Maluhia Kinimaka

Maluhiahali’iokauaiepilialoha Kinimaka, known affectionately as Maluhia, grew up on the east coast of Kaua’i in the Anahola Hawaiian Homesteads. As the eldest daughter of big wave surfing legend, Titus Kinimaka, Maluhia was raised amongst some of Hawaii’s finest water-men, hula masters, and musicians. Preserving Hawaiian heritage, language, environment, and way of life has been, and will always be, imperative to her.

At the age of four, Maluhia began surfing and developed a deep passion for her ancestral practice. She would go on to qualify for the Hawaii Junior Olympic Surf Team at the age of 11, as well as winning State and National Championship titles for herself before the age of 16. Maluhia’s mother is a small-business owner and former school teacher, and was very insistent that she also pursue her academic gifts. At the age of 17, Maluhia was accepted to Stanford University on full academic scholarship, where she would go on to graduate in 2018 with a degree in Atmosphere and Energy Engineering.

Since then, Maluhia has worked at a Kauai-based architecture firm, Design Concepts Hawaii, creating residential homes with an emphasis on sustainable development. Simultaneously, Maluhia has been balancing her professional surfing career with Roxy and Reef, two of the industry’s largest corporations. She is currently ranked at number 9 on the World Surf League’s Women’s qualifying series in Hawaii, and is applying to start her PhD next year while continuing to advance her professional surfing career. Maluhia hopes to honor the resilience of her ancestors by giving back to her island community, and to perpetuate her cultural practices of surfing and environmental stewardship with integrity for future generations to come.