Sept 2021 Newsletter
Purposeful Pause and Piko O Wākea
This month, we observe Ka Lā (the Sun) nearing and crossing the Piko O Wākea, what some of us might know as the celestial equator — the projection of the Earth’s equator into space. As we move from a time of more daylight and less dark towards a time of more dark and less daylight, we recognize moments and movements of balance. Balance that is not static, but rather a constant effort to practice ALOHA, to walk the world in a way that keeps our feet grounded and our spirits soaring. A time for us to calibrate to our center, find our desired equilibrium, and point our purpose compass with intention. In generations past (and in some communities in the present), elders and leaders guide communities from Kū to Lono during this time, setting intention for a new year as Makahiki approaches, planning strategy and actions to sustain a thriving lāhui and planet.
Other significant moments of pause at this time include Queen Lydia Liliʻu Lolokū Walania Kamakaʻeha’s 183rd birthday, which we celebrate on the 2nd day of Hawaiian history month, and the United Nations recognized International Day of Peace.
We reflect this month on the turning of the seasons – internally, externally, in all ways – with this famous quote from Liliʻuokalani:
“I could not turn back the time for political change, but there is still time to save our heritage. You must remember never to cease to act because you fear you may fail. The way to lose any earthly kingdom is to be inflexible, intolerant and prejudicial. Another way is to be too flexible, tolerant of too many wrongs and without judgment at all. It is a razor’s edge. It is the width of a blade of pili grass.
To gain the kingdom of heaven is to hear what is not said, to see what cannot be seen, and to know the unknowable — that is Aloha. All things in this world are two; in heaven there is but one.”
Foundations of ALOHA
Registration is open for Cohort 11, which begins on September 12. In this pause between Cohort 10 and Cohort 11, we have been continually reflecting on all that we have learned and all the ways we have grown as a result of our FOA ʻohana. We are so grateful for all of our cohort members, and look forward to every session we spend together – whether you can make it to every weekday session, or only to Sunday evenings, we hold each moment in gentle strength. If you have not yet registered, please do so at bit.ly/alohacohort11 and feel free to share the information with interested others.
EI Book Nook
Join us in reading Kaiāulu this month by Mehana Blaich Vaughan! We will be meeting on September 28 at noon for the synchronous debrief session and in the meantime keep track of thoughts, inspirations, and quotes that you find memorable on our asynchronous sharing doc. Please feel free to join us for the synchronous session wherever you might be in your book journey – even if you have not yet started!
In August we read Braiding Sweetgrass, by Robin Wall Kimmerer.
Here is a quote selected by one of our book nook members:
“The most important thing each of us can know is our unique gift and how to use it in the world. Individuality is cherished and nurtured, because, in order for the whole to flourish, each of us has to be strong in who we are and carry our gifts with conviction, so they can be shared with others. Being among the sisters provides a visible manifestation of what a community can become when its members understand and share their gifts.”
We are grateful for all the manaʻo shared by all the friends and family who joined us on this journey!
Entrepreneur’s Corner
We are excited to announce two workshop opportunities for educators interested in topics related to entrepreneurship and innovation – from social impact to venture investing to decolonizing design thinking, we hope to provide a variety of interesting and provocative discussion topics and resources that can be applied in multiple ways across disciplines and age levels.
- October 9, 9a-3p: Entrepreneurship Institute for Educators
Join us for a day of immersion in how to start a startup, going from idea to enterprise, and the basics of crafting a perfect pitch. Industry expert Omar Sultan will share insights from the startup and innovation ecosystem, and unpack the mindsets and skillsets of entrepreneurship which are widely applicable in any industry and career.
- October 16, 9a-3p: Social Impact Entrepreneurship in the Classroom
In this session, teachers will experience tools from the innovation community that support the development of purpose-driven innovation and entrepreneurship. Our EI CEO Miki will share insights and approaches on decolonizing design thinking and project-based learning — two approaches commonly used in teaching and learning that often have unintended biases and inequities built in.
Click here to register for one or both of these workshops.
These workshops are part of the HOPE Content Institute series; more info on HOPE in the section below.
Omar and his team are also currently accepting applications for the next cohort of their preX program, a free 4-week virtual business scaling and investment readiness program. If you have an idea or enterprise you are wanting to develop into a next stage, consider applying to preX today!
H.O.P.E. Updates
After a longer-than-expected preliminary development process, we have our first set of HOPE Modules, Institutes, and Collaborative content creation opportunities to share! Please join us for a 45-minute info + Q&A session on Thursday September 9 at 5:15pm where we’ll share the highlights of our rapid prototyping this past summer, and provide info on our SY2021-2022 projected timeline and activities. You can access the Zoom link and take a sneak peek at our upcoming events via our ever-evolving HOPE Hyperdoc, including our upcoming Afterschool Express mini-sessions — 15-minute teasers where our amazing PD developers will be sharing highlights of their modules and sessions… come meet up with local fan-favorites like Marybeth Baldwin, Brendan Brennan, Mike Fricano, Mark Hines, Todd Wilson, and the team at Education Incubator to explore our 2021 HOPE offerings!
Sharing Our Gratitude
Thank you to the amazing crew of the Kamehameha Schools Kealapono – ʻOhana Engagement Program for the invitation to share about our work at your upcoming Virtual Conference! We are so looking forward to learning from the many presenters, and meeting new collaborators. Registration is open to the public, and we highly encourage folks to sign up! You can view the program here and register here.
Connect with us on LinkedIn! Our organization is quite new to this space and we would love to hear from you on which aspects you enjoy the most. Also, any tips or tricks would be greatly appreciated as we continue to explore the space and seek the possibilities that LinkedIn has to offer. Mahalo in advance for sharing with us, we are looking forward to learning more about the space!
Share Your EI Spark!
As we look forward to celebrating 4 years of continuously evolving programming in July, we are seeking your input on the growth and development of our resources and engagements. Specifically focusing on our website in this survey, we would love your input on our current design, and how to improve the site usability. We so appreciate you taking a few minutes to complete this short survey to help us make those improvements!
ke aloha,
the EI Team
Connect with us on LinkedIn! Our organization is quite new to this space and we would love to hear from you on which aspects you enjoy the most. Also, any tips or tricks would be greatly appreciated as we continue to explore the space and seek the possibilities that LinkedIn has to offer. Mahalo in advance for sharing with us, we are looking forward to learning more about the space!