Hua Momona Foundation Wraps Inaugural Rise Maui And Third Annual Maui Music & Food Experience

Featuring Dr. Sasha Luccioni, Rod Roddenberry, Los Lobos, Taimane, Lisa Fischer, Alejandro Escovedo & More

Raised $150,000 And Welcomed 1,200 Guests

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Monday, August 24th: The Hua Momona Foundation(HMF) brought together global innovators, cultural leaders, musicians, chefs and the Maui community for a week centered around sustainability, creativity and aloha, beginning with the inaugural RISE Maui: Regeneration, Innovation, and Sustainability Experience from August 17-21 and culminating in the third annual Maui Music & Food Experience (MMFE) August 21-22 at Hyatt Regency Maui Resort and Spa.

Together, the events welcomed 1,200 guests and raised $150,000 to support HMF's ongoing work across Maui, including food distribution, agriculture, education, youth music programs, Lahaina's continued recovery and long-term community resilience.

"Year three was our best yet. Every year, we're doing more programs for the community at a larger scale, and the support and feedback we receive from Maui encourages us to keep going and keep growing," said Gary Grube, Founder and CEO of Hua Momona Foundation and Farms. "I've worn my wristband from last year's event every day for the past 12 months, and tonight we started a new tradition. I cut it off and replaced it with this year's wristband, which I'll wear until we're back together again next year. It's a reminder of why we do this and the community we're here to support."

The first-ever RISE Maui brought together leaders across science, technology, agriculture, culture and the arts to explore some of today's most pressing challenges. Over four days, conversations tackled the environmental impact of artificial intelligence, climate change, regenerative agriculture, sustainable energy, indigenous knowledge, spirituality and the relationship between technology and humanity.

Highlights included a keynote from AI and climate expert Dr. Sasha Luccioni; an innovation conversation co-moderated by Star Trek Executive Producer Rod Roddenberry and Grube; discussions featuring inventor Jason Resch, Tufts University Professor Matthias Scheutz, Hawaiian cultural expert W. Kamaunu Kahaialii, UMass Amherst Professor Jun Yao and others; and a conversation on creativity and technology with longtime Rolling Stones collaborator Bernard Fowler and musician Nicholas Tremulis.

RISE also incorporated hands-on and community experiences, including a Genki Ball Toss focused on marine restoration, intimate ʻohana dinners, and wellness programming. The summit concluded at Hua Momona Farms , where Chef Zach Laidlaw led attendees through the farm's sustainable fields before guests joined Treecovery Hawaii to plant 40 trees supporting Lāhainā and Kula residents who lost trees in the 2023 Maui wildfires.

"What stood out to me most was bringing together of people from industries and backgrounds that almost never talk to each other," said inventor Jason Resch."At RISE Maui we had regenerative farmers presenting to AI researchers, Hawaiian spiritual leaders presenting to enegery scientists and vice versa. Here, everyone's perspective was welcome and appreciated. RISE provides a sort of cross-polination that's simply missing from all other conferences that I've attended, and this is the type of event that we need for the next world-changing breakthrough."

Following RISE, HMF shifted from conversation and collaboration to celebration with the third annual Maui Music & Food Experience, bringing acclaimed musicians and Maui artists together for two nights overlooking the Pacific Ocean.

Friday featured performances from Maui-based 3 Pounds of Kalo, Grammy Award-winning Hawaiian singer-songwriterJohn Cruz, and headliner Taimane, who celebrated the release of her new album, Liʻulā, which arrived that same day. Her dynamic set showcased the range of her ukulele playing, moving from Led Zeppelin's "Stairway to Heaven" and Beethoven to flamenco and the Narcos theme song, alongside music from the new album.

Saturday welcomed Kanekoa and What Mongoose?, featuring Bernard Fowler, Chicago musician and composer Nicholas Tremulis, and Maui-born and raised ukulele player Naiwi Teruya, alongside Grammy Award-winning vocalist Lisa Fischer and Robert Irving III. During the set, longtime Rolling Stones collaborators Fowler and Fischer joined forces for a performance of "(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction."

ABOUT HUA MOMONA FOUNDATION

Hua Momona Foundation was established to serve Maui's most vulnerable communities. The Foundation's mission is to enhance nourishment and resilience through education, technological innovation, and paʻahana, hands-on work to mālama ʻāina, alongside Maui's farmers and youth across every moku. Following the August 2023 Lahaina wildfires, the Foundation played a central role in emergency response efforts, delivering approximately 100,000 hot, ready meals to impacted residents and first responders. In parallel, Hua Momona Farms sustained local food production and distribution, delivering more than 30 tons of farm boxes since 2020, including 100-150 boxes per week to unsheltered individuals through Maui Rapid Response.

ABOUT HYATT REGENCY MAUI RESORT AND SPA

Hyatt Regency Maui Resort and Spa is a AAA Four Diamond-rated hotel offering everything desired for an unforgettable getaway in paradise. Ideally situated on 40 oceanfront acres on world famous Ka'anapali Beach, voted "#1 Beach in the U.S. Traveler's Choice" by TripAdvisor and ranked in the top 10 of the 2025 Conde Nast Traveler Readers' Choice Awards "Top 25 Resorts in Hawaii", this resort features an expansive open-air atrium lobby, three towers, and 810 re-imagined guestrooms, including 31 suites. Each guestroom is well-appointed with authentic Hawaiian touches, elegant furnishings, modern finishes, open closets, and private balconies with glass railings to enjoy breathtaking views of the Pacific Ocean and west Maui sunsets. This LEED-EBOM Gold Certified resort is a standout in world class hospitality and truly offers something for everyone: rooftop astronomy program; beachfront free-form pool with a 150-foot lava tube water slide; children's splash pool; oceanfront daybeds and cabanas, beach activities; manicured tropical grounds; daily Hawaiian cultural activities; wildlife tours and penguin presentations; pickleball; championship golf; 100,000 square feet of event space for meetings or destination weddings; retail boutiques; 24-hour fitness center; daily outdoor yoga and fitness classes; Maui's only oceanfront full-service spa and salon; live entertainment including the on-site Drums of the Pacific Lu'au; and ten food and beverage offerings, such as the award-winning restaurant Japengo. Follow Hyatt Regency Maui onFacebook andInstagram, as well asJapengo.

HUA MOMONA FOUNDATION ON THE WEB

MMFE Website

MMFE Instagram

MMFE Youtube

MMFE Linkedin

HMF Website

HMF Instagram

HMF Facebook

Press Page

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