Kumano I Ke Ala

What Kumano I Ke Ala does

Kumano I Ke Ala (KIKA) is a Native Hawaiian-founded and -led 501(c)(3) nonprofit and social enterprise established in 2015 and headquartered in Waimea, West Kauaʻi, Hawaiʻi. The organization stewards 97 acres of indigenous agricultural land across West Kauaʻi and the North Shore of Oʻahu, delivering culturally grounded Native Hawaiian education, land rehabilitation, and food-system revitalization under the framework of Aloha ʻĀina. Its core programs include ʻĀina-based Youth Education (1,600+ K-12 students and faculty hosted on field trips in 2024), Cultural Education on K-12 Campuses (3,000+ students reached through Makahiki-centered events), Workforce Training (paid internships and pathways into nature-based green jobs), Community Engagement (monthly volunteer days restoring loʻi kalo), Food Security & Food Sovereignty (local kalo processing and sales), and Environmental Stewardship of agricultural lands.

The organization's technical foundation is Korean Natural Farming (KNF), a biological-input methodology originated by Cho Han-Kyu in the 1960s that maintains soil biology through self-made solutions. KIKA operates a codified KNF input stack spanning Indigenous Microorganisms (IMO1–IMO5), Fermented Plant Juice (FPJ), Fish Amino Acid (FAA), Lactic Acid Bacteria (LAB), and Water Soluble Calcium (WCA), and teaches this stack through on-farm workshops led by external KNF experts (including Chris Trump of the Big Island) and an educational content library on its website.

KIKA runs a hybrid nonprofit/social-enterprise funding model. Revenue sources comprise individual and corporate donations (one-time and recurring), foundation grants (HMSA, Kamehameha Schools, Hawaii Community Foundation, County of Kauai, Ford Foundation, Stupski Foundation, Decolonizing Wealth, Clif Family, and others), federal support via the U.S. Department of the Interior, and transactional revenue from the kalo social enterprise. Programs are free for school visits and community volunteer days (with 24–72 hours advance registration), while donations are voluntary. The Executive Director, Kaina, who portrayed Kamehameha in Apple TV's "Chief of War," anchors leadership and provides international visibility for the organization.

Name

Kumano I Ke Ala

Legal name

Kumano I Ke Ala

Website

https://kumanoikeala.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2015

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Kumano I Ke Ala is a Native Hawaiian 501(c)(3) nonprofit and social enterprise that stewards 97 acres in West Kauaʻi and Oʻahu, delivering culturally grounded K-12 education, workforce training, land restoration, and kalo-based food sovereignty programs.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Cultural Education and Land Restoration Services

NAICS

Elementary and Secondary Schools (611110), Educational Support Services (611710), Vegetable and Melon Farming (1112), Nature Parks and Other Similar Institutions (71219)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200), Services-Membership Organizations (8600), Agricultural Services (700)

akta.pro primary industry

Charter Indigenous/Culturally Focused & Community-Based Schools (EDAJACAM)

akta.pro secondary industries

Sustainable Agriculture & Food Systems (BPAGAGAI), Ecosystem Services & Natural Capital Programs (Water, Biodiversity Credits, PES) (IMAMAJAK), Community Service & Service-Learning Programs (School-Run) (EDAJAJAI), Indigenous/Tribal Education Authorities & Boards (EDADABAM)

Keywords

• Cultural education programs
• Workforce training services
• Land rehabilitation services
• Food sovereignty programs
• Community engagement programs

Headquarters

HQ city

Waimea

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Supply Chain

Revenue model

1. Donations and Charitable Contributions: Individual and corporate donations support land restoration, educational access, workforce training, and local kalo production. The organization accepts one-time and monthly donations through its website.
2. Social Enterprise Revenue: Kumano I Ke Ala operates as both a nonprofit and a social enterprise, increasing local kalo production and selling processed kalo to support local farmers and food sovereignty while reinvesting proceeds into education and restoration programs.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Kumano I Ke Ala operates a 501(c)(3) nonprofit and social enterprise delivering culturally grounded Native Hawaiian education, hands-on land rehabilitation, and food system revitalization across 97 acres in West Kaua'i and the North Shore of O'ahu. Its portfolio includes K-12 school field trips and in-school cultural events, paid workforce training internships, monthly community volunteer days, Korean Natural Farming workshops, and the production and sale of processed kalo to support local farmers and food sovereignty. Programs are provided at no fee to participants and are sustained through donations, grants, and social enterprise revenue.

