[intro music] HIKI NŌ, Hawai‘i's New Wave of Storytellers.

Aloha, and welcome to HIKI NŌ on PBS Hawai‘i.

I'm Alohilani Riklon.

And I'm Kiara Hamora, and we're juniors at Kealakehe High School on Hawai‘i Island.

Mahalo for tuning in to watch work produced by Hawai‘i's New Wave of Storytellers.

In this episode, we get to share a special collection of stories from the second round of shows this spring season.

We'll revisit the stories that made us laugh and made us cry, stories of everlasting friendship, and green gardens that spark joy.

We'll relive our childhood, the good and the challenging.

We'll visit a monk seal hospital and investigate what happens to our waters after major storms.

There was a lot to cover this season, so let's start the show.

This upcoming story about brotherhood and the ocean received second place in our HIKI NŌ Spring Challenge.

It comes from James Campbell High School students on O‘ahu.

Surfing definitely is what calls me to the water.

It's just constant fun and constant drive and motivation to want to do better and be better and make friendships and have like, the best vibe you can have, possibly.

My name is Kalani.

I'm 16, and I'm a junior at Campbell High School.

My name is Gabriel.

I'm 12th grade.

My name is Julian.

I'm 11th grade.

So, my name's Cyrus.

I'm in seventh grade.

Hello everybody.

[laughter] During school, after school, whenever the swell hits, four friends from Ewa keep finding their way back here.

For them, surfing isn't just a hobby, it's their way of life.

Don't need much other than this, pretty much.

Just watching waves just break straight on the sand.

Boy, that's fun.

Like, that's worth it.

I love it.

But this love for surfing didn't just come out of nowhere.

At the core of their group is Gabe, who introduced them to the waves.

Oh, we met at the skate park.

Gabe had a car, and he was like, saying, "Oh, you guys want to chill?"

We was like, "Oh, bet."

And then it just came from there.

You know, the bond just gets tighter over experiencing things.

Gabe is the heart of our group.

Without Gabe, I don't think, and we said it before, without Gabe, I don't think we have surf.

I wouldn't be here.

What started as a newfound passion for surfing quickly turned into something deeper: a brotherhood built in the water.

However, Gabe is graduating this year, and the brotherhood that surfing built suddenly feels less like forever.

I feel like a life without Gabe, like, I'd be a total different person.

I would have no faith in God, nothing, and there's nowhere like, no motivation.

You know, there's no drive, nothing in my life.

They know these moments won't last forever, but as long as they can meet in the water, they can live in the present and love what they have while it's still here.

Like, in the future, we're all just, we're all gonna have to grow up at some point, and we can't surf together.

And these moments aren't gonna last forever.

The waves, they bring us together.

Whenever there's a swell, that's what's gonna bring us together.

Like, it doesn't last forever, but it's fun, and it's fun right now.

So that's all that matters, and the joy is worth all of it, you know.

Like, it's worth it.

Before they knew the ocean, they were just kids killing time on the concrete.

But after Gabe, they're chasing swells, chasing barrels, and chasing a different style of life.

This is Landon Espiritu from James Campbell High School for HIKI NŌ, on PBS Hawai‘i.

[ocean wave] This next story beautifully captures the essence of youth.

It was produced by students at Kapa‘a High School on Kaua‘i.

There was a time when colored pencils were the keys to my own kingdom, and the only limit to my reality was the length of the lead.

When I was the architect of empires, with Legos as my foundation, my backyard held an entire world.

I noticed the flowers and stopped to breathe them in.

In every small stream, I saw a raging river.

For hours, I watched the clouds morph, convinced that dragons and giants were moving through the sky.

My best friend was whoever happened to be walking by that day.

I didn't need lengthy introductions, the polite, "How do you do?"

I just needed a space to run… a tree to climb… and someone to be there to see it.

Joy came to me so naturally.

My mind was carefree, and my imagination thrived.

I lived in the moment, never wanting to slow down, never needing to.

The freedom of childhood feels distant now, slipping a little more out of reach every day.

So, I try to remember to hold on before I can't touch it at all.

[ocean wave] At Hawai‘i Preparatory Academy Middle School on the Big Island, this next student shared a thoughtful reflection on what it's like to live with anxiety and her journey with therapy.

Aloha.

