Care
Native Hawaiian Health
Collaboration
Hawai‘i Land Trust (HILT), Hawai‘i’s local statewide nonprofit land trust that protects, stewards, and cultivates reciprocal relationships between people and ʻāina that sustain Hawai‘i, and the University of Hawai‘i’s John A. Burns School of Medicine’s (JABSOM) Department of Native Hawaiian Health are partnering to introduce the new Mohala Liko Lehua Program.
The program will host three post-Doctor of Psychology (PsyD) and three post-Master of Social Work (MSW) fellows. Trained and supervised by licensed psychologists and social workers at JABSOM, the fellows will partner with HILT to design and deliver ʻāina-based behavioral health services on O‘ahu, Maui, Kaua‘i, and Hawai‘i Island. Their work will strengthen community capacity and enhance the wellbeing of participants.
Over the one-year fellowship, fellows will receive advanced training in trauma-informed, ʻāina- and culture-based care rooted in Hawaiian values. They will integrate this approach into HILT’s ʻāina-based education and stewardship programs at four of HILT’s eight community preserves, and will also provide services at Queen’s Health System clinical sites on Oʻahu and Maui. The partnership combines Western evidence-based practices with an ʻōiwi worldview to create innovative, culturally grounded interventions. Program goals include delivering behavioral health services to at least 4,000 youth, experience in integrated behavioral health in primary care settings, strengthening HILT staff capacity through targeted training, and measuring community impact.
Mohala Liko Lehua is both a healing initiative and a workforce development pipeline, preparing homegrown mental health providers who can serve Hawai‘i with cultural fluency. By training local clinicians and embedding cultural knowledge in therapeutic practice, the program responds to both immediate mental health needs and Hawai‘i’s long-term shortage of behavioral health professionals.
“Mohala Liko Lehua is informed by and designed for underrepresented communities, especially Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander populations that have long faced systemic health disparities and underinvestment in behavioral health,” said ʻOlu Campbell, President and CEO of HILT. “Addressing these inequities requires solutions that are community-driven, rooted in ‘āina and culture, and grounded in trust-based relationships.”
Mohala Liko Lehua embodies HILT’s recently updated strategic plan, which focuses on helping communities heal and addressing systemic challenges by employing a unique, cohesive strategy to protect, steward, and cultivate connections between people and ʻāina.
JABSOM, a leader in advancing health equity across Hawai‘i and the Pacific, recognizes the essential role of ʻāina as a source of healing, identity, and resilience. Dr. Robin Miyamoto, the program director, explained that the program's name is derived from the ʻōlelo noʻeau, “Mōhala i ka wai, ka maka o ka pua.” She emphasized, “This reminds us of our responsibility to protect and sustain our culture and the health of our people so that future generations can thrive. This program will enhance and expand our existing training efforts and will serve as a new pipeline for behavioral health clinicians. It is grounded in a foundation of cultural humility and safety, focusing on promoting resilience rather than solely addressing disparities.”
JABSOM and HILT seek to continue Mohala Liko Lehua for at least the next four years, aiming to train at least 24 fellows. Support for the program is generously provided by the Health Resources & Services Administration, Maui United Way, the University of Hawaiʻi, the Office of Hawaiian Affairs, and other contributors. Additional funding for the program is still needed; contact angie@HILT.org for more.
About Hawai‘i Land Trust
Hawai‘i Land Trust (HILT) is Hawai‘i’s local statewide nonprofit land trust that protects, stewards, and cultivates reciprocal relationships with ʻāina that sustain Hawai‘i. The nationally accredited land trust supports the health, productivity, and resilience of Hawai‘i’s biocultural ecosystems, food systems, and kama‘āina and local communities through its 8 community preserves, 54 conservation easements, and ‘āina transactions, stewardship and community programs. For more, visit HILT.org.
About JABSOM
Established in 1965, the John A. Burns School of Medicine (JABSOM) is one of the degree-granting schools of the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa. Named in honor of the visionary former governor, JABSOM trains the next generation of outstanding physicians, scientists, medical technologists, and speech pathologists to improve the health and wellness of our many communities throughout Hawaiʻi and the Pacific. Our impactful research focuses on understanding and addressing health needs that are high priority for the populations we serve. JABSOM is home to the first clinical department in an accredited medical school in the nation that is focused on health issues of an indigenous population, Native Hawaiians.