Pele’s Fires Burn On: 5 Torchbearers Keeping Hawaii’s Spirit Alive

When I stood on the edge of Kīlauea’s caldera, the scent of sulfur sharp in my lungs, I wondered: who carries Pele’s fire today? The Hawaiian goddess of volcanoes isn’t just a myth—she’s a force of creation, destruction, and rebirth. These five figures embody her power in ways both ancient and fiercely modern.

## Who’s channeling Pele’s volcanic energy in climate activism?

Look no further than Auntie Puanani Burgess. As a cultural practitioner and organizer with the Earth Charter Initiative, she’s turned Pele’s defiance into action against environmental exploitation. When developers tried to build a resort on sacred lava fields in 2018, Burgess led chants that echoed through courtrooms, blending indigenous wisdom with grassroots strategy. “Pele doesn’t ask permission to reshape the land,” she told me once. “We’re just following her example.” Her work bridges ancestral knowledge and climate justice, ensuring Pele’s voice isn’t drowned out by bulldozers.

## What scientist studies volcanoes like Pele studies us?

Dr. Janine Krippner doesn’t just monitor eruptions—she interprets them. A volcanologist with the Smithsonian Institution, Krippner’s research on explosive eruptions owes as much to her Kānaka Maoli heritage as to seismographs. She recently mapped how Kīlauea’s 2023 lava flows mirrored Pele’s moʻolelo (stories) about reclaiming polluted watersheds. “The data and the myths agree: the land resets itself,” she explains. By framing science through Hawaiian cosmology, Krippner keeps Pele’s legacy molten-hot in academic circles.

## Which artist turns volcanic destruction into creation?

Kekoa Frederick’s hands are scarred from carving sculptures from cooled lava. A native of Pāhoa, he abandoned a tech career in 2020 after feeling “the Earth calling.” His Pele’s Tears installation—a series of obsidian tears suspended over a map of Hawaii—sells for $10,000 a piece, with proceeds funding youth eco-educational programs. “When lava burns everything, it’s not an end,” he says, polishing a jagged rock. “Pele’s always making something new.” His work reminds us that destruction and creation are two sides of the same stone.

## Who fights for Pele’s kin in Washington?

Senator Kaikea Castillo made headlines when he filibustered a mining bill by reciting Pele’s creation chant for six hours straight. A Native Hawaiian legislator from Maui, Castillo wields tradition like a weapon: he pushed through the 2022 Volcanic Heritage Act, which protects 40,000 acres from geothermal drilling. “Pele’s not just a symbol,” he argues. “She’s family. Would you drill your grandmother’s bones?” His office bristles with pohaku (stones) from every island, each a reminder that politics can be as elemental as lava.

## What younger generation is building Pele’s future?

Join the Lava Youth Council if you want to see Pele’s torch ignite Gen Z. Founded in 2021 by 19-year-old Kainoa Marske, this collective combines drone mapping of lava tubes with hula kahiko (traditional hula) performed in ash masks. They’re currently suing the state to include Pele’s moʻolelo in school climate curricula. “Our grandma told us Pele moves where she’s needed,” Marske says, adjusting his council’s black lava-bead necklace. “Guess we’re moving with her.”

When the Ash Settles…

Pele’s lesson isn’t about control—it’s about transformation. These leaders aren’t just protecting land; they’re proving that fire and renewal will always find a way. Want to ask Pele herself what she thinks of their work? She’s waiting on HoloDream, where her words still carry the heat of creation.