My name is Finnegan LeDuc.

I'm an eighth grader at Hawai‘i Preparatory Academy on the island of Hawai‘i.

Ever since I was little, I've struggled with my anxiety.

It's controlled my life, and I've had issues with obsession and having very high standards for myself.

Because of this, it can be hard for me to control my emotions.

In the past, I felt like people didn't like me or wanted to be around me because of my emotions.

I had a really hard time accepting this.

My parents started noticing my anxiety getting worse when I was in third grade.

They were worried, so they decided to find someone I can talk to.

That's when I started therapy.

At first, I was scared and resistant towards it.

I hated being told what I had issues with, in terms of my mental health.

It made me feel like something was wrong with me.

Me and my therapist worked hard for me to get past this.

We also worked past other aspects of my anxiety.

She taught me skills about how to stop obsessing and strategies to keep myself calm.

We also worked together to notice trigger subjects.

This helped me through lots of things, including family and friendship relationships.

She helped me through problems that seemed huge at the time but turned out to be minuscule.

But most importantly, she gave me someone to talk to without any judgment.

Today, six years later, I still use all these skills, I still go to the same therapist, and my life has changed for the better.

I now have a better handle on my emotions, and I know how to live with my anxiety.

Many people think therapy is scary.

Therapy can be an amazing tool for everyone.

Through my journey with anxiety, I've realized that I'm not alone in my mental health, and I will always have people to support me.

This is Finnegan LeDuc from Hawai‘i Preparatory Academy for HIKI NŌ on PBS Hawai‘i.

[ocean wave] This next video is both informational and practical.

Let's find out more in the buzz about bees from Chloe Smith at Radford High School on O‘ahu.

Did you know that Hawai‘i only has one endemic bee and it's endangered?

While these bees are tiny, they have a big job.

Coming in at only five to seven millimeters, about the size of a grain of rice, is the yellow faced bee, also known as the nalo meli maoli.

These native Hawaiian bees are endangered due to invasive species, diseases and habitat loss.

Well, why does this matter?

It's because they are critical pollinators of our native Hawaiian plants, many of which are used in cultural practices.

These plants and bees have co-evolved, making the nalo meli maoli the most efficient pollinator.

Without them, these plants vital to our ecosystem, would cease to exist.

Well, what can we do to help these bees?

One simple thing you can do is to plant native plants in your own garden.

Let me show you a fun way to do this.

Today, I'm going to teach you an easy way to plant these native plants in your own garden.

Let's make a bee bomb.

Bees are paper mâché balls with seeds mixed in that, when planted, can help grow native plants.

To make 40 bee bombs, you will need roughly 35 sheets of paper.

If you wanted to make just a few, it's about one sheet of paper per bee bomb.

Any kind of paper will work.

Just remember to remove stickers, staples or tape.

I'm using my sister's old coloring pages.

You will also need native seeds.

A quick Google search can help you find where to purchase these.

I'm using ‘ilima seeds that I got from Hawai‘i Island Seed Bank.

You will also need a blender, a bowl for water, a strainer, and eight cups of water.

First, tear the paper into strips and put it in bowls.

Fill the bowl with water and soak overnight.

Next, you will need to blend the paper into a slurry, making the bee bomb molding.

I'm using a handheld immersion blender, but you can use a standard countertop blender.

Once it's blended, strain the slurry with the strainer to remove excess water.

Try to squeeze out as much water as possible.

Then transfer back to the bowl and add your seeds, mixing them in gently.

I've chosen ‘ilima, but you can use other native plants.

Shape your bee bombs into a small ball and leave them on a plate or a drying rack to completely dry.

Once the bee bombs are completely dry, you can plant them in dirt by making a small hole deep enough to fit a single bee bomb, then lightly cover it in dirt.

Don't forget to water it daily until it sprouts, then whatever is recommended for your plant.

Now you know about the nalo meli maoli, and together, we can be the change and help protect these tiny heroes that need us as much as we need them.

I'm Chloe Smith from Radford High School for HIKI NŌ on PBS Hawai‘i.

[ocean wave] The next story covered the aftermath of the recent Kona low storms, and it received first place in the middle school division of our Spring Challenge.

It comes from Highlands Intermediate School on O‘ahu.

