Axel Defngin and Franki Guerrero Center Micronesian Island Wisdom and Sustainability at the Guam Mini Regatta

 

Centering Island Wisdom & Sustainability: A STEMAP Reflection on the UOG Island Wisdom Mini Regatta in Piti, Guåhan

Planning for the University of Guam (UOG) Island Wisdom Mini Regatta began in August 2025, in pwo navigator Larry Raigetal's office at the UOG Micronesian Area Research Center (MARC). We had come to him looking for a STEM Ambassadors Program (STEMAP) project idea grounded in reciprocity with the community. What he shared was bigger than we expected: a long-held vision for a Micronesia-wide voyaging cup, starting from Guåhan and sailing to Saipan and back, rooted in the living tradition of Pacific and Micronesian wayfinding. The Mini Regatta, he explained, could be a first step toward that.

Also already in progress was the Pugof of Guåhan, a 32-point ecological mapping system developed by UOG Island Wisdom students, grounded in Micronesian navigational knowledge, and CHamoru and Refaluwasch languages. Gifting the Pugof to the Guam Department of Education (GDOE) became the heart of the project's reciprocity component a way of revitalizing Indigenous STEM knowledge in Guam’s public K-12 school system. The pugof would be utilized by Guam students and educators alike.

From that first meeting, a planning committee formed and grew. What was initially intended to be a standalone Mini Regatta with Marcial A. Sablan Elementary School eventually joined the larger I Rikesan i Tåsi Festival organized by the Piti Mayor's Office, which shared our core commitment to centering ocean culture and hands-on learning.

 

Super Typhoon Sinlaku, and Starting Over Anew

The event was originally scheduled for April 18 and 19, 2026 until the advent of Super Typhoon Sinlaku. Storm surges pushed inland into Pedro Santos Memorial Park, destroying the UOG Island Wisdom Guma' Sigouru canoe house and knocking out power, water, and telecommunications across the island. We postponed to May 30 and 31.

Looking back, the committee response to this ordeal modeled island resilience and sustainability in the face of an ever-changing climate and early typhoon season. Everyone adapted to the situation. The island and community rebuilt, meetings continued, and the event went on. As one Pacific seafaring proverb states, “We cannot control the direction of the wind, but we can adjust our sail to reach our destination”.

 

Saturday, May 30 - Three Pillars

More than 200 students and teachers from Guam's WAVE (Welcoming All Visitors Enthusiastically) club came to Pedro Santos Memorial Park on Saturday. Students rotated through three cultural stations, staffed primarily by members of the Lamotrek Community of Guam, each representing a pillar of Indigenous Micronesian knowledge. These day-long sessions on May 30-31 were also made available to the general public/community.

At the Seafaring Canopy, students engaged with rope making, wood carving, and two seafaring vessels: Raigetal’s wa (Micronesian outrigger sailing canoe), and Keith Quintanilla’s fiberglass CHamoru sakman (flying proa). The Weaving Canopy brought the presence of lavalavas made by backstrap loom weaving, mat and basket work, coconut frond weaving, and mwarmwar/lei-making. At the Traditional Foodways Canopy, students learned coconut oil- and coconut candy-making alongside traditional voyaging food preparation.

Earlier on, pre-regatta outreach visits were made directly to José Rios Middle School (JRMS), and Marcial A. Sablan Elementary School (MASES); and Chief Hurao Academy also brought 100+ students to the park for a dedicated pre-regatta outreach event, bringing the total number of outreached K-12 students to 320+ across multiple schools.

 

Sunday, May 31 - The Mini Regatta

José Rios Middle School (6 students and 2 teachers) and Marcial A. Sablan Elementary School (5 students and 2 teachers) launched their canoes, assembled by UOG Island Wisdom students and hand-designed by the K-12 student racers themselves, into the channel behind the festival main stage.

Nico Borja from Marcial A. Sablan Elementary School won the morning regatta. Aebrielle Artates from José Rios Middle School won the design challenge. All students received certificates of participation, and awardees received cash prizes sponsored by the Piti Mayor's Office.

The ceremony closed with UOG Island Wisdom Council member Monique Carriveau Storie presenting two Pugof boards, hand-carved, crafted and designed by UOG Island Wisdom students, to the Guam Department of Education. GDOE Deputy Superintendent of Curriculum and Instruction Rizalina M. Liwag, accepted the gift at the ceremony on behalf of Superintendent Judith Won Pat and the GDOE.

 

What We Took With Us

As a CHamoru from the village of Piti, it was an incredible honor to assist Master Navigator Larry Raigetal alongside Axel with Guam's first Mini Regatta Sea Farring activity. Seeing local students participate and learn how our ancestors navigated the ocean using traditional knowledge was both inspiring and meaningful. Being part of Piti's first festival made the experience even more special, and I hope this event continues to grow each year, with more schools choosing to participate. I also hope future generations—including my own children, nieces, and nephews—will have the opportunity to experience activities like this, not only through community festivals but also as part of what is taught in our schools.

-Franki

For both of us, this project was a reconfirmation that Indigenous knowledge is valid STEM in all its forms: that the Pugof is navigation science, the canoe is marine engineering, and the voyaging food traditions are ecology and chemistry.

Enough thanks cannot be given in this brief article to the hands, hours, and hearts that went into this collaborative effort. We are grateful to every school and community partner, to the Lamotrek Community of Guam, Humanities Guåhan, and especially to the entire planning committee including Larry Raigetal, all of whom whose work, patience, and vision made this occasion possible.

 

Preserving and passing on our traditional Micronesian knowledge is something I believe is important, and events like the Mini Regatta help keep that legacy alive.

-Franki

 

Si Yu'os Ma'åse'.

 

Planning Committee:Larry Raigetal, Melissa Taitano, Jasmine Stole, Annie Fay Camacho, Cindy Villagomez, Nedine F. Songeni, Maya Nanpei Taitano, Franki Gianna G. Guerrero, Axel J. Defngin

Community Friends & Partners:Land of Pedro Santos Memorial Park, Village of Piti · UOG Island Wisdom · NSF Navigating Home, UOG Center for Island Sustainability & Sea Grant · STEM Ambassadors Program, University of Utah · Humanities Guåhan · Marcial A. Sablan Elementary School · Lamotrek Community of Guam · Guam Department of Education · José Rios Middle School · Chief Hurao Academy · WAVE Club of Guam · Gi Matan Guma' · UOG Chuuk Student Organization · Fin Wenimetaw · Yapese Community of Guam · Guam Green Growth Conservation Corps · Science Communication Team, UOG CIS & Sea Grant · UOG Residence Halls · Adztech · Piti Mayor's Office

Sponsors:STEM Ambassadors Program, University of Utah via NSF Navigating Home, UOG CIS & Sea Grant · By the People: Conversations Beyond 250 initiative, Smithsonian Center for Folklife & Cultural Heritage and the Federation of State Humanities Councils via Humanities Guåhan · Matson Navigation Company · Piti Mayor's Office