Camille Kalama

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, KO'IHONUA

Camille Kalama, is a Kanaka Maoli (Native Hawaiian) from O‘ahu, Hawai‘i. She and her family live in Waiawa they call Hanakehau Learning Farm, a space dedicated to the restoration of land and Hawaiian cultural practices. Since 2006, Camille has served as a staff attorney with the Native Hawaiian Legal Corporation. She attended the University of Hawai`i and earned a Bachelor of Arts in Geography in 2000 and is a 2005 graduate of the William S. Richardson School of Law. She joined NHLC in 2006 after clerking for one year at the Hawaii Supreme Court. Ms. Kalama sees her work with NHLC to protect and preserve native rights and resources as her kuleana, or responsibility, as a Native Hawaiian. Her current caseload includes representing clients seeking access to their kuleana lands, assisting kalo farmers in seeking the restoration of stream water to protect their traditional and customary rights, protecting iwi kupuna, and assisting Department of Hawaiian Home Lands beneficiaries in resolving various legal issues to preserve their homesteads for themselves and their families. Camille provided legal observer support on Mauna Kea and Haleakala in 2015 for the protectors challenging the construction of massive telescopes on mountains held sacred by the Hawaiian community. She worked for many years for the Polynesian Voyaging Society and in 2001 was named NCAA Woman Athlete of the Year for the state of Hawaii.