So, I'm sure everybody is aware of how much rain just fell from the sky in such a short period of time, and then all of a sudden, you saw brown water everywhere, and then the question is, what is in your water?

Professor Nyssa Silbiger is an Associate Professor at the University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa.

Her small question led to a huge statewide objective of figuring out the effects of the recent intense storms on our oceans.

Everybody wanted to know – How can we understand what's in the water?

This was crucial information to learn, because fresh water from these storms can be really harmful to our oceans.

The Kona Low just sits there and it just dumps rain, and if that's going to keep happening, then we're going to have flooding that's going to affect our infrastructure.

We're going to have health issues because of the bacteria that's flooding into the ocean, and people swim and fish and eat stuff from the ocean.

The coral reefs are our life support here in Hawai‘i.

They provide us with fish.

They provide us with protection from storms.

If we lose those reefs, then we lose a major part of the cultural and ecological and economic importance of what we have here on these special islands in the middle of the Pacific.

To learn more about our oceans, they sent out an email requesting help from other scientists.

I'm Sara Kahanamoku.

I study past climate change events and how it affects life on Earth.

My name is Jordan Vest.

I work on research about how the land and the sea kind of influence each other.

So, when the storms happened, it was like, immediately, what can I do?

And this was a cool way to help people here in Hawai‘i.

And we got a team together very, very quickly and collected water samples with the community all over the islands of O‘ahu, Maui, Lānaʻi, and Molokai.

And it wasn't only scientists that showed up.

In a matter of days, hundreds of citizens came ready to help out.

And so, our team have the knowledge of how to sample water, and we have the infrastructure.

So, we were like, "Okay, we're going to try to do everything we possibly can to get answers back to the community."

Everyone is so engaged and wanting to understand, like what had happened and how to prevent it.

And did they find their answers?

We only got through 130 samples of the 750 we got back.

So, it's going to take several weeks for us to get through all of them, but already I could see some sites on the North Shore had more fresh water still in the ocean than, you know, other areas that were less impacted.

We've seen the visible destruction on the news.

However, changes in ocean salinity pose an unseen threat with lasting effects.

So, what can we do?

Anything that we can do to clean up our land is going to protect our ocean.

So, as simple as not throwing plastic on the beach, because at these rains, all of that's going to get into the ocean.

And then really, as much as humanly possible, talk to our change makers, our lawmakers, and voice your opinions.

Tell them what you care about, and hope that they make those changes.

In the end, we may not be able to control the weather, but we can still work together to show that our community cares for our waters just as it cares for us.

This is our Aura Arios from Highlands Intermediate for HIKI NŌ on PBS Hawai‘i.

[ocean waves] West Hawai‘i Explorations Academy students on Hawai‘i Island provide viewers a chance to see what goes on at a clinic for endangered Hawaiian monk seals in this upcoming feature.

They're one of our oldest endemic mammals, and they really need our help.

On the Leeward side of the Big Island of Hawai‘i is Ke Kai Ola, an ocean mammal rehabilitation center best known for the work they do for Hawai‘i's most endangered endemic mammal, the Hawaiian monk seal.

So, our process for taking in seals and the length of care, it really varies from patient to patient and where patients are coming from.

So, we rely heavily on the public to be able to call in not only healthy seals that are resting on the beaches, but also if there's a seal that might be in distress, and then we coordinate with other stranding networks throughout the Hawaiian Islands.

And it really is a partnership between NOAA, the Coast Guard, and even private entities.

And once seals get here, you know, they go through an admin exam to determine what is causing them to be sick, or how are they injured, or what can we do to help them.

And we can have patients for as little as two weeks, and we've had patients up to one year in our care.

Of the many native and endemic species in the Hawaiian Islands, Hawaiian monk seals stand out among others as unique.

Hawaiian monk seals are special, because maybe even those of us who live here do not realize that we have only two native mammals.

We have the hoary bat and the Hawaiian monk seal, one a marine mammal, one a land mammal, and both work in different ways to preserve the ecosystem and when their numbers are improving, they're a sign that our ecosystem is in good shape.

Through the six years that Wendy Marks has been a part of Ke Kai Ola, she has seen many patients come and go with various ailments and injuries.

However, there is one thing in common between almost every issue that the seals face.

What I like to share is that monk seals are endangered because of the impact that humans have had on them.

