Our Team

C. Makanani Salā, PhD

  • Dr. Makanani Salā is the President and CEO of Gravitas Pasifika, and served as Director of Operations for the 13th Festival of Pacific Arts & Culture. Prior to joining Gravitas Pasifika, Dr. Makanani Salā was the Executive Director of the Mayor’s Office of Culture and the Arts for the City and County of Honolulu, where she oversaw International Relations and the Sister City program, Native Hawaiian cultural and language initiatives, the Art in Public Places program, and Special Events, including the annual month-long Honolulu City Lights celebration. She holds undergraduate and graduate degrees in Hawaiian Studies from the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa, and a doctoral degree in History from the University of California, Irvine. She is also a traditional Hula practitioner holding the titles of Hoʻopaʻa ʻŪniki ʻAilolo and Kumu Hula ʻŪniki ʻAilolo. In addition to her administrative and leadership roles, Dr. Makanani Salā has been a cultural consultant on numerous local, national, and international creative and research projects. She has spent over a decade in higher education, working in the fields of Hawaiian Studies, History, Music, and Medical Humanities at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa, Windward Community College, and the University of California, Irvine.

    cms@gravitaspasifika.com

Jayme-Lee Moeʻata Mokulehua

  • Jayme-Lee Moeʻata Mokulehua is a distinguished Project Manager at Gravitas Pasifika, where she has made significant contributions to organizing FestPAC, one of O’ahu's most prominent events. She expertly managed over 14 venues and various logistical tasks, ensuring the success of this large-scale event. Born and raised in Kailua, Oʻahu, Jayme-Lee now resides in Waimānalo with her family. She is deeply involved in her community, serving as the vice-chair of Neighborhood Board 32 and as a member of the Hawaiian Affairs and Natural Resources Committee. Jayme-Lee holds a Bachelor of Arts in Hawaiian Studies and is currently pursuing a Master’s in Hawaiian Studies at the University of Hawai’i Mānoa. During her undergraduate studies, she volunteered with the limu hui, learning the art of uhauhumu pōhaku and researching local varieties of limu endemic to Waimānalo. Raised in a family of musicians, the Paradise Serenaders, founded by her grandmother Lawaina Mokulehua Gonsalves, Jayme-Lee has a deep passion for Hawaiian music and dance. She learned hula and ori tahiti at a young age which has driven her passion for cultural arts. In her previous professional career, Jayme-Lee worked in the Mayor’s Office of Culture and the Arts, holding positions as Office Manager, Events Manager, and International Relations Specialist. Her diverse experiences and dedication to her culture and community continue to drive her professional and personal endeavors.

    jayme@gravitaspasifika.com

Jose Iñigo “Jigs” Santos

  • Jigs is an Executive Assistant at Gravitas Pasifika. Prior to this, he worked as a Pacific Research Intern for the Pacific Islands Development Program at the East-West Center. There he provided technical support and rapporteur services for several intergovernmental conferences such as the 10th Pacific Islands Climate Outlook Forum (PICOF-10), Pacific Islands Climate Change Forum (PICCF), Biodiversity Beyond National Jurisdiction (BBNJ) Conference, and the Pacific Islands Conference of Leaders (PICL). He also previously interned at the Hawaiʻi Institute of Marine Biology (HIMB), where he assisted in research towards the Naiʻa (Hawaiian spinner dolphin) Conservation Project under the Marine Mammal Research Program. Jigs received his B.S. in Marine Biology from the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa. He also serves as the Alumni Advisor for the Pan Pacific Association, a community organization that provides support for Pacific Islander students in colleges across Hawaiʻi. He hopes to pursue further research towards the integration of indigenous knowledge systems into environmental conservation. Originally from the Philippines, Jigs grew up in Timor-Leste, Malaysia, and Fiji. His upbringing in the Pacific region has inspired his passion for marine conservation and sustainable ecotourism.

    jigs@gravitaspasifika.com

Tolua Samifua

  • Ms. Tolua C. Samifua, brings a diverse background in public administration, criminal justice, media publications, community advocacy, and professional outreach to the role.  Ms. Samifua, born in Yokosuka, Japan, is privileged to have been raised in Hawai’i where she was able to stay connected to her Samoan heritage and learn and embrace the values and culture of Hawai’i and other Pasifika communities in one place.  Samifua is the founder and publisher of Lady Pasifika and LĀTASI magazine and Pacific Arts Media, outlets that empower Islander communities through shifting limited and popular understandings of the region and its communities.

