Our Partnership with the Hōkūleʻa
Beginning with a 2016 visit to the Chesapeake Bay during the Mālama Honua Worldwide Voyage, the William & Mary Batten School of Coastal & Marine Sciences and the Virginia Institute of Marine Science (VIMS) has helped the Polynesian Voyaging Society (PVS) illuminate the oceanic and indigenous connections between people of the Pacific and Native communities in the mid-Atlantic region while creating unique learning opportunities for undergraduate, graduate, and post-graduate students.
Nainoa Thompson, PVS CEO, is VIMS’ first Scholar in Ocean Residency, a position created in 2022. The Scholar in Ocean Residency position helps guide VIMS and W&M on raising the awareness and understanding of indigenous cultures by fostering knowledge gained through relationships with people in specific places and the concept of the Culture of Place. The position helps advance the shared values of ecological restoration and climate change resilience based on the notions of balance and interconnectivity and the melding of indigenous wisdom and scientific knowledge. The Virginia Institute of Marine Science and the Batten School are honored to be a Polynesian Voyaging Society Educational Partner.
Combining Indigenous knowledge with science and student learning improves our understanding of ocean and coastal health and the importance of the oceans for a healthy planet. This project has the potential to significantly strengthen the PVS/VIMS/W&M relationship, enhance the impact of the voyage, make new connections for VIMS faculty throughout the Pacific and the world and open up exciting new opportunities for students.