Heritage (Tourism) Opportunities in Hawaiʻi (HŌʻIHI) NATIVE Act Grant Program for Native Hawaiian Organizations | D24AS00326

Opportunity Information: Apply for D24AS00326

The Heritage (Tourism) Opportunities in Hawai'i (HO'IHI) NATIVE Act Grant Program is a discretionary grant opportunity administered by the U.S. Department of the Interior (Office of Native Hawaiian Relations, via the Interior Business Center) under CFDA 15.068. It is designed to carry out the Native American Tourism and Improving Visitor Experience Act (the NATIVE Act, 25 U.S.C. 4351 et seq.) for Native Hawaiian Organizations. At its core, the program aims to make the national travel and tourism strategy more inclusive by ensuring Native Hawaiian organizations can participate in, shape, and benefit from tourism in ways that are self-determined and culturally grounded. The grant program is also framed as an economic opportunity for the Native Hawaiian community, with expected outcomes that include job creation, expanded economic opportunities, and improved living standards.

The funding opportunity is rooted in the reality that Hawai'i’s tourism industry is massive relative to the state’s population, with visitor arrivals reaching more than 10 million in 2020 and rebounding to about 9.4 million in 2022 in a state of fewer than 1.5 million residents. The program narrative recognizes that this visitor volume places heavy pressure on natural and cultural resources, including places that are sacred and deeply significant to Native Hawaiians. It also acknowledges long-standing concerns that tourism has often operated in an extractive way: relying heavily on Native Hawaiian culture as a primary draw while contributing to resource depletion and, in some cases, displacement from traditional lands, homes, and places of worship. In response to community frustration and calls for change, the HO'IHI program is positioned as a tool to help shift tourism toward a regenerative model that reinvests in restoring and sustaining resources, including cultural knowledge and practitioners, rather than simply consuming them.

A defining concept for the program is the Hawaiian value ho'ihi, meaning to treat with reverence or respect, reflected in the proverb "E ho'ihi aku, e ho'ihi mai" ("show respect, get respect"). The program uses this principle to promote a visitor relationship where tourists are welcomed as guests who share kuleana, or responsibility, to respect place, protocols, and cultural practitioners. Funded projects are intended to (1) showcase Native Hawaiian heritage, places, arts, foods, traditions, history, and living culture; (2) identify, enhance, revive, or maintain cultural traditions and practices (loea) as well as ancestral and sacred places (wahi kupuna and wahi pana) that sustain the distinctiveness of the Native Hawaiian community; and (3) create authentic, respectful visitor experiences in Hawai'i. Beyond cultural and environmental benefits, ONHR expects these projects to stimulate local economic activity and support community well-being.

For fiscal year 2024, ONHR lists four program priority areas that applicants can address. First, projects may uplift, perpetuate, and sometimes revive traditional practices by creating demonstrations, educational experiences for visitors (including history, use, and protocols), and in some cases hands-on participation opportunities. Examples named include 'olelo Hawai'i, kapa making, lauhala and kaula weaving, and hula, while also encouraging lesser known practices. Second, projects may support the maintenance, enhancement, and protection of natural resources and culturally significant places (wahi kupuna and wahi pana), particularly in areas impacted by tourism. Third, projects may build entrepreneurial capacity by helping create Native Hawaiian business opportunities tied to the visitor industry, offering business development training, or otherwise stimulating economic activity. Fourth, projects may undertake related visitor-facing activities that reinforce respect and reciprocity toward place, resources, and traditional knowledge holders and practitioners. The NOFO also clarifies that "Native Hawaiian cultural practices" can include a wide range of traditional and contemporary expressions and lifeways, such as farming and food preparation, gathering materials and producing implements or adornments, and cultural activities including mo'olelo, dance, chant, song, arts, construction, and recreation.

Eligibility is limited to entities that meet the NATIVE Act definition of a "Native Hawaiian Organization" (25 U.S.C. 4352(3)). In practical terms, the applicant must be a nonprofit organization (as defined in 2 CFR 200.1, and explicitly not an institution of higher education) that serves the interests of Native Hawaiians, is recognized for expertise in Native Hawaiian culture and heritage (including tourism), and has Native Hawaiians serving in substantive and policy-making roles. Applicants must include an attestation within the project narrative affirming they meet the NHO definition and criteria. The listing indicates eligible applicant types include Native American tribal organizations (other than federally recognized tribal governments) and nonprofits with or without 501(c)(3) status (in both cases excluding institutions of higher education).

Key administrative details provided include the opportunity number D24AS00326, an award ceiling of $200,000, and an original closing date of 2024-06-03 (with the opportunity created on 2024-04-03). The funding instrument is a grant, and the activity category is community development, reflecting the program’s combined cultural, environmental, and economic development focus rather than purely tourism marketing.

• The Interior Business Ceter in the community development sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Heritage (Tourism) Opportunities in Hawaiʻi (HŌʻIHI) NATIVE Act Grant Program for Native Hawaiian Organizations" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 15.068.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2024-04-03.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2024-06-03. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $200,000.00 in funding.
• Eligible applicants include: Native American tribal organizations (other than Federally recognized tribal governments), Nonprofits having a 501 (c) (3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education, Nonprofits that do not have a 501 (c) (3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education, Others.

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