Download - SHYLI Job Shadow Day 2014
Sustainable Hawaii Youth Leadership Initiative
2nd
Annual Job Shadow Day • 2014 January 31 • 9 a.m. - 4 p.m.
We would like to invite to be a mentor to a young person for a day. Followed by reception with youth and their mentors-for-the-day so they can share their experiences.
Our goal is to give youth a positive experience of the world of work, promote a good work ethic, and develop
longer-lasting relationships that contribute to the global economy. SHYLI’s Job Shadow Day helps translate
youth passion with practical experience in the job market and the world of work. SHYLI’s parent organization,
the Stone Soup Leadership Institute has been organizing Job Shadow Day on other islands for many years.
We’ve discovered this one-day really helps them focus them. It’s a good investment in their future and ours.
• Mickie Hirata: Dr. Dora Nakafuji, Renewable Energies Hawaii Electric Company & Oceanit’s Ibis
• Alex Siordia: Representative Cindy Evans at Hawaii State Capitol, Oahu
• KaMele Sanchez: Richard Ha, Hamakua Springs Country Farm, Hilo
• Bethany Anderson: Dr. Lei Imaino-Hata, Aloha Veterinarian Center, Hilo
• Sherry Anne Pancho: Linda Connelly/Aaron Jacobs, Univ Hawaii Hilo, Daniel Inouye College of Pharmacy
• Daniel Forsythe: Lāna’i Aquaponics Commercial System and Mari’s Garden Network, Oahu
• Lucy Gaceta: David Palumbo, Sustainable Landscaping, Pulama Lana’i LLC
Matt Gonser/Dolan Eversole UH Sea Grant College Program/ School of Ocean, Earth Science and Technology
The National Groundhog Job Shadow Day, a national campaign gives young people a new perspective on
their studies through hands-on learning and a one-day mentoring experience. It is a joint effort of America's
Promise - Alliance for Youth, Junior Achievement, and the U.S. Department of Labor. Nationwide, more than
one million students and 100,000 businesses participate, and last year, more than 2,000 restaurants and hotels
hosted nearly 20,000 students.
Our Mission and Outcomes: The Sustainable Hawaii Youth Leadership Initiative’s mission is to train young
people to become leaders of a more sustainable world. Hawaii youth serve as youth delegates to the Youth
Leadership Summit which lays the foundation for the year-round Fellowship Program where they receive the
Institute’s state-of-the-art leadership tools and ongoing leadership training. Using the Institute’s
educational curriculum, SHYLI focuses on STEM-Sustainability. By participating in SHYLI’s Job Shadow
Day, they receive mentoring and first-hand experience about jobs in their fields of interest. In the Institute’s
College Prep & Portfolio Presentation Program, youth learn about career pathways to 21st century – and
green – jobs. They receive training in writing, public speaking and presentation skills. Youth custom-design
projects that match their dreams for their island to develop Sustainability-In-Action Projects. They practice
their leadership skills by participating in community service programs and events to showcase their projects. SHYLI’s Youth Leadership Forum brought together Hawaii’s leaders with SHYLI youth sharing their
vision for a more sustainable Island. http://shyli.org/youth-leadership-forum
Sustainable Hawaii Youth Leadership Initiative P.O. Box 722, Honoka’a, HI 96727
P.O. Box 1235, Kailua-Kona, HI 96745
P.O. Box 631669 Lanai City, HI, 96763
www.shyli.org
Hawaii’s Youth Shadow State Leaders
Last Friday youth from Lanai and Big Island ventured to Oahu to learn first-hand about being a leader in today’s
world. The national Job Shadow Day was organized locally by the Sustainable Hawaii Youth Leadership Initiative.
Oceanit hosted a reception where youth shared their life-changing experiences with business, government and
academic leaders. As recipients of the Corporate STEM Award Oceanit, is invested in the development of our
future leaders.
Hawaiian Electric was one of the Job Shadow Day partners. 17-year old Mickie Hirata shadowed , Dr. Dora
Nakafuji, Director of Renewable Energy. “Mickie showed exceptional poise and interest in sharing her
Sustainability-In-Action Project with us using the IBIS Intellisockets,” said Dr. Nakafuji. “It was both exciting and
inspiring to hear how she understood the value of gathering data and using it to help people learn about energy
use. By being more informed, people can make smarter more sustainable choices.“ After her adventure at HECO,
Mickie visited Oceanit’s corporate headquarters and met the IBIS team. “It was great to meet those who’ve
developed the programming, designing, project planning, business, assembling and even invented the
Intellisockets!” says Mickie. “I had no idea how new this company was and how special I was to be their first
experiment! It was incredible to see them upgrading their top-secret blueprints.”
