The Kū Project’s mission is to encourage people to build a Kū body and live a Kū life—a philosophy rooted in strength, purpose, cultural awareness, and personal growth. In Hawaiian, kū means “to stand tall, anchored,” representing the idea of standing with intention in how one cares for their health, honors cultural values, contributes to the community, and lives with integrity.
Through conversations and digital storytelling, The Kū Project amplifies perspectives from Native Hawaiian cultural practitioners, educators, artists, and community leaders whose voices are often underrepresented in mainstream media. These long-form discussions explore culture, identity, leadership, and contemporary Hawaiian experiences while documenting stories that might otherwise go unheard.
The Kū Digital Moʻolelo Preservation Initiative, a program dedicated to recording and preserving the stories of kūpuna (elders) and community leaders. In Hawaiian culture, knowledge, history, and values have traditionally been passed down through oral storytelling and lived experience. This initiative builds on that tradition by recording in-depth kūpuna (elders) interviews, which will be edited, transcribed, and preserved within a publicly accessible digital archive.
By preserving kūpuna narratives and lived experiences, the project supports the intergenerational transmission of ʻike (knowledge) and cultural values. While centered on Native Hawaiian voices, the platform also reaches the broader Hawaiʻi community, the Hawaiian diaspora, educators, and students seeking a deeper understanding of Hawaiʻi’s culture and people.
Over time, the initiative aims to build a growing digital archive of Native Hawaiian storytelling that strengthens cultural continuity, fosters intergenerational connection, and ensures that community knowledge and lived experiences are preserved and shared for future generations.