At the beginning of the new year, Pūʻā Foundation convened over 100 community members, cultural practitioners, educators, justice professionals, conservationists, and healers for the Mana Gathering: Planting Seeds of Hope, held January 7–9, 2026, at Aulani, a Disney Resort in Kapolei, Oʻahu.

Formerly known as the Mana Wahine Conference, the Mana Gathering has evolved since its first convening in 2017 into a living, learning space rooted in healing, justice, and cultural connection. After gatherings in 2018, a pause during the COVID-19 pandemic, and renewed convenings in 2022 and 2024, Pūʻā Foundation welcomed 2026 grounded in a shared commitment to trauma-informed transformation — healing both people and ʻāina.

his year’s theme, Planting Seeds of Hope: From Trauma to Transformation, reflected Pūʻā Foundation’s belief that personal healing, community wellness, and forest restoration are deeply interconnected. As Hawaiʻi continues to face the impacts of historical trauma, system involvement, and environmental crises such as Rapid ʻŌhiʻa Death, the gathering centered culturally grounded pathways toward restoration and resilience.

Over three days, participants engaged in experiential learning that wove together trauma-informed approaches, ancestral knowledge, cultural practices, neuroscience, and mālama ʻāina. Through panels, workshops, ceremony, and reflection, the gathering emphasized that healing is both collective and relational — rooted in culture, place, and community.

Highlights included powerful panel discussions on how ancestral knowledge and cultural practices can heal trauma across justice, health, and environmental systems, as well as hands-on workshops in hoʻ’opono, pule and oli, peer support, lei making, food as medicine, and cultural arts as healing. Participants also explored emerging approaches to evaluation and storytelling that honor both data and the spirit of aloha, including innovative digital tools for measuring trauma transformation through cultural impact.

The gathering featured respected cultural practitioners and leaders including Dr. Manulani Meyer, Kumu Hula Sissy Lake Farm, Dr. Sam Gon, Kimmy Takata, Charmeyne Te Nana-Williams, alongside Pūʻā Foundation’s own team and community partners. Together, they shared how indigenous wisdom, neuroscience, and ecological spirituality can guide communities toward balance and renewal.

As participants returned to their communities, organizations, and ʻāina, they carried more than memories of the gathering — they carried responsibility. Like the ʻōhiʻa lehua that takes root in new lava, the Mana Gathering affirmed that healing is an ongoing practice, nurtured through relationship, culture, and care. The seeds planted over these three days now live in the daily work, choices, and connections of each participant, continuing Pūʻā Foundation’s commitment to transforming trauma into resilience, restoration, and hope for generations to come.