Representative Cindy Evans recognized Alex Siordia from the floor of the State Capitol. An HPA student on a full
scholarship, Alex is on deferred to Harvard University. With his inspiring College Prep Workshops Alex
encourages public school students to pursue their dreams through vocational schools, community colleges or
universities. "Alex is Hawaii's future and I encourage him to follow his dream of being a lawmaker and making
decisions that will benefit the people of Hawai'i Island and the State of Hawai'i,” says Rep. Evans.
SHYLI youth on the Big Island shadowed business leader, biomedical professors, and veterinarian in Hilo. When
Mayor Billy Kenoi called business leader Richard Ha for a last-minute meeting, Ha decided to bring youth KaMele
Sanchez with him. After all he had promised KaMele last month during SHYLI’s site visit to his Hamakua
Country Springs Farm that she could shadow him. The reception was simultaneously video conferenced to the
University of Hawaii Hilo Chancellor’s offices where SHYLI youth Sherry Anne Pancho and Bethany Anderson
shared their experiences with mentor Dr. Aaron Jacobs and UH faculty. “It's no secret that our world is facing
some major challenges in the coming decades,” said SHYLI project coordinator Katie Schwind. “These challenges
will take engaged, creative, individuals from our coming generations to take the reigns of change and find solutions
for islands. Hawaii, and many rural and island areas, commonly struggle to limit the brain drain when there are
limited economic opportunities available. SHYLI works with active young people who have been nominated by
community members who recognize their potential to be change makers in their future.”
Lucy Gaceta traveled from Lana’i Island to UH’s Sea Grant College Program. Ernest Nishizaki, Sheraton Hawaii
Bowl Foundation Chairman was impressed when he met Lucy at their annual presentation during the game’s half
time festivities. Thanks to Lucy’s inquisitiveness about sustainability projects, he offered to introduce her to
Director Gordon Grau. A month later, she shadowed UH Sea Grant extension agents: Matt Gonser and Dolan
Eversole. Thanks to Island Air and to Mr. Nishizaki, Lucy stayed in her first hotel – on the 19th floor of the
Princess Kaiulani Hotel with SHYLI’s Executive Director, Marianne Larned.
Oceanit’s Vice President Ian Kitajima was impressed last year after attending SHYLI’s Youth & Community
Forum on the Big Island. He invited SHYLI’s Executive Director Marianne Larned to bring it to Oahu and partner
with Design Thinking Hawaii. The Design Sustainable Hawaii Forum will be held at Windward Community
College on April 4. At the Forum, SHYLI youth and sustainable business leaders from Oahu, Maui, Kauai,
Hawaii, and Lanai will share their vision and passion for a brighter Hawaii and develop unique public-private
partnerships and implement innovative sustainability projects throughout Hawaii. “Hawaii is in urgent need of new
leadership, innovative thinking, action-oriented and collaborative people who can work together, especially on
sustainability initiatives that benefit everyone,” says Kitajima.
“SHYLI is developing future leaders who are grounded in Hawaii's values/culture with a critical knowledge base,
systems thinking, engagement, leadership, and, now, Design Thinking,” Kainoa Casco, Chief Responsibility
Officer, SustyPacific. “By creating unique leadership and learning opportunities for students, SHYLI is helping
reverse Hawaii's brain drain and positively influencing our collective future.”
KaMele Sanchez will join Mr. Ha at the Design Sustainable Hawaii Forum. “ Whether the topic be agriculture,
food production, genetics, or energy I plan to have a voice in deciding what are the best choices for our Island's
future.” “This high level program for exceptional local kids, from humble means, deserves our support,” says Ha.
“I've spent my entire 35-year career positioning our farm to be relevant for the future. When I see SHYLI youth I
see Hawaii's future. We must invest in and nurture them. And, we must do it now!”
For more information and register for the Design Sustainable Hawaii Forum: [email protected]
############################
About National Job Shadow Day
The National (Groundhog) Job Shadow Day, a national campaign gives young people a new perspective on their
studies through hands-on learning and a one-day mentoring experience. It gives youth a positive experience of the
world of work, promote a good work ethic, and develop longer-lasting relationships that contribute to the global
economy. It is a joint effort of America's Promise - Alliance for Youth, Junior Achievement, and the U.S.
