Twelve-year-old Raiden Barrientos pledged Saturday to help clean the ocean.

“I’ve seen a bunch of trash in the ocean, how hurt animals can get, and how sick they can get,” he said. “I’ll try to clean up as much as I can to find microplastics and other things.”

Barrientos made his pledge at the Polynesian Voyaging Society’s community send-off for the voyaging canoe Hokule‘a before it is shipped to Alaska to embark on a four-year circumnavigation of the Pacific.

Members of the community gathered at the dock at the Marine Education Training Center on Sand Island to bid farewell to the Hokule‘a. Family and friends of the crew shared their well wishes for a safe voyage of 43,000 nautical miles.

“We might leave this dock tomorrow, but we’re not leaving home,” said the PVS President Nainoa Thompson. “We need to understand, home is the Earth and we all have kuleana to that Earth.”

The Hokule‘a is scheduled to be shipped to Alaska today, where it will begin the first leg of “Moananuiakea, a Voyage for Earth.” In August, the Hokule‘a will meet up with its sister canoe, the Hikianalia, in Seattle. Along with their 400-member crew, the two canoes will complete the 43,000 nautical-mile journey while visiting 36 countries and archipelagos, nearly 100 Indigenous territories and 345 ports along the way.

PVS also kicked off its #voyage4earth campaign Saturday, providing attendees with paper to write down the ways in which they pledge to better the Earth. Those who participated were encouraged to take a photo in front of the Hokule‘a holding their pledge, and post the photo on social media with the hashtag #voyage4earth.

Saturday’s send-off included an oli by Kaiwi Hamakua-Makue, one of the crew’s watch captains, that he said expressed the power of community, cooperation, cohesiveness and caring for one another and the canoes.

Gov. Josh Green gave a brief speech, expressing his gratitude for the voyagers, who he said will inspire younger generations.

“For 50 years now, Hokule‘a has been a symbol of our cultural pride and our values,” Green said. “It is what can bring us together, … in ways that I think almost nothing else can in our beautiful state.”

Ivee Cruz, a PVS volunteer, attended the event with her 4-year-old daughter, Nalini. As an educator, Cruz pledged to teach others more about taking care of the Earth, while Nalini pledged to pick up trash when she visits the beach or a park.

Colt Davis, 31, and Ellie Jones, 26, who both work in ocean science, decided to attend after being told about it by a friend. Jones said she would pledge to encourage people to live more sustainable, ocean- conscious lifestyles. Meanwhile, Davis, who was recently hired as a research diver, said he would pledge to bear in mind the impacts of his job as he continues to learn more about the ocean in his work.

As the crew members continue to prepare for their journey, Hamakue- Makue said he was especially grateful for those who have guided him to where he is now.

“I’ve learned how to really be able to work with a lot of different people,” he said, “and the biggest blessing for me is the people that I’ve been able to meet through this journey, and who I’ve become through it.”

Linsey Dower covers ethnic and cultural affairs and is a corps member of Report for America, a national service organization that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues and communities.