It’s with great pleasure that I introduce Maile Risch, the new Foraging Field Assistant at Savage Kitchen. We’ll be together on Thursday’s and Friday’s to continue the work of creating high quality wild food educational materials. Foraging, recipe creation, and online digital content are the main focus of our work together. 

I’ll let Maile go ahead and introduce herself here ::

I am from Ko’olaupoko, O’ahu. I grew up in Kailua where the gentle malanai wind blows from those turquoise seas to the great waters of Kawainui loko i’a and where the Koʻolau mountains stand kū before us. I grew up paddling outrigger canoe, surfing, diving, making lei and getting down in the loʻi. 

I recently graduated from Hawai’inuiākea, the School of Hawaiian Knowledge at the University of Hawaii at Mānoa. My studies were concentrated in mālama ‘āina (land stewardship) and traditional land management practices. I worked at Ka Papa Lo’i o Kānewai, maintaining and educating the practices of mālama hāloa in my last years at University. As I became more acquainted with the stories and practices of old, my love and connection to the land was guided by a relationship steeped in values and reciprocity. It is not only a deep love for the land but a loyal commitment to stand for the betterment of Hawai’i’s people and protect Hawai’i’s natural resources. 

I am so excited to work with Sunny for the same reason! Hawai’i is rich with wild edible foods as well as invasive species that threaten our native ecosystems. I look forward to connecting, sharing and learning from each other while expanding the knowledge of this practice. Together, we can offer learning, tools, tips, recipes and more for communities in Hawai’i on how to utilize abundantly found plants, protect Hawai’i’s unique resources and move forward amidst climate change and health crisis towards a more food secure Hawai’i. 

I’m an artist of all shapes and sizes. I dabble in it all but cooking is one of my favorite arts. It involves all of our five senses, plus one more– the need to give our best. It is my preferred therapy. I look forward to sharing new recipes with you all. May it help you see Hawai’i in a new way. 

E mālama pono,

Maile