Congratulations to …

COS faculty, Dr. Masato Ishida, on his attainment of tenure and promotion to Associate Professor of Philosophy!

COS faculty, Dr. Mari J. Matsuda (see photo below), civil right leader and professor of law the Richardson School of Law at UHM, who was recently presented the Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund’s 2014 Justice in Action Award. The award was presented in New York City during the AALDEF’s 40th anniversary celebration, and is presented to individuals for their “exceptional achievements” and their efforts in “advancing social justice and human rights for all.” Matsuda is one of those responsible for the development of critical race theory and remains among its proponents.

Congratulations also go out to COS faculty, Dr. Kenneth Y. Kaneshiro who served on the Hawaii steering committee for the 2016 World Conservation Congress (WCC) for its successful bid. On May 21, 2014, the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) announced that Hawaii (USA) has been selected as the venue for the 2016 WCC. Eight countries submitted bids to host the 2016 WCC. Dr. Kaneshiro who is Director of the Center for Conservation Research & Training at the University of Hawaii at Manoa and a faculty member of the Center for Okinawan Studies, has and will continue to play a key role in the planning and organization of the congress. The IUCN is the world’s oldest and largest global environmental organization involving more than 160 countries worldwide and it sponsors the World Conservation Congress every 4 years. It is anticipated that more than 8,000 delegates from all over the world will attend the 2016 meetings in Hawaii to discuss, debate and decide on environmental and sustainability issues at the global scale. Ken says that the Congress will “put Hawaii on a ‘world stage’ and give us an opportunity to showcase the important work we are doing in the field of biodiversity conservation and sustainability of natural resources.”

Happy Retirement to COS faculty Dr. Nobuko Ochner on her well-earned retirement from the Department of East Asian Language and Literature.