2 athletics, intramural sports, clubs and social services are offered to helped students adjust and expand on their interests and hobbies. It is a fact that HPU has had several students from each country of the world! If you are an outdoor-connoisseur or even a beach-enthusiast, every corner of O’ahu has what you are looking for: between the mostly-empty beaches and diving of West O’ahu, to the city and night life in Waikiki, to the Ko’olau mountain range in the East and the country roads in the North Shore, this island has some sort of perfection suited for your wanderlust-filled heart. What island is next on your list? Images from Google.
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Mature Story This blog will discuss the relevance of food security with its accordance to socioeconomic status in the state of Hawaii. The truth behind poverty does not only lie in the faces of the homeless on Fort Street. It lies in the middle class, those contributing to society every single day, who have families and stable jobs. The social stigma surrounding food assistance creates a shameful bias towards those who seek access to it. I did a participant observation on the beach at Ala Moana park, where I encountered a family throwing their son’s fifth birthday. Several family and friends helped celebrate the event, a couple uncles and aunties, and other children approximately 3-6 years old and 10-14 years old. The birthday space consisted of two tents covering a barbecue, coolers, a food prep station, a few beach chairs and a couple of small keiki’s napping after a good swim. Music filled the air of sweet Hawaiian melodies and ukuleles. This family was local, and as they threw around the ball to each other during a game of tackle-football, pidgin was the language of choice. A few more guests arrived, bearing additional food items such as a watermelon, a box of assorted Maui Onion chips, a large variety pack of canned iced teas and a piñata. Food was declared “ready to eat!” and the group flocked to the tents to begin filling their plate with what looked like laulau, barbecue chicken and steak, poi, Okinawan sweet potatoes, homemade musubis, chips, watermelon, and more. After the family began to grab seconds and head back out to the water for more swimming, I decided to introduce myself to the mother of the birthday boy and other aunties surrounding. As I began to talk story about the party and the reason behind the celebration, I learned that the mother, Mahina, was expecting twins in about 3 months. This was the last family event that would be thrown before they expected their newborns. Mahina explained that they throw their birthday parties at the beach because its cheap and has the most space for their family and guests. She admitted that times were tough for her and her husband, and that most of the event’s food was provided by the food stamps that she qualifies for. Despite the appearance of middle-class and abundance, the families food source was secured due to government food assistance and general reciprocity of the Hawaiian family culture. My questions by this time in the observation included: how long does the average participant have to rely on food stamps before they consider themselves back on their feet? Is the amount given each month truly enough to help sustain TRUE nutritional value to each meal, even in a family as big as 5 or more? “As a family, we have been using SNAP benefits on and off for the last two years. Adding more children sets a higher expectation for my husband and I and we try to reduce spending anywhere possible… we even moved to the city to be closer to our jobs.” -Mahina Nationally, more than 44% of SNAP Financial Food Assistance participants are in working families, however in the state of Hawaii that number jumps to 53%. As of 2017, the percentage of families with children receiving SNAP in Hawaii is 64% (HumanServices.Hawaii.Gov). Those high numbers may represent an increased amount of poverty, but higher numbers also mean that our government is doing the most to ensure a large majority of those in need are covered. It also means that the government is encouraging future economic growth by providing the grocer-consumer with (strictly food) capital which then increases the flow of money in the economy. [1] With SNAP food assistance, families such as Mahina’s are able to sustain consistent healthy meals each day, exponentially creating more value to each dollar being spent at the grocery store. SNAP statistics estimate that every $1 spent for food assistance generates $1.70 in economic activity, which enables financial program security for future SNAP participants. Gaining a better understanding of this family’s source of food security allowed me to open my eyes to the impact and importance government meal assistance, not only for those who are considered to be in “poverty” but also for those working to join the middle class. Poverty is more than what meets the eye, it entails issues of food security that affect more than just the lower class. Food assistance needs to be socially reconstructed to be better understood for the economic value for every consumer and those striving to live above the poverty line. Works Cited
[1] SNAP Statistics found on: https://www.cbpp.org/sites/default/files/atoms/files/snap_factsheet_hawaii.pdf I pulled into my parking spot and fed the parking meter 6 quarters. Before grabbing my Northface sweater and faux-fur jacket, I checked my lipstick in my rearview mirror. As I walked into the production room of HPU's study hall, my team had began setting up our camera gear to prepare for what was our Green Screen Project for the MC 3120 Digital Writing course. It was our first time working with a green screen, and it was one of my first time's being solo behind a camera. I rehearsed the script where I took it upon myself to be the reporting newswoman speaking on two women climbing Mt. Everest for the first time in history! My lips quivered as I lifted the fake microphone and silently rehearsed my lines. CUT! Amanda, our director said, for what seemed like the 5th time. These lines were easy but the job was difficult - remembering speed of voice, volume, facial expression, articulateness, was indeed a detailed job! After all, many of my classmates would see this! After an hours time we ended up conquering the filming process and Amanda was so kind as to do the editing. Yay team! Here is final product. Download the file below to get a sneak peak of my team and I behind the scenes!
