The taro patch is the mother of our life

Early in the morning, before the sun gets too hot, a woman steps into her taro patch. Her feet sink gently into the cool, muddy ground. As she stands, she feels secure knowing she’s planting for the future of her family and for her community. In Palau, this place has a name: mesei. But it is more than a garden.

Palauans say, “A mesei a delal a telid” (The taro patch is the mother of our life). And when you stand here, you understand why.

Taro feeds the family and community. When there is taro in the house and the community is actively cultivating the taro gardens, people know they will not go hungry. A healthy taro patch means a healthy family and healthy community.

Across Palau, the Federated States of Micronesia, and the Marshall Islands, women's groups are working to restore taro patches and take care of the resources they provide. Through the Kiwa Initiative Women's Work project, these efforts are supported by local governments and partners, alongside The Nature Conservancy in the Pacific and the Micronesia Conservation Trust, bringing together community knowledge and technical expertise to implement nature-based solutions rooted in tradition.

For generations, women have cared for taro patches. The work takes skill, patience, and deep ecological and traditional knowledge – knowing when to plant, how to manage the water system, and how to keep the soil healthy. Because of this, taro patches belong to women, and a woman’s knowledge of her mesei has always been a source of respect.

When a woman cares for taro, she is caring for more than a crop – she is nurturing her family, sustaining her community, and protecting the future of her land.

Taro is present in every important moment of life. It is shared to welcome new life, to unite families in celebration, and to honor those who have passed.  To give taro is more than a gesture – it is a statement: I honor you. I remember where we come from. And I will carry this forward.

The taro patch does more than provide food – it protects the land. Water moves through it slowly, helping keep rivers clean and mangroves healthy. What happens in the taro patch reaches far beyond it, shaping the ocean, the fish, and the reefs. Long before people used words like “climate resilience,” Palauan communities were already living it.

But climate change, saltwater inundation, and shifting weather patterns are making it harder to grow taro in some places. When taro patches are damaged or abandoned, the loss goes beyond food – knowledge fades, stories are lost, and connections between generations begin to weaken.

That is why many women continue to teach their daughters, and many communities are working to protect taro patches, not just as farms and gardens – but as living culture.

Because taro is not just a crop.

• It is care.
• It is identity.
• It is a reminder that strength comes from the land – and from the women who have always cared for it.