International Archaeological Research Institute, Inc.

International Archaeological Research Institute, Inc. (IARII), is a private non‑profit corporation, based in Honolulu and Guam, that has conducted archaeological investigations throughout the Pacific-Asia region since 1986. The company has completed nearly 1,000 historic preservation and research projects of almost every size and type over a vast geographic region. IARII has a special connection to Kalaeloa due to the research its staff conducted in the area during the 1990s, led by Senior Archaeologist Dave Tuggle. This work included a cultural resources inventory of what was at the time the Naval Air Station (NAS) Barbers Point, an area that includes the Kalaeloa Heritage Park (KHP). The cultural resource inventory of NAS Barbers Point conducted prior to the base closure identified numerous sites associated with traditional Hawaiian occupation, including over 50 archaeological features at KHP Site 1753. The park’s interpretive plan for Site 1753 and the site tour are the result of IARII’s survey and the cultural interpretations of the former University of Hawaiʻi­-Mānoa Ethnic Studies Professor Rubellite Johnson. Twelve of the identified archaeological features are highlighted in the interpretive tour. The cultural resources at Kalaeloa contribute to the knowledge of the Hawaiian history of the ‘Ewa Plain, including information on the human role in landscape change and the nature of the adaptation of Hawaiians to the arid region. Today IARII archaeologists volunteer to help maintain the KHP site, a partnership that will hopefully expand beyond the monthly community service days, to include further archaeological investigations of this important cultural heritage site.