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Kalākaua Park in Downtown Hilo and Nā‘ālehu Park in Ka’ū will serve as initial pilot sites for this creative placemaking project. Youth, friends of the park, and area residents will be engaged to ideate and co-create works of art that celebrate community stories, culture, and values.

With assistance from technical partners, the project team will translate community ideas into tangible, public art, incorporating a custom blend of discarded plastics. Reflecting the uniqueness of each community, installations in each park will vary, with complementing murals developed in partnership between artists, youth, and community. Each park will feature HI-5 receptacles crafted from discarded plastics, showcasing innovative ways to transform plastic liabilities into public art and everyday assets. 

With creative intervention and technology, this project will foster design-thinking and support these key industries while highlighting the need to address excessive consumption and protect our precious environment. To support this initiative, a plastics innovation lab and workspace – The Collaboratory – will be set up to house technical equipment and to test ideas. After establishing proof of concept, The Collaboratory will continue to support more plastic waste diversion and transformation into artwork and goods.

The multi-sectoral team assembled is diverse, and purposeful, including County Parks & Recreation, Environmental Management, Research & Development, and Council District 4 Office, East Hawai‘i Cultural Center, Temple Children, Thing Thing Studio, Hawai‘i Science & Technology Museum, Nā‘ālehu Elementary School, Friends of Kalakaua Park, and more. 

This placemaking collaboration grew organically from local pop-up activations and experiential installations, reflecting a shared commitment to enlivening public spaces and bringing communities closer together through creative experiences.