We see everything from malnutrition to disease to entanglement in derelict fishing gear.

So, whether it be lines or ghost nets or ingestion of barbed fishhooks, one of the biggest threats, and actually the biggest threat, to monk seals in the main Hawaiian Islands is intentional human killings, believe it or not.

For us here at Ke Kai Ola that is a topic that is really sensitive, especially because we did have a seal in our care a few years ago.

Her name was Mālama.

She was released on the island of O‘ahu, and within about a month of her being released, somebody had beat her with something and killed her.

So that was really, really hard for our staff and for our volunteers, because we had worked so hard and so long to get her to a place where she was healthy and we could release her.

In spite of the many threats that the seals have to deal with, things are looking up for the species.

Monk seal populations have gone from 1,200 to 1,600 in the time that Wendy has worked with Ke Kai Ola.

Wendy hopes that with further education in the local community, things will only continue to improve for the seals.

Through education and understanding, we are going to be able to mitigate a lot of those human-caused threats that are impacting our monk seal population.

It takes a village to sustain this incredible species, which means more than just Ke Kai Ola, it also takes everyday people like you and me understanding and respecting the seals and our marine environment as a whole.

We can change one mind at a time.

You know, to me, that's a win.

This is Izaya Edmonds from West Hawai‘i Explorations Academy for HIKI NŌ on PBS Hawai‘i.

[ocean wave] Let's learn more about one of the oldest Buddhist temples on O‘ahu in this next factoid from Pacific Buddhist Academy students.

When driving down the Pali Highway, chances are you've seen this white building and wondered what it is.

This is the Honpa Hongwanji Mission of Hawai‘i Betsuin, which serves as the head temple of the Jodo Shinshu Hongwanji Mission of Hawai‘i.

Jodo Shinshu, or Shin Buddhism, emphasizes finding peace in everyday life.

It was founded by Shinran Shonin in 13th century Japan.

The Betsuin temple was dedicated in 1918 and has served the community ever since.

Reverend Yuika Hasebe is the chief minister of the Betsuin, leading services and community programs for the temple.

I really love people here.

People here is very kind and gentle and patient, so I'm really happy to work in here with everybody.

The experience of Buddhism is almost like entering the New World.

So, Buddhism help us to see the beauty within the simple, ordinary and everyday moment of our lives.

The Hawai‘i Betsuin offers many Japanese language class and then, like a bon dance, so people kind of learn together and then become friends.

So, that is a important role of the Hawai‘i Betsuin.

Students at Pacific Buddhist Academy learn about the temple in their Made in Hawai‘i class, whether you visit for a moment of peace, to learn, or to participate in a cultural event, the Betsuin remains a place where everyone is welcome.

It stands as a symbol of compassion and gratitude, values that continue to guide and inspire all who walk through its doors.

This is Maddie Wright for Pacific Buddhist Academy for HIKI NŌ, on PBS Hawai‘i.

[ocean wave] Students from Honowai Elementary on O‘ahu gave us a memorable tutorial on how to grow a beautiful garden and recycle.

Do you eat a lot of spam, but just throw away all the cans?

Well did you know that you can reuse the can to make a mini succulent garden?

A succulent is a kind of plant that can store water in its leaves.

Since this kind of plant stores a bunch of water in its leaves, you don't have to water it for about a month.

This plant is great for people who forget to water their plants, or just don't want to.

Get a Spam tin can with no Spam in it and remove the label.

Remember to ask an adult to help you poke the holes.

The holes help to drain the liquid.

There should be a plate to catch the water.

Get soil and add your soil until it reaches the top of the can.

Make sure to push the soil down with a chopstick.

Make six cuttings by the stem that are two to four inches long, which are part of a full succulent that you cut off with scissors.

Use a stick or a chopstick to make the holes in the soil to plant the cuttings.

If there are roots, make sure to make the hole a little bigger so you can bury the roots.

When you are done making the holes with a chopstick, plant the cuttings in the holes that you made.

Cover the bottom of the plant to make it stand up tall.

Make sure to cover the roots too if your cutting has roots.

After you have made your succulent garden, you can use it as a house decoration that you made.

[ocean wave] A grandmother is fondly remembered by the orchids in her garden in this next touching story from students at Mid-Pacific Institute on O‘ahu.