Department of Labor. Nationwide, more than one million students and 100,000 businesses participate, and more
than 2,000 restaurants and hotels hosted nearly 20,000 students. Young people are matched with businesses and
professionals so they have first-hand experience about jobs in their fields of interest. Job Shadow Day helps
translate youth passion with practical experience for careers of the future.
About Sustainable Hawaii Youth Leadership Initiative (SHYLI)
Through intensive year-round fellowships, the Sustainable Hawaii Youth Leadership Initiative is training young
people with promise to become leaders, initiators of change, who may leave for periods to gain academic and life
experience, and return to create opportunities for themselves and their Island communities. SHYLI targets these
youth as fellows, and in our experience, many of the connections they gain throughout the sustainability
community, through Job Shadow Day, the Youth & Community Leadership Forum, their Sustainability-In-Action
project development, their presentations to schools, organizations, businesses greatly benefit everyone – now and in
the future. SHYLI is a project of the Stone Soup Leadership Institute has been organizing Job Shadow Day on
islands for ten years. Founded on the island of Martha’s Vineyard in 1997, the Institute’s trains young and
emerging leaders on Islands. The Institute’s multifaceted educational curriculum, Stone Soup for the World: Life-
Changing Stories of Everyday Heroes spotlights 100 heroes who changed their lives by helping their communities.
It’s programs foster service learning, entrepreneurship, STEM-thinking, eco-tourism, workforce development,
community engagement, global exchanges for best practices of island sustainability. SHYLI is especially
committed to helping to build a local green workforce.
SHYLI is thankful to all its sponsors and supporters, especially Oceanit, Island Airlines, Go Airlines,
Mokulele Airlines and Sheraton Ky-oya Company LLC.
Sustainable Hawaii Youth Leadership Initiative • [email protected] • www.shyli.org
Big Island leaders host youth on Job Shadow Day
February 19, 2014
Last Friday (Feb 14) Big Island youth ventured from the Mayor’s offices in Hilo to the State Capitol on Oahu for Job
Shadow Day. A national event, it was organized locally by the Sustainable Hawaii Youth Leadership Initiative (SHYLI).
When Mayor Billy Kenoi called business leader Richard Ha for a last-minute meeting, Ha decided to bring youth KaMele
Sanchez with him. After all he had promised KaMele last month during SHYLI’s site visit to his Hamakua Country
Springs Farm that she could shadow him. He had been impressed with her Sustainability-In-Action Project on
hydroponics. With her SHYLI partner, Sherry Anne Pancho they trained 96 third graders at the Waimea Elementary
School to create their own hydroponics. “KaMele is a very special young person,” says Ha. “We hit the ground running.”
From Bruce Matthews to Dr. Shintaku’s lab projects on taro blight disease and the genetic mapping of kalo to Bruce
Mathews and then Maria Haws’ tour of the UH Aquaculture Site at Bayfront. KaMele was impressed saying, “The farm is
extremely self-sustained, culturing their own algae, spawning their own oysters, and raising and selling them for profit.”
From learning about Jeff Melrose’s report on Hawaii County’s Food Self-Sufficiency Baseline to talking with
representatives of the Philippines delegation with Ha to study geothermal production. “I for one, like to talk, and all of
these folks did too!” says KaMele. “It wasn’t everyday talk-story. It was about real problems happening now — serious
topics and the scientific, practical, and economical stand points. I loved it!”
The highlight of KaMele’s day was meeting Billy Kenoi. “The Mayor gave me an inspirational talk, local-style,” says the
Honoka’a High School junior. “’No scaid ‘em!” — it’s the best catchphrase ever!”
For Job Shadow Day Sherry Anne Pancho shadowed Dr. Linda Connelly and Dr. Aaron Jacobs, professors at the Daniel
Inouye College of Pharmacy, University of Hawaii Hilo. Dr. Jacobs says, “We are very impressed with Sherry Anne and
SHYLI’s efforts to provide Hawaii’s students with firsthand experiences in potential career paths and believe this is a
valuable investment in the sustainability of our future workforce.”
Waiakea High School sophomore Bethany Anderson shadowed Dr. Lei Imaino-Hata at the Aloha Veterinarian Center in
Hilo. For the last six months, Bethany has partnered with Rainbow Friends to host six spay and neuter clinics for 300 cats.