Mature Story Today I went to work at a full-scale restaurant inside of Nordstrom called Ruscello, just after watching the documentary film Living On One Dollar. As I walked inside the building, the first thing my manager asked me was, “What should I get to eat today?” sighing as she read our menu for, what? The hundredth time? As she asked this question, I flashed back to the scene where Chris and Zach, the main producers/actors in the film, purchased lard to mix into their beans in order to increase fat and calorie intake; a cultural dietary-trick that the villages in Guatemala have grown accustomed to in order to meet basic nutritional needs. Without a word from me, she gazed up from the menu, scoffed, and said “I guess I’ll go with the Shrimp Pasta…again. Come to the host stand to review the specials.” I asked myself as if looking in a mirror, are we so blinded by abundance that we seem to forget all that we are blessed with? The mission to understand cultural norms within the villages of Pena Blanca for Zack and Chris was so deep that they willed themselves to live for two months under the poverty line, just as the residents. The locals were portrayed as hard-working, resilient, and cooperative within their community. During times of strife, communal bank clubs and micro-financing were options to those who had a great living community surrounding them, or a stable job and home to report living in. However not everyone had those luxuries and most were lucky to even have an inconsistent income of the equivalent to one dollar per day. But what if you did have a community to rely on? More than the stress of where their next income would come from, is the stress of being able to take care of their families most basic needs; such as soap, obtaining a stovetop instead of cooking over a flame indoors (which risks the lungs and produces harmful side affects in their children from the smoke), having to decide between feeding their child or sending them to school, or simply that the only water source available to anyone has traces of dirt and small bugs. Getting to choose a gourmet meal off of a menu is a simple luxury that is overlooked and regarded as more of a “chore,” or “activity” you might do with friends, family or colleagues to come together over exciting news, business or for additional bonding. Whether my boss truly wanted the shrimp pasta or not, I examined the luxury that the both of us had, having a consistent income that puts food in my stomach, puts me through school, pays my bills and ensures a 401k in my future. Food is regarded with much more respect and hard work in these areas such as Pena Blanca where people struggle daily to meet 2,000 calories, as their standard diet consists of rice, beans and bananas, having no idea the next time they might receive any income. Having such a small margin of income forced the producers of this film to re-establish their dietary habits. When the actors realized that it was more of a financial risk in farming a chicken that may not lay eggs instead of purchasing immediate produce, it implied that locals are not getting the most optimal nutrition. Most families have more than 5 people to take care of and cannot afford proper protein-sources. The film demonstrates that no matter your gender, you do what you have to do to put food on the table for people in your home by working hard every single day and creating a steady income is the most important for survival. The best way that the locals get a chance at successful careers is through micro-financing. This is a system of small loan increments that are given to individuals who have a way of identification or ID, amounts typically ranging from $30-$500. With just a $200 loan, a local woman was able to create a weaving business, that eventually paid for her living expenses and her education (keeping in mind that not only do American children go to school as for free, our government even requires it by law…). A $35 loan helped a man pay to get his wife a doctors appointment and medicine that helped prevent her from dying. What is crazy to me after viewing this film is that the western world takes for granted even $500 that might go to a pair of shoes or the next new iPhone, when that money could pay to feed an entire village in Guatemala AND fix their leaking roofs. The luxuries that westerners view as basic standards of living have truly created a cognitive dissonance within us, as well as greed, ungratefulness and blindness to the realities of the third-world, living in much harsher and different circumstances. Whose job is it to ensure the betterment of these people? How can we help to begin to solve this problem in the world? Because to me, the world does not have a food shortage problem, the world has a food-allocation problem. Land is being used to farm GMO crops for agriculture instead of properly growing food to ensure optimal nutrition and that the poor are fed. These farm animals will later be eaten by the first world while the third world is left to feed all of us while most starve. Though this type of business cannot be fixed over night. For now, people like us and the college-graduates who produced the documentary have the means and responsibility to exploit these world issues, and have them be known on a social-level where people can help donate their time or money to the cause, and to help empower people like those in the Pena Blanca village. Thank you to the producers in this film who continued to harbor my passion for joining the Peace Corps and other NGO’s in my future. Works Cited
