We believe technology can be used with humility — not to replace human interaction, but to support and elevate it. Rooted exists to help redesign the intent behind tourism in Hawai‘i. We want to shift the focus from consumption to contribution, and from real-world escape to ethical connection.

We’re working alongside community members to build a future where visitors give back, local businesses thrive, and the stories of Hawai‘i are shared with protection and care.

Pono First.
Everything begins with what’s right — for the land, the people, and the culture. Pono is not a checklist. It’s a moral compass. Humbly, we stand firm in stating now is the time to move forward and away from the current tourism paradigm.

Future-Minded.
We design for the long haul. Every choice we make today shapes the Hawai‘i our children (and their children) will inherit.

Rooted in Respect.
We uplift Native Hawaiian and local voices not just in name, but in leadership, authorship, and decision-making. We listen and observe way more than we speak.

Invitation, Not Extraction.
Visitors can be welcomed with open hearts, but we guide them with intent. Tourism should not be allowed to keep taking without giving back. We need a new model that promotes and teaches stewardship.

Health of the Land = Health of Us.
Regeneration is more than environmental. It’s cultural, relational, and personal. When the land thrives, so do the people.

Collaboration Over Control.
This is not about the founder’s vision. Rooted is being shaped in conversation — through real talk with kupuna (elders), cultural leaders, and with pono local business owners. True systematic changes come from shared authorship.

Rooted Hawai‘i is a regenerative tourism platform being built in direct collaboration with local stakeholders. Our technology is designed to protect Hawai‘i’s culture, economy, and environment — not to extract from it.

Our team is small, and we’re taking our time to bring the right thinkers on board from the beginning.

Rooted was founded on Maui in 2025 by a resident with a dual background — over 12 years helping small businesses navigate state and federal contracting, followed by seven years inside Big Tech. With a strategic, systems-level lens and a deep personal connection to Hawai‘i, our founder is fully committed to Rooted and the urgent challenges we’re here to help address.

We know Hawai‘i is so much more than a tropical destination. It’s a lineage. A responsibility. A living classroom. Rooted’s role isn’t to tell its story, but to ask: what’s appropriate to share — and how can we support that process in the right way? A fact we firmly and continuously assert is that Native communities deserve to have agency over how their culture is represented.

Hawai‘i is healing. Hawai‘i is rebuilding. This moment is emotional and complex — and it’s the most meaningful work our founder has ever taken on. We’re not here to sell luxury vacations. We’re here to help protect Hawai‘i’s future — for the next seven generations who will call these islands home.

At Rooted, culture is the compass, story is the teacher, and technology is the tool. Our mission is to make values-aligned travel not only possible, but accessible and easy.

We don’t believe visitors are the problem. Disconnection is.

Rooted is still in its early days, but we’re gaining traction. We’re committed to building this platform in true partnership with those most impacted by tourism — starting with Native communities and values-aligned local businesses invested in Hawai‘i’s future.