Windward plan targets tourists
By Eloise Aguiar
Advertiser Windward O'ahu Writer
Tourists would be able to contribute hundreds of hours to community organizations under a proposal by the Windward Ahupua'a Alliance to develop tours that let people work on service projects while visiting the Islands.
Call the Windward Ahupua'a Alliance SALT project, 263-6001.
The alliance has received a $7,500 grant from the Hawai'i Tourism Authority through the city's Office of Economic Development to help create service and learning tours — SALT — in which visitors pay to work on environmental and cultural restoration projects for two weeks at a time.
To participate
Tour groups could be arriving in the Islands this summer to clean roadways, make repairs to a Hawaiian fishpond or build a trail, said Shannon Wood, member of the alliance and tour planner.
She plans to advertise the tours for college-age students and organize groups of 20 who would work and live in Windward O'ahu. She foresees four-hour work days or about 480 hours of work a week from the tours. Each group that benefits from the labor would plan cultural, educational and recreational activities for the tourists for the rest of the day, she said.
No price has been set for a SALT tour package, but it would include room and board, Wood said. If the venture succeeds, tours for older visitors could also be planned.
"SALTs are designed to combine sustainable economic development while at the same time addressing unmet community needs," Wood said. She said she first became aware of the possibility several years ago when Mainland college students were helping clear areas in Kawainui Marsh.
The alliance counts on partnering with such organizations as the Waikalua Loko Fishpond Preservation Society, which has developed a curriculum that incorporates the fishpond into everyday educational lessons. Once a month a school visits the Kane'ohe site and volunteers take children through their lessons, said Herb Lee, with the society.
The fishpond would be an ideal place for service tours and his group is organized for that, but Lee said he doesn't have the manpower now to manage a tour over an extended period of time.
"This sounds like a pilot project we've been looking at to see if it could work," he said. "We're slowly looking at ways to expand our program and have some kind of revenue."
Lee said Wood had talked to him about the grant but he would have to learn more before his board could decide whether to participate.
Meanwhile, Wood is seeking other organizations that need this type of help.
The Hawai'i Tourism Authority's County Product Enrichment Program grants are meant to enhance events and draw tourists to them, said Manuel Menendez III, executive director for the city Office of Economic Development.
"We want to attract tourists to the different types of activities to enrich their stay here so it's not just about the sun and the city and the sand," he said.
Reach Eloise Aguiar at eaguiar@honoluluadvertiser.com or 234-5266.
