Indigenous Agriculture, Post Contact Commerce & Western Botanical Preservation

Snapshots of Plants, People and ʻĀina through Hawaii's History

Join Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park Cultural Resources staff, Summer Roper Todd, Cultural Resources Prrogram Manager and Claire Kittel, Museum Technician, for a look at the fascinating connections between people, plants, and place. The presentation will highlight two National Register-eligible archaeological sites: the Kaʻū Agricultural Field Systems, located in the Kahuku Unit of the park, and Pulu Station, located along the East Rift Zone of Kīlauea. These sites offer insight into pre-contact Indigenous agricultural practices as well as the short-lived international pulu trade that took place in Hawaiʻi during the mid-1800s.

The presentation will also discuss the history of the park’s herbarium and the important role natural history collections play in preserving and understanding Hawaiʻi’s unique plant life. Together, these stories offer a glimpse into the deep relationship between people and plants during different time periods, and the ways that documenting and preserving the past helps inform the protection of Hawaiʻi’s natural and cultural resources today.