Waimea youth Alex Siordia shadowed Representative Cindy Evans where she recognized him the floor of the State
Capitol. An HPA student, Alex’s Sustainability-In-Action Project is coordinating College Prep Workshops to encourage
public school students to pursue their dreams through vocational schools, community colleges or universities. “Alex is
Hawaii’s future and I encourage him to follow his dream of being a lawmaker and making decisions that will benefit the
people of Hawai’i Island and the State of Hawai’i,” says Rep. Evans.
Waimea youth Mickie Hirata also traveled to Oahu to shadow Dr. Dora Nakafuji, Director of Renewable Energy at
Hawaiian Electric. “Mickie showed exceptional poise and interest in sharing her Sustainability-In-Action Project with us
using the IBIS Intellisockets,” said Dr. Nakafuji. “It was both exciting and inspiring to hear how she understood the value
of gathering data and using it to help people learn about energy use. By being more informed, people can make smarter
more sustainable choices.“
After her adventure at HECO, Mickie visited Oceanit’s corporate headquarters and met the IBIS team. “It was great to
meet those who’ve developed the programming, designing, project planning, business, assembling and even invented the
Intellisockets!” says Mickie. “I had no idea how new this company was and how special I was to be their first experiment!
It was incredible to see them upgrading their top-secret blueprints.”
Alex and Mickie attended a reception hosted by Oceanit on Oahu where they shared their life-changing experiences with
business, government and academic leaders. SHYLI youth Lucy Gaceta also traveled from Lana’i. As recipients of the
Corporate STEM Award Oceanit, is invested in the development of our future leaders. The reception was simultaneously
video conferenced to the University of Hawaii Hilo Chancellor’s offices where SHYLI youth and their mentors shared
their experiences with Matthew Platz, Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs, Steve Colbert, Marine Science, Pat Hart,
Biology, Bruce Mathews, Agriculture, and Farrah Gomes from North Hawaii Education and Research Center. “As UH
Hilo moves towards providing an applied learning experience for every student,” says Chancellor Don Straney, “we are
excited to be working with partners like SHYLI to prepare the young people of Hawai’i for a productive future for
themselves, our island and our state.”
“It’s no secret that our world is facing some major challenges in the coming decades,” says SHYLI project coordinator
Katie Schwind. “These challenges will take engaged, creative, individuals from our coming generations to take the reigns
of change and find solutions for islands. Hawaii, and many rural and island areas, commonly struggle to limit the brain
drain when there are limited economic opportunities available. SHYLI works with active young people who have been
nominated by community members who recognize their potential to be change makers in their future.”
After attending SHYLI’s Youth & Community Forum in Waimea, Oceanit’s Vice President Ian Kitajima invited SHYLI’s
Executive Director Marianne Larned to bring it to Oahu and partner with Design Thinking Hawaii. The Design
Sustainable Hawaii Forum will be held at Windward Community College on April 4. At the Forum, SHYLI youth and
sustainable business leaders from Oahu, Maui, Kauai, Hawaii, and Lanai will share their vision and passion for a brighter
Hawaii and develop unique public-private partnerships and implement innovative sustainability projects throughout
Hawaii. “Hawaii is in urgent need of new leadership, innovative thinking, action-oriented and collaborative people who
can work together, especially on sustainability initiatives that benefit everyone,” says Kitajima. For more information and
to register for the Forum: [email protected]
KaMele will join Mr. Ha at the Forum. “ Whether the topic be agriculture, food production, genetics, or energy I plan to
never be “scaid em,” and to have a voice in deciding what are the best choices for our Island’s future.”
“This high level program for exceptional local kids, from humble means, deserves our support,” says Ha. “I’ve spent my
entire 35-year career positioning our farm to be relevant for the future. When I see SHYLI youth I see Hawaii’s future.
We must invest in and nurture them. And, we must do it now!”
More info about Sustainable Hawaii Youth Leadership Initiative at www.shyli.org
��
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High school students visit UH Hilo campus for Job Shadow Day February 7, 2014
A group participating in this year’s Job Shadow Day stands outside UH Hilo’s chancellor’s office. (l-r front row) Katie Schwind, project
coordinator; student Bethany Anderson; student Sherry Anne Pancho; Farrahmarie Gomes, director at UH Hilo’s North Hawai‘i
Education and Research Center; (l-r, back row) local farmer and businessman Richard Ha; Steve Colbert, assistant professor of marine
science; Bruce Mathews, dean of the College of Agriculture, Forestry, and Natural Resource Management; student KaMele Sanchez.
A group of enthusiastic Big Island youth recently visited a variety of programs at the University of Hawai‘i at Hilo
as part of the national Job Shadow Day. The local group’s activities were organized by the Sustainable Hawai’i
Youth Leadership Initiative or SHYLI.
