Welcome to maohi.org (Māʻohi is the term for the indigenous Polynesian people of Tahiti and the Society Islands)
We are striving to help Nainoa Thompson to reach his goal of training 50,000 Polynesian Navigators by 2075 by:
Honoring Our Ancestors. Empowering Our Youth. Navigating Life with Aloha.
MAOHI.ORG — Polynesian Heritage, Wisdom & Future Generations
"The stars guide our canoes across the ocean, but aloha guides our hearts through life. When we navigate with wisdom, courage, and compassion, we discover our purpose and help others find their way."
— Hālau Ola | 50K Polynesian Navigators Vision
Every life is a voyage. Every choice sets a course. Every young person can become a navigator.
Imagine a future where 50,000 young Polynesian navigators carry forward the wisdom of their ancestors—not only to navigate the vast Pacific Ocean, but to navigate the challenges of an ever-changing world.
Welcome to Hālau Ola, a center for cultural learning, youth resilience, environmental stewardship, and regenerative innovation rooted in Lāʻie, Hawaiʻi.
Through Maohi.org, we share a vision inspired by Māʻohi (Polynesian) heritage, ancestral knowledge, and the enduring spirit of aloha.
Our goal is to help inspire, educate, and develop 50,000 new Polynesian navigators by 2075, building on the legacy of Hōkūleʻa and the renaissance of traditional Polynesian voyaging.
A navigator is more than someone who finds a path across the ocean. A navigator learns to observe carefully, think critically, make wise decisions, care for others, and lead with courage, humility, and aloha.
We believe every young person can become a navigator of their own life—and help guide their family, community, and future generations toward a better world.
Our Mission: Navigating Life with Aloha
Our ancestors crossed the world's largest ocean without modern instruments, guided by the stars, sun, ocean swells, winds, birds, and their extraordinary understanding of nature.
Their greatest navigation tools were not only knowledge and experience, but also discipline, cooperation, courage, responsibility, and trust.
Today, our youth face different oceans: technological disruption, environmental uncertainty, social pressures, economic challenges, and the temptation to sacrifice human values for power, profit, or fear.
Our mission is to unite ancestral Polynesian wisdom with modern education, technology, entrepreneurship, and positive human values so that every young navigator can thrive.
Through YES Education and Hālau Ola, we envision learning experiences connecting cultural identity, experiential education, critical thinking, and community service.
Explore Our Five Core Initiatives
1. The 50K Polynesian Navigators Simulations — VR (virtual reality version and App version)
Learn to navigate the ocean. Discover how to navigate life.
Embark on an interactive educational adventure across 26 Pacific island destinations, inspired by traditional Polynesian voyages.
Through immersive storytelling, retro-style games, and decision-making challenges, participants learn to:
Read the stars, winds, ocean swells, and signs of nature.
Manage food, water, health, and other limited resources.
Solve problems through cooperation, courage, and critical thinking.
Recognize manipulation, corruption, and the misuse of power.
Practice positive values while helping island communities overcome challenges.
Earn Shaka Hearts for demonstrating wisdom, service, and aloha.
Explore SimNav VR and APP →
2. Nā Pua o ke Aloha — Growing Strong Roots
Strong roots. Resilient youth. Flourishing communities.
Nā Pua o ke Aloha is our proposed youth resilience curriculum, bringing timeless Polynesian values into modern educational settings.
Through illustrated stories, positive proverbs, chiasmus, short films, classroom lessons, discussion, and hands-on activities, students explore the virtues of honesty, kindness, gratitude, forgiveness, respect, responsibility, perseverance, and aloha.
The curriculum is designed for different grade levels and can complement classroom learning, cultural education, and youth leadership development.
Explore the Curriculum →
3. The Voyages of Heo and Aroha
An ancient voyage. A vision of the future. A timeless quest.
Travel back to the year 1500, when two young Polynesian voyagers, Heo and Aroha, experience a remarkable vision of the year 2030.
They foresee a future in which powerful institutions may threaten island communities through greed, exploitation, manipulation, and fear.
Determined to protect future generations, they embark on a voyage across 26 Pacific islands, sharing warnings and teaching chiefs how to preserve freedom, cultural identity, justice, community well-being, and the spirit of aloha.
Their adventure invites young readers and players to discover that the greatest power is not controlling others, but learning to govern ourselves with wisdom and compassion.
Begin the Voyages →
4. Hālau Ola — Living Sustainably with SimAP
Learning from the land. Preparing for the future.
Explore a vision of resilient island living through hands-on education and immersive home and virtual reality simulations.
SimAP and our sustainability initiatives introduce learners to:
Sustainable housing and regenerative community design.
Aeroponics, aquaponics, and local food production.
Renewable energy, water conservation, and resource stewardship.
Repair, reuse, recycling, and responsible consumption.
Emergency preparedness and Pacific island resilience.
Youth entrepreneurship, traditional arts, and practical career skills.
Our goal is to help young people become more self-reliant while caring for the land, ocean, and one another.
Explore Sustainable Living →
5. The 50K Navigator Movement — Our Roadmap to 2075
One vision. Many communities. Generations of positive change.
Developing 50,000 navigators requires more than a single course or simulation. It requires a long-term educational movement sustained by families, schools, cultural practitioners, nonprofit organizations, and community leaders.
Our proposed roadmap connects curricula, simulations, cultural mentorship, experiential learning, community service, and youth leadership.
We envision collaboration with voyaging organizations, educators, cultural practitioners, and institutions across Hawaiʻi and the Pacific, building on the legacy of the Polynesian voyaging renaissance.
Progress can be measured through participation, learning outcomes, cultural engagement, leadership development, environmental stewardship, and community contributions.
Explore the 50K Roadmap and Logic Model →
Your Journey Begins Here
Whether you are a student, parent, teacher, cultural practitioner, artist, navigator, entrepreneur, community leader, or supporter, there is a place for you in this growing vision.
Choose your pathway:
Become a Navigator: Explore the educational simulation and learn essential wayfinding and life skills.
Teach the Next Generation: Discover curricula, lesson plans, films, activities, and educational resources.
Share Your Knowledge: Contribute traditional arts, language, stories, cultural practices, and practical skills.
Support the Mission: Explore volunteer opportunities, partnerships, funding proposals, and community initiatives.
Discover Hālau Ola: Learn about our vision for a living educational center connecting ancestral wisdom and regenerative innovation.
Our Guiding Vision
From the wisdom of our ancestors, we discover our direction.
From our direction, we discover our purpose.
From our purpose, we strengthen our communities.
From strong communities, we honor the wisdom of our ancestors.
50,000 Navigators. One Pacific. A Legacy of Aloha for Generations to Come.
E hoʻokele kākou — Let us navigate together.
Begin Your Voyage | Explore the Simulations | Discover the Curriculum | Join the 50K Movement
An educational vision of Hālau Ola and YES Education, Lāʻie, Hawaiʻi.