Hinano tells the story of Ru and Hina at the UN

Hinano Murphy, Tetiaroa Society's Cultural Director, was honored to be invited to the United Nations for the UN World Oceans Day Symposium on June 7th. Hinano was invited as a storyteller to open the day-long symposium with a legend from Polynesia that would focus the upcoming presentations and discussions under the theme Gender and the Oceans. Hinano spoke of Ru and Hina, brother and sister Polynesian deities, that are part of an important creation myth that tells the story of them discovering the island homeland Hawaiki. Usually the story is told from Ru's point of view, but Hinano highlighted the actions of Hina which are critical and show the role of women in creating our future relations with the ocean. Her performance garnered a standing ovation from the attendees and was a wonderful start to an important day of dialog.