OHA requests $250,000 to pilot rural regenerative tourism and heritage trails

The Office of Hawaiian Affairs presented Moku Economy, a $250,000 request over FY26–27 to pilot a rural regenerative tourism program that supports community-led heritage trail activations, cultural practitioner engagement and place-based visitor experiences.

Staff described Moku Economy as a model to return decision-making and economic benefit to rural Native Hawaiian communities, strengthen cultural stewardship of visited sites, and redirect visitor spending to local practitioners. The first pilot, a rural heritage trail initiative, would fund community workshops, cultural facilitation, signage and wayfinding design (including QR-code devices), digital tools, and evaluation to measure cultural and economic impacts. Staff referenced similar efforts such as initiatives on Hawaii Island and Hanalei as precedents for the pilot.

Budget items presented included $210,000 for pilot coordination and project management (lines 6303 and 6310), $30,000 for trail materials and convening with rural leaders (line 6445), and $10,000 for strategic visibility and sector engagement (line 6467). Staff said the pilot would include kupuna consultations, practitioner engagement, signage and education materials, and tools to measure cultural and economic impacts for potential scaling statewide.

Trustees asked how regenerative tourism fits in the visitor continuum; staff answered it aims to integrate culture horizontally across visitor experiences and to ensure culture is visible and prioritized in transportation entry points such as airports. Trustees also discussed partnerships with the Department of Transportation for signage and geo-tagging and the potential for QR-coded interpretive materials for visitors.