Projects
Along with scientific expeditions, PIRI has sponsored and organized several long term community projects in line with the mission
Whether it is a film festival or a planetarium, PIRI projects are based around inspiring and cultivating curiosity in communities, bringing people together around culture, exploration, and conservation.
Friday Harbor Film Festival
The FHFF was founded in 2013 on San Juan Island in Washington State and features documentary films that Entertain, Inspire and Enlighten us about the people, cultures, and environment that tell stories of the pacific rim and beyond. The 2020 & 2021 festival was held virtually with great success.
Rapa Nui Planetarium and Observatory
Rapa Nui is a place where the sky, the stars, the earth and the sea all intersect with great meaning for the Rapanui people since their arrival. PIRI has taken the initiative to assist is creating the dream of Edmundo Edwards; to erect a Planetarium on Rapa Nui, completed in 2019. A companion Observatory is currently under construction, a telescope has been donated, the building has been designed and the foundation laid. Both facilities will be a place where this ancestral knowledge can be shared with the Rapanui people, communicated to visitors. Above all, taught to young people from across Polynesia creating pride of their remarkable navigation skills and cultural heritage. The project is led by Edmundo, he has managed to surround himself with a first class team guaranteeing the project will be successful. The Rapa Nui Planetarium has already hosted numerous students from Rapa Nui, Chile and Tahiti, winning awards, and sharing in their ancestral heritage.
The Aloha Theatre Inn Restoration
Hanapepe, Hawaii
Built in 1936, the Aloha Theatre has been abandoned for over 30 years. Restoration is underway to create a multi use facility. The Pacific Islands Research Institute will install important canoe plants within the courtyard, create informational placards and displays of Kauai’d history as well as screen documentaries and offer educational presentations.
The remaining building will host a restaurant over looking the Hanapepe town, shop space, cafe and 14-18 hotel rooms. These will insure the financial viability of the cost of the restoration of this important historical building in downtown Hanapepe. With renovations under way the Aloha Theatre Inn is set to have its grand re-opening in 2023.
If you want to remain current with any updates on our PROJECTS or EXPEDITIONS please drop a note to us at:
4islandexplorer@gmail.com
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