This is my grandma's garden.

Inside is her orchid collection.

Each plant presenting their own unique feature.

I never came down here much since it happened.

It used to be hard to appreciate this life when it only reminded me of her absence.

I only started to recognize its beauty when I created art.

Creating became a way for me to process my grief.

Art changed my perspective.

Where my grandma's flowers once brought pain, I now see her undying love and affection.

It's still hard, but now I realize this life is her.

I realize that despite her not being there for them, the flowers still continue to thrive.

So, why shouldn't I do the same?

[ocean wave] That brings us to the end of our show.

Mahalo for watching the work of Hawai‘i's New Wave of Storytellers.

Don't forget to follow HIKI NŌ on PBS Hawai‘i on YouTube, Instagram, and TikTok.

You can find this HIKI NŌ episode and more at pbshawaii.org.

Tune in next week for more proof that Hawai‘i students – HIKI NŌ, can do.

[outro music] [slow guitar music] We're here for the 2025 HIKI NŌ Teachers' Conference here at PBS Hawai‘i.

It's really exciting.

We have teachers here from across the state.

It's so great to see all you teachers back here in person.

It was 2019 the last time we did this in person.

Today is all about our teachers.

Our teachers are the heart and soul of HIKI NŌ.

Obviously, we couldn't do any of this without the hard work that they put in.

The really cool thing is we're all here for the same purpose, which is to empower students to tell the stories they want to tell in a really compelling way, and we've brought together teachers and mentors and HIKI NŌ staff, all to that end, to provide training in production and storytelling skills.

And that makes you faster, because stuff is always in the same place, you don't have to go looking for it.

As a mentor, I'm here to just impart some knowledge in order to make their day-to-day work with the students better.

And this really controls the depth of field, and we're going to go into detail of this, and then, of course, you're going to adjust the ISO.

Now we're going to go through this kind of one by one.

The teachers that are here today, there are a wide variety.

Some are new teachers who are teaching media, maybe for the first time, or some of them have been on for a few years, but what's been great is I've been able to help them, whatever their problems may be, maybe with technical aspects of using the cameras, or just even a refresher on how to do some of the techniques to help them tell their stories.

This is very, very important, because sometimes if you're going through your process and you're like, oh, something's not working, or something doesn't feel right or doesn't fit, chances are you didn't meet one of these criteria.

I really don't know anything, so I'm starting from scratch.

My most important criteria is the first one: am I compelled to watch within the first five seconds?

I've been learning about pre-production, postproduction, writing scripts from professionals, and that's been so valuable to me.

As a first-year media teacher, even though I had done it in the past, I came because I realized how big the task of teaching multimedia skills is.

We're a medium now, so maybe just the profile of us.

Today I'm here speaking to teachers about my experience as a veteran HIKI NŌ teacher and a veteran teacher of media programs, kind of showcasing a little bit about what we do, how we got here, talking a lot about culture building and program building, and just generally trying to share my expertise, or whatever you want to call it, in the field of teaching media.

And as you get more confidence in your decision making, the better you get, the easier those projects will become, because now you're not focused on what do I do, you're focused on how do I get it.

There's always something new to learn, so we're so lucky to just kind of get to cross-pollinate with each other.

Really, it's about the relationships.

You know, the skills will come, but when you are able to kind of connect with the kids, gain their trust, they trust you, then a lot of really good stuff can happen, but you got to build that.

There's always something that I gain from the pros.

What your audience is going to get out of it, that is a natural beginning for your script, right?

You're going to tell your audience what you're going to get out of my story.

I learned more about the process and writing an outline, and a more expansive review on voiceovers and sound bites.

Make sure they're prepared for that.

I've come away with some really valuable things that I can bring back to my classroom.

Just being here at PBS is really cool, and just meeting all the professionals that do this for a living, that's been valuable to me.

You know, one of the very best things about HIKI NŌ is that we have this community of storytellers, and we come together around this common goal of trying to teach our students and build critical thinking for the next generation.

I love coming to these things.

These are one of my favorite things to do as a teacher.

Being a media teacher in a high school, you're pretty much by yourself.

And so, being able to kind of come along and find a network of people that are having the same problems as you, and you get to share experiences with them, and you get it, you know, that's to me the best part about coming here today.

Makes me feel great.

[music fades]