Notes on Indigenous Navigation and Modern Society

The speaker was raised by native Hawaiian elders in 1963, who imparted ancestral knowledge.
These women were descendants of Polynesian navigators, teaching the speaker about winds, rains, and astronomy based on stellar genealogy.
They foresaw a future where the world would be in trouble, needing elders' wisdom to regain balance, and predicted the speaker's role in this.
The speaker was told that in her journeys, she would find family (ohana) in strangers, emphasizing the importance of collective effort.

In February 2007, the speaker met Pius "Mao" Mao Pialuk on Sattuwal, Micronesia, a highly respected navigator priest (palu).
The Palu tradition involves navigating across 3,000,000 square miles of the Pacific without instruments.
They synthesize patterns in nature, using stars, waves, bird flight patterns, and subtle cloud colors for navigation.
Mao gathered data by feeling the rhythm and direction of waves in the canoe's hull, a practice learned since age five.
This method provides accurate data on the vessel's angle and direction, despite potential dismissal by modern science.
Palu can forecast weather conditions days in advance by observing subtle cues like the first glint of light on the horizon.
Their intellectual and scientific achievements are highly relevant in times of crisis.
These navigators are compared to astronauts, with their canoes as rockets and the sea as space.
Their wisdom is part of humanity's collective narrative and DNA, which must be preserved.

By February 2010, the speaker observes that the world is indeed in trouble, as predicted.
Society is overwhelmed with data but lacks wisdom, leading to increased anxiety, fear, depression, and loneliness.
The speaker emphasizes the need for course correction, referencing an African shaman's saying about society's misplaced worship.
The link between past and future is fragile; the speaker laments forgetting the names of the winds and rains.
The speaker highlights that numerous cultures possess valuable knowledge that is being dismissed.
The speaker emphasizes that when an elder dies, a library burns, signifying the rapid loss of invaluable wisdom.

Mao's lesson: "The island is the canoe, the canoe the island," meaning survival depends on everyone working together.
The concept of every person for themselves is unsustainable.
The planet is our canoe, and we are the voyagers. True navigation begins in the human heart, which is the most important map.
The speaker encourages collective and harmonious journeying.

The speaker works in creative direction for a magazine, photography, and curating.
The speaker uses her smartphone to manage her work, review proofs, and communicate with clients.
She started taking pictures seriously at 17 and captures images of her surroundings and friends.
The speaker uses a camera that is on smart phone and of high quality is useful for online content.
She shares photos taken with her smartphone on various blogs.