Who We Are

AHAS: Archive for Health, Arts & Spirit came together and realized the need for long-term recovery work in Hawaii and the world after the fires in Lahaina in August 2023. AHAS seeks to understand how the arts, health and spirituality can foster resilience and recovery in the face of adversity. Utilizing the arts for healing helps individuals process trauma and promote emotional well-being. Creative outlets like poetry, music, and visual arts connect individuals to the transcendent, providing solace and renewal. Spirituality, beyond traditional religious contexts, shapes responses to crises through practices like meditation, nature exploration, and self-reflection. Despite their acknowledged importance, the combined impact of spirituality and artistic practices on healing during crises remains underexplored. AHAS aims to fill this gap by investigating how these elements work together to enhance recovery, drawing on the concept of social prescription to integrate arts and spirituality into health practices.