Restoring native plant habitat can be grueling, but it’s also very rewarding, says Yongjin Lee, 17, who has been growing indigenous shrubs from seeds in his Hawaii Kai backyard and outplanting them in a nearby wetland and on the campuses of Kaiser High School, where he is a senior, and Haha­ione Elementary School.

One of 18 conservation projects by high school students during the 2020-2021 Hawaii Youth Sustainability Challenge, an annual program founded in 2016 by Kupu and Kokua Hawai‘i Foundation, Lee’s seeding effort aims to help restore native forests and grasslands in Maunalua, the original name of Hawaii Kai.

There were a couple of shocks: First, “only 50% of the seeds germinated, partly because I had no idea what I was doing,” Lee said with a laugh.

But he persisted, knowing the two, drought-resistant shrubs he’d chosen, aweoweo and uhaloa, “are very slow growing at first and stay small and vulnerable for a long time, so you have to water very gently, otherwise they collapse.”

Next, when the survivors were halfway grown, “I crashed into a dilemma with pests: The leaves were shrivelling and getting yellow,” Lee said, “so I sprayed them with a soap solution but they lost all their leaves and were just bare stems.”

However, the hardy plants revived and were transferred to bigger pots until they were 6 months old and ready for replanting.

By then, they were a handful, standing 2 to 3 feet tall. “It was a real big hassle getting them into the car and driving them” to the planting sites, he said, sounding not unlike a suburban father hauling a posse of kids to school.

Other student projects included saving seeds from native plants; increasing the efficiency of solar panels through biomimicry of reflective flowers; eliminating invasive fish; monitoring water quality in streams; waste reduction; Korean natural farming; addressing food insecurity; and designing sustainable products.

In addition to Kaiser, participants came from Farrington, Kalani, Nanakuli, Castle, Kalaheo and Kapolei high schools, St. Andrew’s Priory, Kihei Charter School, Hawaii Technology Academy, Hawai‘i Preparatory Academy, Punahou School and an independent home school, all working virtually with teachers and community mentors.

Teams were awarded up to $1,000. In five years, the Youth Sustainability Challenge has disbursed a total $60,000 to 100 student projects.

For the first time, students received training in entrepreneurship and communications, and the program offered four community partner challenges asking students to help find creative solutions to environmental problems.

Lee chose a challenge from the Oahu Army Natural Resource Program, which needed more native plants to produce seeds for restoration work.

The Army provided seeds, Kupu Foundation provided $100 for soil and flower pots, the Army’s Kimberly Welch and Lee’s teacher Paul Balazs gave much-needed guidance, and his mother and friends donated moral support and muscle, he said.

They’ve planted 15 aweo­weo and nine uhaloa in the Kaiser High School garden’s native Hawaiian plant section, designed by Balazs, and four aweoweo each in Keawawa Wetland and at Hahaione Elementary School.

After presenting his project along with five other student teams at the virtual Hawaii Conservation Conference July 28, the supportive feedback he received helped boost his confidence and the desire to continue. Lee said he’s looking forward to receiving more seedlings soon.

Born in South Korea, the son of a diplomat, Lee grew up in different cities throughout the U.S. and Canada before his family moved to Honolulu three years ago.

“I think moving here played a big role in making me be able to pursue my passion in environmental science,” he said, adding the “deep meaning I found through the plants” also deepened his Hawaii roots.

For more information, visit hawaiiyouthsustain abilitychallenge.org.