M. Kalani Souza: Storyteller, Scientist, and Spirit of the World

By Brittany P. Anderson

The cobalt blue ocean moves gently across the horizon while an azure sky is dotted with wisps of cotton candy clouds—it is an idyllic day on the Hāmākua Coast. A grounding voice breaks the silence, like rocks tumbling in the winter surf; when Kalani speaks, even the clouds stop to listen.

M. Kalani Souza’s knowledge of Hawaiian culture, science, and the arts intertwine to form the man that stories will be told about long after he leaves this realm. Respected Hawaiian kupuna (elder), unafraid of speaking truth, Kalani sat down to talk story about his life, his unique outlook on the world, and what he sees for our future.

A‘ohe pau ka ‘ike i ka hālau ho‘okāhi
All knowledge is not taught in the same school

It was identified early on that Kalani held an exceptional talent, a disposition suited for studying Hawaiian traditions. He was taken under his grandfather’s wing to learn the ancestral customs and culture. 

“People say I’m a Hawaiian practitioner, but I done practicing, there’s no practicing, I’m just Hawaiian,” Kalani says gruffly.

He grew up living in Wailua Nui, Maui as a country boy with his feet in the dirt. Recognized for his natural abilities, he secured a spot in the prestigious Punahou School for fourth through eighth grade. City life in Honolulu was a significant shift for the young boy.

“I didn’t know I was a poor Hawaiian until I went to Punahou. The kids explained it…children can be cruel. I didn’t feel poor,” he says in a hushed tone. 

At the end of eighth grade, Kalani left Punahou and entered public school in Waipahu, where his family lived. It was a stark contrast to the elite private school he previously attended. Even as an adolescent, he saw the shortcomings of the public education system. “Going to public school in Waipahu taught me a lot about how other people were living,” he says.

It wasn’t long before Kalani moved to Kamehameha Schools, which was again a shift in perspective. Teachers were abuzz, labeling him as a former Punahou student, introducing him as such in each of his classes. The other students weren’t as thrilled with the newcomer. “The first day I got into fights, the teachers put a target on my back because now everyone thought I was this rich kid,” he says ironically. Kamehameha Schools has a zero-tolerance policy for fighting, but the principal understood the situation and helped lead Kalani down the right path.

Going from being seen as poor to perceived as rich is an experience that left a lasting impression. Receiving and enduring his classmates’ judgment opened his eyes to the idea that the human journey is something unique to each individual. The young man flourished at Kamehameha Schools. By his junior year, Kalani was voted class president, and the following year elected student body president.

It isn’t surprising that Kalani could go from being beaten up to Mr. Popularity—he’s charismatic, eloquent, and possesses unchained intelligence.

After a brush with death in 1988 where he was brought back to life at Queen’s Medical Center on O‘ahu, Kalani’s life-course became clearer. “All my elders have said since ‘88 that you had something important to do,” he continues with comedic excitement, “Not really how I felt about it. I’m so in love with life. I love everything. I ain’t through having experiences yet. There is so much wonder here—I just wanted to stick around.” 

He ali‘i ka ‘āina, he kauwā ke kanaka
The land is chief, man is her servant

“We are all connected—everything is connected,” Kalani says after relaying the story of Wākea and Papahānaumoku. As a storyteller, he’s traveled worldwide delivering powerful lectures bringing Hawaiian cultural values to the masses. He is always working on something new—cutting edge—yet at the same time steeped in ancient tradition.

Among his many roles, Kalani is a coastal community resilience trainer with FEMA and serves as a cultural competency consultant for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). He is called to lead and participate in workshops on disaster preparedness, community relationships, knowledge systems sharing, indigenous environmental stewardship, and climate change adaptation.

It seems like at every turn, Kalani is working with environmental leaders for the betterment of Hawai‘i Island and the planet. “Treat the earth with the respect that you would your elders because that tiny sea creature could BE your great, great-grandmother,” he says as we laugh together at such truth. As he demonstrates, just because you are science-minded doesn’t mean you have to cast aside traditional Hawaiian principles.

