The O‘ahu island-based team stands outside the Cultural Resources Office at Schofield Barracks. Photo credit: USAG Hawai‘i BY JODI PETERSON
The 2025 Secretary of the Army Environmental Awards have been announced — and CSU’s Center for Environmental Management of Military Lands won top honors. CEMML professionals and U.S. Army staffers have worked together for several years to preserve archaeological and historical sites on bases located on the islands of Hawaiʻi and Oʻahu. Now, their joint efforts have earned them the Environmental Award for Cultural Resources Management (individual/team category).
“The Environmental Awards are the Army’s highest honor for outstanding environmental stewardship and leadership and are presented to those individuals, teams, and installations on the forefront of the Army’s effort to protect human health and safety and provide support to our warfighting readiness mission,” wrote the Army’s Director for Environmental Quality and Army Federal Preservation Officer, Dr. David Guldenzopf, in a letter congratulating the team.
The cultural resource team at U.S. Army Garrison Hawaiʻi was recognized for its dedication, hard work, and professionalism. The team was especially lauded for its careful stewardship of cultural resources and its thoughtful responses to input from Native Hawaiian partners, noted team leader Dave Crowley, cultural resources manager.
Good rapport and open communication with local communities are key to the team’s management of historical and archaeological resources across 170,000 acres on 22 Army installations. Combined, these installations host more than 2,000 historic buildings, eight historic districts and landmarks, over 1,800 archaeological sites, and at least 10,000 artifacts. Despite severe understaffing, team members successfully completed dozens of major projects during the award period (October 1, 2022 through September 30, 2024).
Following are a few examples of the work they undertook: planned an upgrade of Army officer quarters in the Palm Circle National Historic Landmark District that preserved the historic character and significance of buildings; consulted with Native Hawaiians about the management of cultural sites and artifacts; provided safe access for traditional cultural practitioners to visit culturally important sites; implemented innovative digital imagery to provide virtual access to those sites for elders unable to physically visit them; upgraded the curation and storage of all collections and records; and developed a cultural resources awareness video for soldiers.
In a congratulatory message, Crowley wrote, “You are the finest group of cultural resources professionals I have ever had the honor and the privilege to work with. Thank you for making the USAG Hawaiʻi Cultural Resources team the greatest in the Nation!”
That’s no small feat, given the rich and complex archaeology of the Hawaiian Islands, which spans thousands of years, along with the challenges of navigating multiple jurisdictions and conducting fieldwork in areas that might contain munitions, unexploded ordnance, and radioactive substances.
When unexpected discoveries occur during training or field activities, anything from ancient pieces of coconut twine to iwi kūpuna (ancestral remains), the cultural resources team documents those finds and ensures they are handled appropriately and respectfully. The mission of the Army is training troops to be combat ready; cultural resources management helps them do so while maintaining federal standards and complying with legal requirements.
Mitigating potential impacts of military action and protecting sites and artifacts is another key part of the cultural resource team’s work. For example, sensitive areas on training ranges, such as petroglyphs, are marked with signage and shielded with sandbags, earthen mounds, or steel ballistic panels.
“This award gave our team a real feeling of jubilation,” said Ana Tejeda-Pelkey, a CEMML archaeology program manager at Pōhakuloa Training Area, “just knowing that we have been recognized for our dedication and teamwork. It also shows how well CEMML staff is doing at providing support to the military through cultural resources management. This award sets the standard for what we want to uphold going forward.”