It took teachers two generations, but keiki now have more opportunities to practice their culture.
Naka Nathaniel
Naka Nathaniel was an Editor-at-Large at Civil Beat from January to September 2024. Naka returned to regular journalism after being the primary parent for his son. In those 13 years, his child has only been to the ER five times (three due to animal attacks.)
Before parenting, Naka was known as an innovative journalist. He was part of the team that launched NYTimes.com in 1996 and he led a multimedia team that pioneered many new approaches to storytelling.
On 9/11, he filmed the second plane hitting the South Tower. His footage aired on the television networks and a sequence was the dominant image on NYTimes.com.
While based in Paris for The New York Times, he developed a style of mobile journalism that gave him the ability to report from anywhere on the planet. He covered the invasions of Iraq and Afghanistan and was detained while working in Iran, Sudan, Gaza and China. He is one of a handful of Americans who has been in North Korea, but not South Korea. He worked in 60 countries and made The Times’s audience care about sex trafficking, climate change and the plight of women and children in the developing world.
Besides conflict, The Times also had Naka covering fashion shows, car shows and Olympics. He did all three of those events in the same week (Paris, Geneva and Turin) before going to Darfur to continue reporting on the genocide (it was the fifth of sixth trips to the region.)
Naka lives in Waimea on the Big Island.
Posted inOpinion
Naka Nathaniel: We Need To Imagine What Happens To Hawaii If Climate Change Gets Worse
We’re not ready for more people moving here to escape the heat. Global perspectives and more foresight can help.
Posted inOpinion
Naka Nathaniel: The Portuguese Influence In Hawaii Goes Beyond Ukes And Malasadas
Both share a history of inhabitants leaving for better opportunities.
Posted inOpinion
Naka Nathaniel: Hawaii Needs A Nonprofit Private Research University
It’s time to reverse the brain drain by creating a more diverse and dynamic higher education system here in the islands.
Posted inKa Ulana Pilina
Kā Naka Nathaniel: Eia Ka ʻElepani Ma Ka Lumi Hulahula: ʻʻAʻole ʻO Las Vegas Ka Mokupuni ʻAiwa!’
Ua mālama aku ke Council for Native Hawaiian Advancement i kāna ʻahahui ma Las Vegas i kēia makahiki ma muli o ka nui o nā Kānaka Maoli ma laila.
Posted inOpinion
Naka Nathaniel: What We Can Learn From The Way Koaiʻa Trees Support Each Other
My hope for Native Hawaiians living on the mainland is that they get to be together in kipukas that raise majestic trees that survive and thrive.
Posted inOpinion
Naka Nathaniel: Native Hawaiians Debate A Question Of Identity
The difference between Hawaiians living on the mainland versus the islands was a key topic at the CNHA conference this week.
Posted inOpinion
Naka Nathaniel: How To Rediscover Hawaii’s Soul? Here Are 4 Scenarios
A report issued at the Council for Native Hawaiian Advancement conference in Las Vegas summed it up using four birds as symbols.
Posted inOpinion
Naka Nathaniel: Addressing The Elephant In The Ballroom: ‘Las Vegas Is Not The 9th Island!’
The Council for Native Hawaiian Advancement held its convention in Las Vegas this year because of the large Hawaiian population there.