High Water Line walk in Ward Village
By: Kirsten Sibley
13 April 2020
Forty students connected with the public to walk for the High Water Line cause in Ward Village two weeks ago to raise awareness of changing oceans tide.
Due to global warming and coastline eroding, the entire area of Ward village near Kaka’ako is expected to be submerged in the next 30-50years announced by the NOAA tides and currents.
After the walk the group gathered by a rented office next to Piggy Smalls to write personal letters addressed to the legislature asking for climate change amends for the State of Hawaii.
Following a leader who paved the way with a chalk line, the group meandered through the streets of Ward, waving at cars,, and posting informative barcodes on telephone poles. These barcodes can be scanned by a passerby with an iPhone and send that citizen to an informative link about the cause.
“ I believe that it is good to know what issues that are going on in our very own community that are going to affect generations to come,”said Julia Scoles, a senior at the University of Hawaii.
“It may be too late for the Ward Village, but we can make sure the damage done stops there.”
One of the challenges the group faced on the walk was an interruption at the Neil Blaisedel Center, when a security guard accused the community activists of vandalism from the chalk. It was later clarified that the chalk was a non chemical powder and the group had received special permission to be on Blaisedel property.
As Hawaii is surrounded completely by water, it will expect the quickest notice in environmental change, particularly coastlines out of any of the other states. That being said it is up to us to set the tone for the rest of the country,” said John Johnson, one of the community walkers.