Ka'elepulu Garden Renovation Project is focused on revitalizing the elementary school garden to make a positive impact on the environment and promote health and wellness while increasing environmental and sustainability literacy. This project looks to create a space that is educational, wonder-inspiring, and reflective of sustainable practices from traditional Hawaiian culture to present day permaculture.

Ka'elepulu Garden Renovation Project will focus on accomplishing three main objectives:

1) Refurbish raised bed plot by eliminating invasive grass, overhauling raised beds and adding native plant border
2) Build new outdoor classroom that provides educational space for lessons outdoor under the monkey pod tree
3) Restoring hillside fruit orchard by eliminating invasive grass, installing irrigation, and replanting fruit trees

These efforts will improve health and performance by providing an outdoor space for students and teachers to achieve educational objectives outside the classroom. This is critical, especially during the summer months, as temperatures in the classrooms often reach 90+ degrees. The cooling winds and shade will provide a welcome escape to allow the kids and teachers to continue their lessons.

Additionally, these objectives will also increase environmental and sustainable literacy by providing an environment where students not only learn about the science but also about the environment around them and its historical context. In selecting new plants to add to the garden, this project will look to increase the diversity of plant life by reintroducing native Hawaiian plants which will to illustrate scientific, historical and sustainable objectives. In feedback sessions with the teachers, plaques labeling the plants was one of the suggestions that we hope to implement in this project to allow the students to better identify the plants in the garden.

Finally, the garden renovation will continue to benefit from the co-located composting project which composts all food waste from lunch at school. This program has been highly successful in increasing environmental and sustainability literacy while reducing landfill waste. Compost is used to supplement the soil in the raised beds.