(Taipei, Taiwan) — A delegation from the Polynesian Voyaging Society (PVS) and Kamehameha Schools (KS) recently concluded a 10-day cultural exchange and planning visit across Taiwan, advancing relationships, educational partnerships, and logistical preparations for the anticipated arrival of the voyaging canoes Hōkūleʻa and Hikianalia in spring 2027 as part of the Moananuiākea Voyage.

The PVS + KS delegation members included PVS CEO Nainoa Thompson and younger generation voyagers, KS Executive Cultural Officer Dr. Randie Kamuela Fong, and Jamie Fong, Manager of the Kaʻiwakīloumoku Hawaiian Cultural Center at Kamehameha Schools Kapālama. The group was hosted by the Indigenous Peoples Cultural Development Center and the Council of Indigenous Peoples as part of a cooperative agreement supporting the Austronesian International Art Triennial.  The organizers have long been committed to fostering indigenous self-awareness, cultural continuity, and revitalization.  This collaboration reflects a shared vision: to revitalize ancestral voyaging traditions, sustain oceanic knowledge systems, and nurture indigenous self-awareness and identity across the Austronesian world.

“For us, coming to Taiwan feels like a homecoming, returning to the homeland of the Austronesian-speaking diaspora,” said Randie Kamuela Fong, Executive Cultural Officer at Kamehameha Schools. “We came with humility to listen, to learn, and to reconnect with the communities who have carried their ancestral traditions and knowledge forward.”

The visit began in Taipei where the KS and PVS representatives met with The National Taiwan University’s Oceanography Institute, the Council of Indigenous Peoples and Taiwan’s Ocean Affairs Council.  From Taipei, the group traveled south to Kaohsiung to conduct coastal scouting and assess potential port locations. The contingent then continued to Pingtung for cultural engagements before heading to Taitung for additional site visits and community connections.

In Pingtung, the delegation visited the National Indigenous Culture Park, where they were received with a traditional ceremonial welcome by the indigenous Amis tribe.  Referring to Hōkūleʻa and Hikianalia’s upcoming spring 2027 visit, representatives from Taiwan’s Indigenous Peoples Cultural Park stated, “This will be more than a stop on the journey.  It will be a reunion that reconnects Taiwan with the sea routes of the Austronesian world.  The ocean has always been there.  We are simply learning again how to follow it to find each other again.”

A key part of the journey included traveling to Lānyǔ (Orchid Island), where the delegation spent time learning from the Tao (Yami) people about ancestral voyaging traditions and ocean-centered ways that continue to be a part of their daily life. The visit deepened understanding of Taiwan’s place as a major origin point of the Austronesian language and voyaging family. 

In Taitung, the group was taken on more port scouting visits, and participated in the launch of the Austronesian Triennial Lecture Series, which was attended by cultural and government representatives, scholars and ocean stewards.  PVS CEO Nainoa Thompson, along with two next-generation navigators, presented insights on traditional navigation, education, and the global relevance of Indigenous knowledge. 

In his message at the Triennial event, Thompson said, “We are here to ask permission.  We are here because we need your guidance, and we need your support to come to our homeland of 6,000 to 7,000 years ago, where the first genius of deep-sea voyaging canoe construction began, and where this great family was built stretching from Madagascar in the west to Peru in the east, across 15 time zones, the biggest country in the world by far.”  “This family of the canoe, this family of the ocean, comes to your land to learn.  At the heart of your culture is love, and we have felt that deeply in these past few days.”

The visit concluded with a return to Taipei for additional port and logistics scouting in preparation for the canoes’ arrival.

Photo Courtesy: Taiwan Council of Indigenous Peoples, Taiwan Ocean Affairs Council, Kamehameha Schools and Polynesian Voyaging Society