Denby Freeland

About Denby's Community Action Project (CAP)

Denbyʻs community action project focuses on one of the many aspects of ecological restoration of Waiheʻe Coastal Dunes and Wetlands Refuge on the island of Maui, Hawaiʻi. This year-long project will include student contributions towards coastal restoration while also encouraging curiosity of their own neighborhoods through native plants.  

Visiting students during the wet season (hoʻoilo) will participate in planting natives along the coastline to slow down the rate of erosion. Throughout the year-long project, students will enhance their understanding of native plants and their habitats while engaging in ʻāina-based (land-based) activities that are hands-on and grade level appropriate. All visiting classes during the 25-26 school year will receive native plants to take home to their schools and homes, giving students and teachers opportunities to contribute towards increasing the native plant population in their neighborhoods. More importantly, Denby’s project includes fun take-home activities that get students exploring the areas around their homes. She’s also working with a nearby school to see how to better support student learning beyond teaching sites and in their own neighborhoods.

About Denby

Denby is a cultural practitioner, educator, and artist who lives in upcountry Maui with her two children. Born and raised on Oʻahu, Denby graduated from Punahou School and earned her

Bachelor’s degree at the University of Washington and a Master’s degree in Education at Heritage College, Washington. Denby’s career path interweaves the arts, the environment, and a continued interest in her native Hawaiian culture. Denby is a well-known artist and Hawaiian kapa maker. Denby has a passion for ʻāina based education that is built on a foundation of positive outdoor experiences.  With over 20 years in environmental education, it's hard to imagine Denby on a better career path than being outside with children.

More About Me

When you were a kid, what did you want to be when you grow up? 
When I was a kid I wanted to be an artist like my mom. In addition to my mom being my hero, she was a successful landscape oil painter. She was continually capturing our hikes and outdoor adventures through her paintings. She not only appreciated the beauty of Hawaiʻi. She watched as the wind, sun, and water affected the land and translated it on canvas.

What (or who) keeps you hopeful for the future?
The younger generation keeps me hopeful of the future. As a group their liveliness inspires me, and I find their creativity impressive. What the future holds is up to them but is determined by what tools and opportunities we provide now.

What are three environmental values you try to emulate? 
The values I try to share and emulate were taught to me early in my career. If people experience something positive they want more of it. If they are able to build on that positive memory with more experiences, then they learn to enjoy it. If they enjoy it, they want to take care of it.