Product overview

Kumano I Ke Ala operates as a nonprofit organization and social enterprise offering a portfolio of interconnected programs centered on Native Hawaiian food system revitalization, cultural education, and land rehabilitation. The core offerings include Food Security & Food Sovereignty programs, Workforce Training with paid internships, Cultural Education on K-12 Campuses, Āina-based Youth Education through farm visits, Community Engagement activities, and Environmental Stewardship across 97 acres of agricultural land. Additionally, the organization provides Korean Natural Farming (KNF) methodology education covering inputs and solutions, and hosts monthly Volunteer Program days. These programs collectively aim to restore traditional Hawaiian agriculture, increase local kalo production, and cultivate the next generation of cultural practitioners.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Food Security & Food Sovereignty Program Stewardship and community engagement programs that protect and revitalize Native Hawaiian food practices while ensuring access to staple foods like kalo for future generations.
• Workforce Training Paid internships and workforce training for high school youth and community members transitioning away from extractive industries toward nature-based green jobs.
• Cultural Education on K-12 Campuses In-school cultural events centered around the seasonal Makahiki celebration, engaging K-12 students and faculty through cultural education rooted in Hawaiian values.
• School Visits & Field Trips Half-day immersive field experiences for K-12 school groups exploring Hawaiian food systems, sustainability, environmental stewardship, and values of aloha 'aina through experiential learning at the Pe'e Kaua'i Farm Site.
• Volunteer Program Monthly community volunteer days supporting traditional Hawaiian agricultural revitalization, food sovereignty, environmental restoration, and intergenerational knowledge transfer at farm sites in Waimea.
• Korean Natural Farming Workshops Educational workshops on Korean Natural Farming techniques conducted at KIKA's education farm in Waimea, featuring experts like Chris Trump of the Big Island, covering Indigenous Microorganisms, Fermented Plant Juice, Fish Amino Acid, Lactic Acid Bacteria, and Water Soluble Calcium.
• Processed Kalo Sales (Social Enterprise) Processing and sale of locally grown kalo to support local farmers and food sovereignty, with proceeds reinvested into education and restoration programs.

Quantifiable outcome

• 97 acres of indigenous agricultural land stewarded across West Kauaʻi and North Shore of Oʻahu
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers2 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature5 records

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered minor.

• NDN CollectiveminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerIndigenous-led organization supporting Native Hawaiian and Indigenous communities through capacity building and solidarity.
• OweestaminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerNative CDFI intermediary supporting financial systems development in Native communities.
• Kohala CenterminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerResearch and education organization supporting sustainable communities in Hawaiʻi.
• Big GreenminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerOrganization supporting school gardens and food education.
• Kauai Visitors BureauminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorTourism marketing organization promoting visitor engagement with local cultural experiences.
• Mālama KauaʻiminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerLocal nonprofit focused on caring for Kauaʻi's natural and cultural resources.
• KukuiulaminorOthersLuxury resort community in Poʻipu supporting local cultural initiatives.
• Panta RheaminorOthersOrganization providing strategic consulting support.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Mālama Kauaʻi: Kauaʻi-based nonprofit caring for the island's natural and cultural resources through community programs and education. Comparable as a local-Kauaʻi partner working in adjacent restoration, sustainability, and community education space — and listed as one of KIKA's own partners.
• Paepae o Heʻeia: Hawaiian nonprofit stewarding a traditional fishpond while delivering cultural-ecological education and community volunteer programs. Closely aligned with KIKA's model of culturally grounded restoration of indigenous food systems paired with hands-on education and community engagement.
• Kahumana Organic Farms: Hawaiʻi-based nonprofit social enterprise combining organic farming with workforce training, transitional housing, and youth/family services. Closely mirrors KIKA's hybrid nonprofit + social enterprise + workforce development + agriculture model.
• MAʻO Organic Farms: Waiʻanae-based nonprofit social enterprise combining organic agriculture with a youth workforce development and college pathway program. Highly comparable in mission (Hawaiʻi-based, food sovereignty, paid youth training, social enterprise revenue model) and in combining production with education.
• The Kohala Center: Hawaiʻi Island-based independent nonprofit focused on research, education, and community programs that support resilient food systems and indigenous knowledge. Direct peer in Hawaiian food sovereignty, community education, and rural community development.
• Big Green: National nonprofit building school gardens and food-education programs in low-income schools. Comparable as a partner organization focused on hands-on, garden-based K-12 food education and a direct overlap in target audience and program design.

Emerging players

• Hawaiian Legacy Reforestation Initiative: Hawaiʻi-based initiative focused on reforestation and native-species restoration with associated carbon-credit and educational programming. Comparable in operating on Hawaiian land restoration, native-species stewardship, and emerging ecosystem-service revenue.

Others

• Oweesta Corporation: Native CDFI intermediary providing capital, training, and technical assistance to Native American and Native Hawaiian communities. Comparable as a KIKA partner with a shared Native-led ecosystem orientation and a model for building Native-controlled financial infrastructure.

Broad incumbents

• Kamehameha Schools: Largest private Hawaiian education institution with deep endowment, broad landholdings, and major cultural-education programming. Comparable as a Hawaiian education and culture incumbent that is both a KIKA funder and a potential competitor for philanthropic and government attention.
• NDN Collective: National Indigenous-led organization providing grantmaking, capacity-building, and narrative change for Native communities. Comparable as a broad Indigenous nonprofit incumbent pursuing adjacent cultural-sovereignty and land-related funding pools — and a current KIKA partner.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/profile.php

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

Investors1 record

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Kumano I Ke Ala