    tolua@gravitaspasifika.com

TeHani Gonzado

  • TeHani Kealamailani Gonzado is the Kumu Hula of Ka Hula O Kealamailani. Her hula journey began in 1980 with Kumu Hula Luka Kaleiiki and continued with Kumu Ed Collier and Kumu Leimomi Ho. In 1993, she trained under Kumu Sonny Ching of Hālau Nā Mamo O Pu‘uanahulu, known for his cultural and innovative dance techniques. After moving to Las Vegas, TeHani joined Nani Ola Hawaiian Dance Company and won Miss Kau I Ka Hano and Miss Iā ‘Oe E Ka Lā in 1997. Returning to Hawai‘i in 1998, she joined Hula Hālau O Kamuela and represented them at the Merrie Monarch Festival in 2000, winning Miss Aloha Hula. TeHani has performed globally with The Brothers Cazimero and Amy Hānaiali‘i. She also hosted a morning radio show on KCCN and provided commentary for the Merrie Monarch Festival. In 2009, she resumed training with Kumu Sonny Ching and earned the title of Kumu Hula in 2011. In 2012, she opened her hālau, Ka Hula O Kealamailani. TeHani has two children, Tahitoa and Teheiara. She co-owned Koops2 Entertainment, producing music for notable Hawaiian artists. Hula has deeply influenced TeHani's life, instilling dedication and taking her worldwide to share her passion.

Paige Miki Kalāokananikiʻekiʻe Okamura

  • Paige Miki Kalāokananikiʻekiʻe is a keiki papa of Māeaea, Waialua with 10+ years of experience in ʻōlelo Hawaiʻi research and translation. As the Training Specialist for the Administration for Native Americans Pacific T/TA Center, she helps support nonprofit and territorial government agencies in the Pacific apply for Federal grant funding. She is a sitting Commissioner on Culture and the Arts for the City & County of Honolulu. She also hosts a Hawaiian language and music show on Hawaiʻi Public Radio every Sunday evening called “Hawaiʻi Kulāiwi”. During her time at the University of Hawaiʻi, she taught ʻōlelo Hawaiʻi to the public in the “Ua Ao Hawaiʻi” classes, which saw attendance of over 200 students at a time. Her work and research revolve around strengthening Hawaiian communities through understanding their positionality and their kuleana to ʻāina, with a strong belief that language is key to cultural and national identity. Her deep aloha for her ʻohana, ʻāina, and language drive her to educate those around her about the value of indigenous perspectives and knowledge to the global community.

Alyssa Mei Ungacta Chau

  • Alyssa Mei Ungacta Chau currently serves as a project assistant at Gravitas Pasifika, where she first began as a research intern serving FestPAC. Over the course of the Festival, Alyssa served as co-curator for two exhibitions at Capitol Modern: The Hawaiʻi State Art Museum, and as co-program lead for the FestPAC Regenerating Oceania exhibition held at the Hawaiʻi Convention Center. Born and raised in Taipei, Taiwan, Alyssa is of Taiwanese and CHamoru descent, with familial ties to Otdot, Dedidu, and Malessoʻ in Guahan (Guam). She now resides in Mānoa, and is an undergraduate student at Kapiʻolani Community College planning to graduate with her B.A. in Sustainability and Pacific Islands Studies from the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa. In addition to her role at Gravitas Pasifika, Alyssa contributes to the local literary scene as a bookseller at da Shop Kaimuki, where she curates the Pacific and Poetry collections. Her previous experience includes serving as a Pacific Research Intern at the East-West Center, where she engaged in research and community outreach related to Pacific Islanders and current affairs in Oceania. Alyssa’s diverse upbringing and her active involvement in both academic and community spheres underscore her dedication to preserving and advancing Pacific cultures and issues. 

    alyssa@gravitaspasifika.com

Aaron J. Salā, PhD

  • Aaron Salā is the Senior Advisor and Founder of Gravitas Pasifika, a boutique firm intent on harnessing the power of creative storytelling to advance Native Hawaiian, local Hawaiʻi, and Pasifika worldview and talent through the exploration and integration of, and experimentation with, creativity in production. He is also founder of The Native Imaginative, a not-for-profit corporation committed to the engagement with, education about, and elevation of Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander (NHPI) communities through curriculum development and cultural consultancy, arts advocacy, creative professional development, and festival production focused upon the celebration of NHPI everything. He is both Samoan and Native Hawaiian descent and spent his youth in American Samoa before attending the Kamehameha Schools and the University of Hawaiʻi. Dr. Salā holds a PhD in ethnomusicology from the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa. Aaron was the festival director for the 13th Festival of Pacific Arts & Culture.

    ajs@gravitaspasifika.com