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How many times have you been to Hawaii? On your next Hawaiian vacation, consider enriching your experience and contributing to the sustainability of Hawaiian culture, learning about Hawaiian history and environment, and supporting local businesses.

Bottom line: rent a hybrid vehicle         shop and eat at locally-owned places

    go to a Hawaiian culture festival      take a guided hike in a nature preserve
    go on an agri-tour             learn about marine life

The Big Island of Hawaii makes this easy with their new "micro-site" www.bigisland.org/ecotourism. You can find out where to see thousands of seahorses at the first seahorse farm in the world; visit a botanical garden or a rainforest zoo; sign to be an eco-volunteer.

I like this one: in the beautiful ranchlands of Waimea, Merriman's is a fabulous restaurant, one of the best in the islands for many years. They offer "Farm Visits and Dinner," taking small groups to nearby family farms to meet with growers and explore organic vegetable and flower fields, and to historic Kohala grasslands to learn about range-roving sheep and cattle. Specializing in locally-sourced ingredients in their spectacular dishes, the restaurant then treats the groups to four-course gourmet dinners prepared from foods grown within a few miles of Waimea.

More news on the environmental front on the Big Island: Hawai'i Volcanoes National Park is a new addition to the World Heritage List, which includes 878 properties, throughout the world, of cultural and natural importance and of outstanding universal value.