December 7, 2022

EP. 294 — What’s The Cold, Hard Truth About Ice In Hawaiʻi? with Hiʻilei Julia Kawehipuaakahaopulani Hobart

In the mid-1800s, Americans shipped ice to Hawaiʻi in the hopes that there would be a market for it. There wasn’t. So how did ice—in the form of cocktails, ice cream, shave ice, and beyond—become lodged in Hawaiʻi’s foodscape? This week, Professor Hiʻilei Julia Kawehipuaakahaopulani Hobart joins Jonathan to discuss the social history of ice and refrigeration in Hawaiʻi—and what this history reveals about colonial relationships to the tropics.

Hiʻilei Julia Kawehipuaakahaopulani Hobart (Kanaka Maoli) is Assistant Professor of Native and Indigenous Studies at Yale University. An interdisciplinary scholar, she researches and teaches on issues of settler colonialism, environment, and Indigenous sovereignty. Her first book, Cooling the Tropics: Ice, Indigeneity, and Hawaiian Refreshment is published by Duke University Press.

You can follow Professor Hobart on Twitter @hiokinai. The first edition of Cooling the Tropics will feature a rainbow iridescent cover, so be sure to pick up a copy before they’re sold out!

Follow us on Instagram and Twitter @CuriousWithJVN to join the conversation.

Jonathan is on Instagram and Twitter @JVN and @Jonathan.Vanness on Facebook.

Transcripts for each episode are available at JonathanVanNess.com.

Our executive producer is Erica Getto. Our associate producer is Zahra Crim. Our editor is Andrew Carson.

Our theme music is “Freak” by QUIÑ; for more, head to TheQuinCat.com.

Transcript

JVN [00:00:00] Welcome to Getting Curious. I’m Jonathan Van Ness and every week I sit down for a gorgeous conversation with a brilliant expert to learn all about something that makes me curious. This episode, y’all, is so freaking amazing. It’s so good, it’s on the most interesting topic ever. Ah! On today’s episode, I’m joined by Hiʻilei Julia Kaweipuaakahaopulani Hobart, where I ask her: What’s the cold, hard truth about ice in Hawaiʻi? Welcome to Getting Curious. Have we got an exciting episode for you, honey. Today we are taking a cold, hard look at how ice became embedded within Hawaiʻi’s foodscape and what this history reveals about colonial relationships to the tropics. So let’s welcome to the show our guest, Hiʻilei Julia Hobart, who is an Assistant Professor of Native and Indigenous Studies at Yale University. An interdisciplinary scholar, she researches and teaches on issues of settler colonialism, environment, and Ind

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