Temple, Chris. “Living on One Dollar (2013).” IMDb, IMDb.com, 22 Apr. 2013, www.imdb.com/title/tt2625598/. Images were found from Google. Shianne Schorr is 21 years old and has recently moved to Oahu to attend college at Hawaii Pacific University. She lived in Kauai most of her life, but she has also lived on a few different islands, on the mainland and out of the country. However, she says Kauai is her home. At Hawaii Pacific University she studies Integrated Multimedia, and she expects to graduate in the Fall of 2017. She chose this major to gain experience in design, graphic design, animation and digital media. This will hopefully tie in with communication and marketing for her future. She chose to leave Kauai and go to HPU for the study abroad program, which inspired her to study an entire year abroad in Australia. In adopting to different cultures throughout her life, she claims the most shocking cultural aspect of moving from Kauai to Oahu was the anxiety, stress and overwhelmingness, due to the “city.” From the constant traffic, to the destruction of sacred land, Shianne says “Its not like Kauai.” Her college career at HPU made her realize she is much more of a small town girl and the city life is not her cup of tea, which has been a good experience in showing Shianne what she values in life. In adapting to Oahu’s tourist culture, she had to get used to the pace, vast population and “all the Asians” (she said jokingly.) In her opinion, there are many people here who have flooded the island who are uneducated about the Hawaiian culture and aloha spirit… and that "true Hawaii is about sharing and enveloping values of Aloha, so much so that it is in the Hawaiian Legislature!" Shianne was raised on respect, but upon hopping over to this island she witnessed littering and people treating the land as if its any other state in the mainland; as if Honolulu doubled as a miniature Los Angeles. Shianne would encourage others to educate themselves on the history of Hawaii and the importance of aloha spirit. She says the children of the land have a purpose, in which is to spread aloha wherever they go, therefore when visitors come they should know that respect needs to be earned, instead of assuming its already had. Hawaii is a societal culture in that it's about knowing and sharing with your neighbors. She believes that Oahu does not properly represent “true Hawaii” and with the governments priorities on tourism and the economy, many values within the Hawaiian legislature are forgotten on a societal level. What disappoints Shianne the most about Oahu is the interactions she has had with some tourists. They couldn’t even remember name of the island they were on, or what the difference between Oahu, Honolulu and the “North Shore” was. She wishes the islands wouldn’t be viewed so much as a destination spot, but somewhere with true, rich culture and sustainable living. She plainly just asks visitors and new residents to do their HOMEWORK and research these islands before just picking up and moving, as each island has something amazing to offer. Shianne gave me the 411 on the riches of the Hawaiian islands, “If you’re looking for a Garden, then go to Kauai. If you’re looking for a volcano, snow and a vast variety of newness go to the Big Island, the Gathering Place. If you’re looking for untouched valleys, go to Molokai. Every island has something beautiful to offer, it just depends what you are looking for.” To get away from the city vibe, Shianne resorts to the West side of Oahu where there are open beaches and less population. As she wraps up her senior year of her bachelors degree and begins to receive a couple job offers, Shianne has been challenged in debating fulfilling her career goals on Oahu, in a different city abroad, or following her heart back home to her small town in Kauai. As different as her experience has been living in Oahu, she says her college career at HPU has been the greatest learning experience for her thus far and has helped shaped her into the strong, cultured woman she is to this day. You can see and follow more about Shianne's story by visiting her website www.kealohalife.com Blog Too often do I hear my peers tell me they are inspired by my values of veganism and pledge to being a cruelty free food consumer and citizen. However sometimes they forget that the information to this enlightening state of consciousness is easily accessible and practically right in front of them: on their Youtube and Netflix accounts. Youtube is a powerful platform. You can teach yourself just about anything if you can search it. 101 Reasons to Go Vegan by James Wildman was the first video that exposed me to the reality of agriculture and how to eliminate the cognitive dissonance that surrounds meat-eating. I remember being a freshman in college, watching this video late night after being inspired from a few vegans on Instagram. They would post real photos of slaughterhouses, inspirational video suggestions, and peaceful advocation. Being an animal lover and supporter of the environment, I thought it was time to find out what all of this “vegan” buzz was about. I remember what it felt like to "wake up." I have been moved ever since; building my plant-based knowledge from other Youtubers, documentaries, books and holistic health professionals. If you are interested in becoming vegan, this is a great video to begin with. Other sources I recommend include documentaries such as What The Health (nutrition), Earthlings (agriculture), Cowspiracy (environment), Forks Over Knives (nutrition), Vegucated (nutrition), and In Defense of Food (nutrition), which can all be found on Netflix. Books that are great for more plant based inspiration include The Peace Diet (written by a local doctor in O'ahu), The China Study (my favorite!) and How Not To Die. Every great country is powered by large land security, powerful militaries, and strong economies. Or so the history books say. The ones that tell me that western expansion was glorified by Lewis and Clarke, Christopher Columbus and Captain James Cook. Western Expansion was really a race of the first world nations in asserting their dominance all around the globe; white European men would sail uncharted waters, claim land and its treasures if it wasn’t first found by another American, or vice versa, an example being the acquisition of the state of Hawai’i. In this day and age alcoholic advertisements and vacation getaway commercials include that iconic idea of finding your beach, getting away, and getting lei’d. The US is notorious for putting their own state of Hawai’i on a tourism pedestal. Ads promote those tropical lush beaches and tanned women serving you drinks by the pool. The American government, as it seems, would promote any idea that allows consumers and the entirety of its country to believe that Hawai’i was added as the 50th state to serve as a popular destination for vacationing and military investment. However the truth of the matter is that most of the nation is blind to the real history that America has with Hawai’i, and most Americans do not know that the country was seized, in violation of international law, and that Hawaiians were impelled to become US citizens. The film “Act of War: The Overthrow of the Hawaiian Nation” explicitly demonstrates the American seizure over this native land and illustrates it by way of displaying interviews, dramatic dialogue, art, and cultural music to convey what it meant to the Hawaiians to lose their land. Hawaii was always looked at as an investment; not as a sacred land, developed as a high state of cultivation. Environmental magic and mysticism seeped from the scenes of moody lava flows, dark stormy seas and foggy mountain ridges as the film begins to develop, showing Hawaiian arrests, demolition of residential neighborhoods as well as marches and strikes organized against the American government. But American investors would not stop seeking these foreign lands as their own: and eventually developed land-ownership rights where there used to be none. Now Hawaiian land could be bought, missionaries only leaving 10% of the island for native peoples. British paintings were used to convey large ships arriving to the Hawaiian coastlines, illustrating the cultures meeting each other for the first time, looking astounded, as the clashing waves broke ashore. This symbolized the “refuge” that Pearl Harbor served as for the US military as well as marking the time in which using Hawai’i as a military trade center. Samuel Kamakau’s voice flowed somber words for the dwindling Hawaiian population as he reminisced on the sicknesses that Westerners brought the island, such as Tuberculosis, Measles and sexually transmitted diseases. He explained that just within a period of 100 years the population of locals in Hawaii was almost depleted by 75%. This population loss was due sicknesses, plantation owners driving locals out of their home, as well as new voting laws. Voting was reserved for those with money, and being that the Hawaiian culture doesn’t value materialism, many weren't considered “qualified.” Passion poured from the lips of Queen Liliuokalani in interviews explaining her love for her country, people and the hope that she had within the American government to “right the wrongs” that had been done. She truly believed that the president would stay loyal to her after creating such close ties and friendships. The film shows scenes of James Dole and his “American Defacto” government preparing for imprisonment of the Queen, as lovely Hawaiian music begins to crescendo as monumental dates, such as Statehood, flash over the screen. As western expansion became inevitable, if it was not for America, it would have been England or another country having an arms race to take over Hawaii’s rich, fertile, perfectly located isles. Being an American up to this point, I am fortunate that I am attending college and reigning the beautiful benefits that reaps from Hawaii’s statehood. But I have to remember this land was not openly made acquirable to my country and residents such as myself, it was stolen, unrightfully, immorally and unethically. I pose these questions as I conclude: what were to happen had it not been the US? Would Oahu be seeing the same types of economies, homelessness, and military presence? Would other nations have taken such a strong armed position in obtaining Hawaii as America did? This image is from Google. |