Greetings, all,
Here are some updates from the UHM Sustainability Council community.
(1) Hawaii Storytellers: Food, farmers, fishponds, and friends
On Friday, February 25, Honolulu Civil Beat in partnership with UH West Oahu’s Sustainable Community Food Systems Program and Waiwai Collective will present a special evening of stories told by folks whose lives have been greatly influenced by Hawaii’s food systems. One of them is our very own Gabriel Sachter-Smith, who participated in UHMSC for many years and who led the SOFT (Sustainable and Organic Farm Training) program while he was a student at UHM.
For tickets and more info:
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/hawaii-storytellers-food-farmers-fishponds-and-friends-tickets-261502620377
(2) Student Intern needed for sea level rise community science project
The Hawaii and Pacific Islands King Tides Community Science Project (http://www.PacificIslandsKingTides.org) is looking for a Student Assistant. The Student Assistant will work as part of an innovative project to help communities understand and prepare for sea level rise and coastal hazards using citizen science. The Student Assistant will gain experience in data management and analysis, developing communication materials, and training community scientists.
For more details and to apply, go to https://sece.its.hawaii.edu/sece/login and search for job listing 245347. You can also contact Katy Hintzen (hintzen@hawaii.edu). Looks like a very cool opportunity for the right student!
(3) Report from SOFT: we’re growing and need your help!
Allison Fisher reports: Members of the Student Organic Farm Training (SOFT) club spent last semester planning, preparing, and executing two plant sales at the Magoon Research Station. Many of us were brought into the club through our classes or cohorts and had little previous experience in gardening or agriculture. Through our work, and with the help of our faculty coordinator, Eric Collier, we have gained plentiful knowledge about raising seedlings, marketing, and running a sale. Across our two sales in the fall, we sold about 300 plants to the community and earned over $600. After a slow start this semester due to online classes, we are hopeful to continue holding many plant sales through the spring. As of right now, there are only a handful of members and we would love to welcome anyone interested in getting hands-on experience or simply spending time out in the garden!
For more details, check out their Instagram @softhawaii and/or send them an email at soft@hawaii.edu
(4) TODAY at 3pm! Planning, design, and climate actions for renewable energy transitions
Please join the UH Mānoa Institute for Sustainability and Resilience for the final seminar in the APRU Sustainable Cities & Landscapes Live Webinar Series. Held today, Monday, February 7 at 3 p.m., this final session will be moderated by Professor Makena Coffman.
Abstract: Meeting the challenges of the climate crisis requires large-scale deployment of renewable energy sources; however, challenges emerge in terms of land use conflicts with local communities, biodiversity and critical habitats. This seminar motivates the importance of a rapid transition to net-zero greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, but also discusses some of the land use challenges along the way using case studies across the Asia-Pacific region.
For more information and to register:
https://apru.org/event/session-11-planning-design-and-climate-actions-for-renewable-energy-transitions-lessons-from-the-pacific-rim/
(5) Krista Hiser wins award for climate change blog!
Krista Hiser received an honorable mention for the John Lovas Award for an outstanding online project devoted largely to academic pursuits. Krista Hiser’s blog, “Teaching Climate Change Field Notes,” is part of a formal research study by the University of Hawaiʻi Office of Sustainability, which has been working to understand what faculty think, feel and do about teaching climate change in their classrooms.
For more information, see https://www.hawaii.edu/news/2022/01/28/teaching-climate-change-blog-recognition/. To congratulate Krista, email hiser@hawaii.edu
(5) Better use of indigenous plants
Shane Shimabukuro, an undergraduate majoring in exploratory business, is proposing a project to use indigenous plants such as the Lauhala tree to make things like paper masks, toilet paper, paper towels, and shoe protectors.
For more details and to get involved, contact Shane at yasuy@hawaii.edu.
(6) Recommendations for state carbon tax to reduce GHGs
Makena Coffman helped develop recommendations on how the State could adopt a carbon tax to reduce GHGs: https://files.hawaii.gov/tax/stats/trc/docs2022/Appendix_A.pdf
If you want to help lobby for the multiple carbon tax bills introduced during the current legislative session, this is a must read!
For more details, please contact Makena at makenaka@hawaii.edu.
(7) No Moola launches Movable Feast
Gaye Chan is helping to launch Movable Feast: Informational planters on edible weeds. Movable Feast is a part of WE(ED)S, Eating in Public’s ongoing “Sidewalk-to-Table” project on edible weeds. This project aims to upend the bad reputation of weeds. Many are edible, nutritious, and delicious. Many are medicinal, attract pollinators, and replenish depleted soil.
For more details, see https://nomoola.com/movable-feast/ and/or contact Gaye (gchan@hawaii.edu).
(8) Hixon on HCA Steering Committee
Mark Hixon now represents UH Mānoa on the Hawai‘i Conservation Alliance steering committee. He also serves on scientific advisory committees for the Hawai‘i Division of Aquatic Resources regarding issues that include coral-reef herbivore replenishment, coral restoration, marine managed areas, and artificial reefs. He is lead organizer of a new “Fish Pono—Save Our Reefs” public education campaign regarding the importance of conserving marine herbivores. He and UH colleagues recently published the idea of “Fish Flow” maps that follow fisheries from spawning to supper (https://www.hawaii.edu/news/2022/01/26/fish-flow-map-hawaii-island/).
For more details and to get involved, please contact Mark at hixonm@hawaii.edu.
(9) Experiment.com funds sustainability research projects
Cindy Wu wants to spread the word about funding opportunities through experiment.com for Hawaiʻi scientists working on sustainability research, with a particular interest in ideas too small, too new, or too controversial for traditional funding agencies. They have secured $300,000 to distribute to sustainability research projects. The funds are distributed on a first-come, first-serve basis. Apply online at https://experiment.com/grants.
One of their “science angels” is Hawaii’s own Keolu Fox. Keolu has already started distributing money to local scientists studying ʻopihi, corals, and ʻamaʻama. (https://experiment.com/grants/if)
For more details, contact Cindy at cindy@jellypbc.com. (She only reads email on Thursdays, so please be patient!)
(10) PI-CASC Surf 2022
The Pacific Islands Climate Adaptation Science Center (PI-CASC) is welcoming applications for its 2022 Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF). The program is designed to provide interested undergraduates the opportunity to gain valuable research experience and climate science knowledge by completing 10-weeks of research on a climate project with a university faculty mentor at UH Mānoa, UH Hilo, or the University of Guam. Supported by a $6000 stipend, the student will also attend two professional development workshops and present their work at a final symposium.
For more details about the program and applying, please go to:
https://pi-casc.soest.hawaii.edu/about/surf/
That’s it for now! Thanks for all the great work that you are doing!