Hoʻomalu Ke Kai

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Hoʻomalu Ke Kai

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We stand for sustainably protecting and watching over Kauaʻi's marine ecosystems' health, while sha

10/29/2026

Update on our reattached ko‘a two weeks in 🪸🫶🏽

We returned to Hanakaʻape Bay for our first monitoring survey since our 10-day emergency restoration after Hurricane Lowell. So many of the 2,000 corals we reattached are still in place, and that gives us hope.

Some were already severely stressed, and not all will make it. But without help, many wouldn’t have stood a chance. Every coral given another shot at life matters.

So did every hand that made it possible. Cement mixers, divers, freedivers, snorkelers, boat crews, shore support, logistics, and safety: no role was too small.

Mahalo nui loa (thank you so much) to:
 🌱 The Nature Conservancy, for standing with us throughout
 🌊 DAR Kauaʻi, for helping on land and underwater
 🪸 The Hawaiʻi Emergency Reef Response (HERR) Network, for making this possible
 💙 Kaiʻulani and Julia Rose, for sharing their knowledge from day one
 🤿 Our Nā Kiaʻi Koʻa o Kauaʻi graduates, the next generation of reef protectors, who stepped up when our reefs needed them most
 🪏 Our 200+ community volunteers and everyone supporting from near and far

Restoration is about more than putting corals back. It’s about relationships, shared knowledge, and our responsibility to care for the places that care for us.

There’s still much to learn, but our koʻa are still here, and so are we. 🤘🏽💙

10/16/2026

Did we make it? 👇🪸

Ten days ago, Hurricane Lowell left thousands of corals torn loose and tumbling on Kauaʻi’s reef. We had 10 days to reattach 2,000 of them before they died.

To every volunteer who showed up tired and kept showing up anyway, every diver, snorkeler, freediver, boat crew, cement crew, and logistics teammate, and everyone who donated their time, energy, and resources: this happened because of you. We could never have done it alone.

Mahalo nui loa (thank you so very much). 💙

WE DID IT. 🎉
Coral countdown: 2,000/2,000
266 corals on the final day, a new single-day record. 🤘🏽🪸

→ Want to join future restoration days?
Follow along and sign up at the link in bio

→ Off island?
Help fund our ongoing restoration by donating on our website https://www.hoomalukekai.com/donate

Part of the Hawaiʻi Emergency Reef Response Network (HERR) statewide response, under NOAA and State of Hawaiʻi authorization. Please don’t touch coral on your own: touching coral without a permit is illegal in Hawaiʻi.

10/14/2026

One day left, 266 corals to go! 🪸

Coral countdown: 1,734/2,000

To hit 2,000, tomorrow has to be our biggest day yet. Our record is 245 corals in one day, and we need to beat it.

Everyone is tired. Everyone is still showing up. Every coral we save can grow and eventually spawn, creating new corals and rebuilding the reef on its own for generations.

Tomorrow, we go all in. 💪🏽💙

→ Join a Kauaʻi volunteer day:
sign up + waiver at the link in bio

→ Off island?
Help fund the restoration by donating on our website https://www.hoomalukekai.com/donate

Hurricane Lowell tore thousands of corals off Kauaʻi’s reef. They’re still alive, but only for a limited time. This emergency restoration is part of the Hawaiʻi Emergency Reef Response Network (HERR) statewide response, under NOAA and State of Hawaiʻi authorization. Please don’t touch coral on your own: touching coral without a permit is illegal in Hawaiʻi.

10/12/2026

1,250 corals back on the reef so far, only 3 days left🪸

Meet Meghan, who runs much of the logistics and operations behind the scenes. As she says, coral isn’t just a living creature. In Hawaiian culture, it’s also sacred. The Kumulipo, the Hawaiian creation chant, names the coral polyp as the first life born into the world.

Every coral we reattach carries that weight. 💙

Coral countdown: 1,250/2,000

We’re more than halfway there, with 3 days left to reach 2,000.

→ Join a Kauaʻi volunteer day:
sign up + waiver at the link in bio

→ Off island?
Help fund the restoration by donating on our website https://www.hoomalukekai.com/donate

Hurricane Lowell tore thousands of corals off Kauaʻi’s reef. They’re still alive, but only for a limited time.

This emergency restoration is part of the Hawaiʻi Emergency Reef Response Network (HERR) statewide response, under NOAA and State of Hawaiʻi authorization. Please don’t touch coral on your own: touching coral without a permit is illegal in Hawaiʻi.

10/11/2026

This response to save coral didn’t start with the storm.

For 4 years, we’ve worked with partners across the Hawaiʻi Emergency Reef Response Network to develop a plan for exactly this moment. For the last 4 months, we’ve been training students in our NKKOK dive cohort program to carry it out.

So much of it lived on paper. Now it’s really happening. 💙

Hurricane Lowell tore thousands of corals off Kauaʻi’s reef. They’re still alive, but we only have 10 days to reattach 2,000 of them. Follow along to see if we can do it!

