17th Annual Mālama Haloa Kalo Festival and Symposium

In partnership with Ka Papa Loʻi ʻo Kānewai and Ka Papa Loʻi ʻo Punaluʻu, Bishop Museum is honored to host the 17th Annual Mālama Hāloa Kalo Festival and Symposium. Every year, the festival spotlights a ʻohana kalo or a specific Hawaiian taro variety. In 2025, we celebrate kalo ʻapuwai.

The mission of the Mālama Hāloa Kalo Festival and Symposium is to educate our lāhui about different Hawaiian kalo varieties and how to care for them. Our kūpuna were well-versed with the function, uses, and care of Hawaiian kalo varieties and understood its ceremonial, medicinal, and subsistence value. Focusing on ʻohana kalo every year encourages research into kalo genealogy to better understand the who, what, where, why, and how of Hawaiian kalo cultivation.