Kuaʻāina Ulu ʻAuamo (KUA) means “grassroots growing through shared kuleana (responsibility)” the acronym KUA means backbone. KUA, called into creation in 2011 by a statewide network of over 30+ grassroots indigenous and local community based natural resource management groups called E Alu Pū (“move forward together”) works to empower communities to improve their quality of life through caring for their environmental heritage together to better Hawaiʻi and achieve ‘āina momona— an abundant, productive ecological system that supports community well-being. KUA employs a community‐driven approach that currently supports three statewide networks: E Alu Pū, almost 40 traditional Hawaiian fishpond projects and practitioners called the Hui Mālama Loko Iʻa, and a new and growing group of Limu (native seaweed) practitioners called the Limu Hui.