“As UH Hilo moves towards providing an applied learning experience for every student,” says UH Hilo Chancellor
Don Straney, “we are excited to be working with partners like SHYLI to prepare the young people of Hawai‘i for a
productive future for themselves, our island and our state.”
Members of SHYLI, made up of high school students, spent time with Bruce Mathews, dean of UH Hilo’s College
of Agriculture, Forestry and Natural Resource Management; Michael Shintaku, professor of plant pathology; and
Maria Haws, professor of aquaculture and director of UH Hilo’s Pacific Aquaculture and Coastal Resources
Center at Hilo Bay, among others.
“The farm is extremely self-sustained, culturing their own algae, spawning their own oysters, and raising and
selling them for profit,” says participant KaMele Sanchez, a student at Honoka‘a High.
The group also spent time with Mayor Billy Kenoi, learned about the Hawai‘i County Food Sufficiency Baseline
Study, visited with local farmer and businessman Richard Ha, and talked story with experts on geothermal
production.
“I for one, like to talk, and all of these folks did too,” says KaMele. “It wasn’t everyday talk story. It was about real
problems happening now, serious topics and the scientific, practical, and economical stand points. I loved it!”
Participant Sherry Anne Pancho, also from Honoka‘a High, shadowed Linda Connelly and Aaron Jacobs,
professors at UH Hilo’s Daniel K. Inouye College of Pharmacy.
“We are very impressed with Sherry Anne and SHYLI’s efforts to provide Hawai‘i’s students with firsthand
experiences in potential career paths and believe this is a valuable investment in the sustainability of our future
workforce,” says Professor Jacobs.
Group participates in Oceanit reception on O‘ahu via video conference in Chancellor’s Office.
A reception was hosted on O‘ahu by Oceanit, Hawai‘i’s largest and most diversified science and engineering
company, where students shared their life-changing experiences with business, government and academic
leaders. Oceanit is a recipient of the Corporate STEM Award for its support of the development of future leaders.
Group participates in video conference.
The Oceanit reception was simultaneously video conferenced to the chancellor’s offices at UH Hilo where Big
Island SHYLI youth and their mentors shared their experiences with Matthew Platz, vice chancellor for academic
affairs, Steve Colbert from the marine science department, biologist Pat Hart, Dean Bruce Mathews, and Farrah
Gomes from UH Hilo’s North Hawai‘i Education and Research Center.
Members of the group also visited with Hawai‘i Electric Company (Renewable Energy Program), Aloha Veterinary
Center, Rainbow Friends animal sanctuary, and state legislators.
“It’s no secret that our world is facing some major challenges in the coming decades,” says SHYLI project
coordinator Katie Schwind. “These challenges will take engaged, creative, individuals from our coming
generations to take the reigns of change and find solutions for islands. Hawai‘i, and many rural and island areas,
commonly struggle to limit the brain drain when there are limited economic opportunities available. SHYLI works
with active young people who have been nominated by community members who recognize their potential to be
change makers in their future.”
About National Job Shadow Day
The National (Groundhog) Job Shadow Day, a national campaign gives young people a new perspective on their
studies through hands-on learning and a one-day mentoring experience. It gives youth a positive experience of
the world of work, promote a good work ethic, and develop longer-lasting relationships that contribute to the
global economy. It is a joint effort of America’s Promise – Alliance for Youth, Junior Achievement, and the U.S.
Department of Labor. Nationwide, more than one million students and 100,000 businesses participate, and more
than 2,000 restaurants and hotels hosted nearly 20,000 students. Young people are matched with businesses
and professionals so they have first-hand experience about jobs in their fields of interest. SHYLI’s Job Shadow
Day helps translate youth passion with practical experience for careers of the future.
About Sustainable Hawaii Youth Leadership Initiative (SHYLI)
Through intensive year-round fellowships, the Sustainable Hawaii Youth Leadership Initiative is training young
people with promise to become leaders, initiators of change, who may leave for periods to gain academic and life
experience, and return to create opportunities for themselves and their Island communities. SHYLI targets these
youth as fellows, and in our experience, many of the connections they gain throughout the sustainability
community, through Job Shadow Day, the Youth & Community Leadership Forum, their Sustainability-In-Action
project development, their presentations to schools, organizations, businesses greatly benefit everyone – now
and in the future. SHYLI is a project of the Stone Soup Leadership Institute has been organizing Job Shadow Day
on islands for ten years. Founded on the island of Martha’s Vineyard in 1997, the Institute’s trains young and
emerging leaders on Islands. The Institute’s multifaceted educational curriculum, Stone Soup for the World: Life-
Changing Stories of Everyday Heroes spotlights 100 heroes who changed their lives by helping their
communities. It’s programs foster service learning, entrepreneurship, STEM-thinking, eco-tourism, workforce
development, community engagement, global exchanges for best practices of island sustainability. SHYLI is
especially committed to helping to build a local green workforce.