🪸 Coral countdown: 1,052 / 2,000

→ Join a Kauaʻi volunteer day:
sign up + waiver at the link in bio

→ Off island?
Help fund the restoration by donating on our website
https://www.hoomalukekai.com/donate

Part of the Hawaiʻi Emergency Reef Response Network (HERR) statewide response, under NOAA and State of Hawaiʻi authorization. Please don’t touch coral on your own: touching coral without a permit is illegal in Hawaiʻi.

10/10/2026

Meet someone who helped make all of this possible 🪸

Kai has spent 10 years in coral restoration and rescue in her home of Isla Mujeres, Mexico. When she heard what happened here, she extended her trip to help us. She trained our team, shared her knowledge, and helped build the systems that keep this operation running.

We wouldn’t be this close without her. Halfway through our 10 days, we’ve reattached more than 900 corals.

Hurricane Lowell tore thousands of corals off Kauaʻi’s reef. They’re still alive, but we only have 10 days to reattach 2,000 of them. Follow along to see if we can do it!

Mahalo, Kai. You’ve been an absolute joy to work with. 💙

→ Join a Kauaʻi volunteer day:
sign up + waiver at the link in bio

→ Off island?
Help fund the restoration by donating on our website https://www.hoomalukekai.com/donate

Part of the Hawaiʻi Emergency Reef Response Network (HERR) statewide response, under NOAA and State of Hawaiʻi authorization. Please don’t touch coral on your own: touching coral without a permit is illegal in Hawaiʻi.

10/09/2026

Why coral needs a home on the reef 🪸☀️

Hurricane Lowell tore thousands of corals off Kauaʻi’s reef. They’re still alive, but we only have 10 days to reattach 2,000 of them. Follow along to see if we can do it!

Coral countdown: 711/2,000

Coral looks like a plant, but it’s an animal. It lives with tiny algae inside its tissue, and they need each other:

🌱 The algae use sunlight to make food and share it with the coral

🎨 The algae give coral its color

🏠 The coral gives the algae a safe home

A coral tumbling loose in the sand tears apart the tissue on the outside of its skeleton. That’s why we cement each one back onto the reef: once it’s back in the light, the partnership can keep going.

Every coral we reattach gets that chance. 💙

→ Join a Kauaʻi volunteer day:
sign up + waiver at the link in bio

→ Off island?
Help fund the restoration by donating on our website https://www.hoomalukekai.com/donate

Part of the Hawaiʻi Emergency Reef Response Network (HERR) statewide response, under NOAA and State of Hawaiʻi authorization. Please don’t touch coral on your own: touching coral without a permit is illegal in Hawaiʻi.

10/07/2026

Diving into “how do you actually reattach coral?”

Hurricane Lowell tore thousands of corals off Kauaʻi’s reef. They’re still alive, and every day we’re putting more of them back.

We only have 10 days to get 2,000 reattached. Follow along to see if we can do it!

How the cement gets to the reef floor:
🏊 Snorkelers swim bags of cement out to a buoy
⬇️ The bags ride a line down to the divers
🤿 Divers use the cement to reattach each coral
🫧 Divers blow bubbles into the empty bags so they float back up the line
♻️ Snorkelers bring the bags to shore to be cleaned, dried, and refilled

Nothing wasted. Every bag makes the trip again and again.

We got faster on Day 2, and we’re learning more every round. We believe we can do this. 💙

→ Join a Kauaʻi volunteer day:
sign up + waiver at the link in bio

→ Off island?
Help fund the restoration by donating on our website https://www.hoomalukekai.com/donate

Part of the Hawaiʻi Emergency Reef Response Network (HERR) statewide response, under NOAA and State of Hawaiʻi authorization. Please don’t touch coral on your own: touching coral without a permit is illegal in Hawaiʻi.

07/07/2026

One workday at a time, we get the opportunity of helping restore Nōmilu—not just as a place, but as a living connection between culture, community, and the natural abundance of Kauaʻi. 🐟🌱🪸🔄

This month we’ll be tackling a variety of projects across the fishpond:
🌾 Removing the remaining patches of pickleweed and buffalo grass from the back of the pond
🌿 Replanting native ʻakulikuli along the shoreline trail
⚒️ Maintaining areas we’ve already restored
🥾 Beginning a new upper access trail that will eventually provide access to the back of the fishpond and support future terraced native agriculture

Every shovel, every handful of weeds, every native plant returned to the shoreline represents another step toward a healthier, more resilient Nōmilu. 💪🏽

This work is only possible because of an incredible community of volunteers, ʻohana, cultural practitioners, and partners—including Kauaʻi Sea Farm, Onōmilu, the Pālama ʻohana, Kauaʻi Coral Restoration Nursery, Hoʻomalu Ke Kai, and everyone who continues showing up month after month with aloha for this special place. 🙏🏽

The stories, ʻike, and spirit that have shaped Nōmilu for generations are still here. Together, we’re helping ensure they continue for generations to come. 💫

Whether it’s your first workday or your fiftieth, we’d love to have you join us. 🤙🏽

📝 Registration link in bio and will remain open until capacity is reached.

See you Saturday 🙌🏽

Address

Kalaheo, HI
96741

Website

http://www.hoomalukekai.com/

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