Hometown
Honolulu, Oʻahu
Voyage(s)
Moananuiākea Voyage – Leg 3: Juneau to Ketchikan
Bio
Cat is a 6th grade social studies teacher who has been sailing on a waʻa kaulua for about 30 years. She sailed on the newly built Hawai'iloa in 1995, first for sea trials, then on the waʻaʻs maiden voyage to Tahiti. Cat has since sailed and voyaged on Hōkūle’a and Hikianalia countless times and in various capacities including Watch Captain and Apprentice Navigator.
To Cat, “Hōkūle’a is a symbol of Hawaiian (and Polynesian) pride in the strength of our culture(s). Because of our māmā wa'a we are able to show that indigenous cultures had science, mathematics, meteorology, and biology as well as poetry, song and arts, that are comparable in their beauty and complexity to any culture on earth.”
Cat brings this perspective into the classroom and often connects with her students while at sea. “I teach sustainability to my students,” she says, “I want them to understand what true sustainability involves in terms of governments, economies, cultures and societies as well as environments. I also want them to understand that looking forward sometimes means looking back to the lessons of the past.” She sees the Moananuiākea Voyage as an opportunity to be a student as well “to engage with Pacific rim cultures to see what lessons they have for us to manage our planet more efficiently and sustainably.”
With no refrigeration at sea, what Cat craves most is “COLD orange juice!”
But when back on land, she says “I miss the sounds of the sea...the wind in the sails and the waves rushing past the hulls.”
To Cat, “Hōkūle’a is a symbol of Hawaiian (and Polynesian) pride in the strength of our culture(s). Because of our māmā wa'a we are able to show that indigenous cultures had science, mathematics, meteorology, and biology as well as poetry, song and arts, that are comparable in their beauty and complexity to any culture on earth.”
Cat brings this perspective into the classroom and often connects with her students while at sea. “I teach sustainability to my students,” she says, “I want them to understand what true sustainability involves in terms of governments, economies, cultures and societies as well as environments. I also want them to understand that looking forward sometimes means looking back to the lessons of the past.” She sees the Moananuiākea Voyage as an opportunity to be a student as well “to engage with Pacific rim cultures to see what lessons they have for us to manage our planet more efficiently and sustainably.”
With no refrigeration at sea, what Cat craves most is “COLD orange juice!”
But when back on land, she says “I miss the sounds of the sea...the wind in the sails and the waves rushing past the hulls.”