"When we say we are Hawaiian in the Hawaiian language we say, 'he Hawaii au,' which translates to 'I am Hawaii.' We don’t separate the person from the place, which is something that I’m very proud of. Without Hawaii, I don’t exist and without me, neither does Hawaii." Learn about Hawaiian surfer Cliff Kopono’s journey to protect his cultural heritage, as well as the ocean that surrounds his home near Hilo, Hawaii.

#UnitedStories #Hawaii #HiloHawaii #SurfingInHawaii #HawaiiBeaches
Discover more about things to do in Hawaii and experience surfing in the best places in Hawaii - https://www.visittheusa.com/experience/9-places-surf-hawaii

Follow #UnitedStories as Visit The USA travels the country in our mobile content creation labs in search of the people, places and experiences which define the American travel landscape.

✈ Follow Visit The USA on Twitter: http://Twitter.com/VisitTheUSA
✈ Like Visit The USA on Facebook: http://Facebook.com/VisitTheUSA
✈ Follow Visit The USA on Instagram: http://Instagram.com/VisitTheUSA

Subscribe and follow our YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/VisitTheUSA

Welcome to the official channel of United States tourism - Visit The USA - www.visittheusa.com

Our goal is to inspire people from around the world to explore all the exciting travel possibilities in the United States.