Kalani moves between disaster planning, working on food sovereignty issues, writing various proposals, and recording podcasts. The undercurrent running between them all is the ability for living creatures to survive in harmony together. 

There is a sense of urgency in Kalani’s voice as he speaks on food security. Ever-present intense energy surrounds him, and it heightens when talking about the island’s future, and the planet. 

“My grandfather always said the best time to plant a tree was 10 years ago,” Kalani says. He believes that everyone should prepare for food insecurity, a point he says, “We are going to hit.” Kalani speaks of emulating the early Hawaiians, growing and raising enough food for their communities. When applying a cultural lens to food security and resiliency, he sees a network of small family farms and backyard gardens producing enough food for a family and their neighbors. To live in a world of Kalani’s making would be like living in the past and the future at the same time.

‘A‘ohe loa‘a i ka noho wale
Nothing is gained by idleness

Kalani asks, “How do we get our greed, our consumption under control, so we can join the family of the planet again?” There is a long pause until he unpacks the question. Kalani believes we are all connected to one another, to the earth, and everything around us. “You are the earth encased in skin,” he says. He isn’t entirely off base. According to studies, soil and the human gut contain approximately the same number of active microorganisms, but our gut microbiome diversity decreased dramatically with our modern lifestyle.

The key, as he explains, is for humans to interact more with nature and work together to make the planet healthier. “Everyone’s got to do it better,” he says passionately. “We need to throw the racism away because we all need to work together to make sure we have clean water and clean air.” 

Kalani is an advocate of a paradigm shift, emphasizing mothers and women leading society into a better place. This outlook stems from his understanding of Hawaiian cultural values, which holds mothers and women as a vehicle of transferring knowledge. “For the sake of our children we need women to lead,” he pleads.

To usher in the next generation of leaders, Kalani is working with the UN Youth Advisory Council. “The next generation should have an equitable seat at the table. The determination of our framework forward, we should take the next generation into deep consideration, because they will be taking over,” he relays in a sobering tone. 

The earnestness in which he speaks is as refreshing as it is polarizing. Picking up on this he adds, “People say, ‘Kalani why you got to be so honest about everything? Can’t we sugarcoat it just a little?’ No, not for the sake of the children!”

Kalani recognizes the end of the plantation era has left children up and down the Hāmākua Coast with few opportunities. “The suicide rate for teens is high in Hāmākua. When you grow up here you don’t realize you live in the most beautiful place on earth,” he says concernedly. He speaks for a moment about drug addiction ripping the island apart, leaving hopelessness and despair in its wake. According to the Prison Policy Initiative, the vast majority of those incarcerated in Hawai‘i are of native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander descent. 

“Kids think, is this all I have to look forward to? The few with opportunity, luck, or brains leave.” Kalani knows that many of Hawai‘i Island’s talented students seek opportunities off-island, only to return with a renewed passion for their island home. “When they come back, they go to the land. They throw in and throw down because they have been able to go out and see the world and you come back to appreciate what we have here.”

Not all students have the opportunity to leave Hawai‘i Island and experience other cultures. They never have the chance to return with a restored sense of purpose. Kalani sees this as an incredible opportunity, as only he can, to bring students from around the world to the island. One of his many projects is developing a UN school, to bring students from other countries into the island community. “We can’t take all the kids on an around-the-world trip so why not bring kids from around the world here?” he asks rhetorically. 

Kalani is as humble as he is captivating, intelligent as he is wise, balancing ancient traditions with modern issues nimbly. The talk-story session comes to a close just as a seaborne violet cloud makes landfall. A heavy but passing shower fills the space where his voice once held, as if planned as an encore performance by Kalani the kupuna, storyteller, scientist, and spirit of the world. ❖

---

For more information:
mkalani@mkalani.com
olohana.org