For more information, contact [email protected] or www.shyli.org.
~Adapted from press release from SHYLI
SHYLI’s Job Shadow Day 2014
Alex Siordia
Alex was born and raised on the Big Island of
Hawaii. He attended Waimea Elementary School
and Waimea Middle Public Conversion Charter
School and received a full scholarship to Hawaii
Preparatory Academy where he is a senior.
In college he plans to major in political science.
Alex served as a 2013-2014 SHYLI delegate to the
9th
Annual Youth Leadership Summit for
Sustainable Development. For his Summit
presentation, Alex researched the Big Island
Dairy’s use of a methane digester that creates
sustainable energy.
Alex has been actively involved with the
Sustainable Hawaii Youth Leadership Initiative. His
goal for Hawaii is that more high school students
statewide will apply to, and attend college to attain
the tools necessary to help their community. He
wants to help other youth to receive opportunities to
succeed that he has been privileged to have. For his
SHYLI Sustainability-In-Action Project, Alex
developed a College Prep Workshop and invited his
HPA classmates and SHYLI members to share their
college prep experiences. He wants students to
apply to colleges - junior, community- or technical
schools to further their education and pursue a
career of their choice. When Alex made a
presentation to Honoka’a High School Principal
McClelland and Counselor Lambert, they invited
Alex to their “Talk Story” to inspire students and
parents. Alex proudly represented SHYLI at the
Sheraton Hawaii Bowl. He is especially interested
in supporting non-profit organizations like SHYLI.
He aspires to work in government to set policies
and create programs that will benefit everyone.
Representative Cindy Evans
Representative Evans is a veteran legislator serving
her sixth term representing North Kona, North
Kohala and South Kohala on the island of Hawai'i.
Evans serves as the Chair of the House Committee
on Water and Land. Evans is a House committee
member: Consumer Protection and Commerce;
Ocean, Marine Resources, and Hawaiian Affairs;
and Energy and Environmental Protection and
House Special Committee to Address Unfunded
Liability. Formerly, Evans served as House
Majority Floor Leader for four years, and as the
Chair, of the House Committee on Public Safety
and Military Affairs. Evans facilitated a Veteran &
Military Appreciation Day, including a Hire a Hero
Job Fair, on November 3, 2012. Evans has
introduced and co-sponsored several bills relating to
active duty military and veterans and has sought
funding for the Hawai'i Wing of the U.S. Air Force,
Civilian Air Patrol, West Hawai'i Veterans
Cemetery, and proposed West Hawai'i multi-
purpose and intergenerational Veterans Center.
Evans was one of 12 elected officials nationwide
who participated in 2009 NCSL sponsored Saudi
Arabia Exchange Visit to Saudi Arabian Investment
Authority, King Faisal Specialist Hospital, King
Abdullah University for Science and Technology,
the first co-educational institution of higher
learning. Evans is on the board of Mental Health
Kokua and former board member for the Historic
Hawaii Foundation. Born in 1952, Evans was
raised in Champaign, Illinois. Evans is a graduate
of Evergreen State College with a B.A. in Business
Management, Western Legislators Academy and
CSG Henry Toll Fellowship Program. She worked
for 12+ years with AT&T and 12+ with the State of
Washington in Olympia. She has lived on the Island
of Hawaii with her husband since 1998.
Mickie Hirata
Mickie Hirata is a senior at Hawaii Preparatory
Academy. She was born Hilo and raised in Waimea,
attending Waimea Schools. Mickie’s mother is from
Japan, her father is a fifth generation Japanese
American. Her dream is to have her island become
energy independent. Knowing the geographical
advantages of the Big Island, she feels that renewable
energies need to be more integrated within daily life.
She is fascinated with energy production: geothermal,
wind, hydrogen, solar, continue her to learn about the
potential of Hawaii. Mickie served as a delegate to
the 9th
Youth Leadership Summit for Sustainable
Development. She is an active member of the
Sustainable Hawaii Youth Leadership Initiative. For
her Sustainability-In-Action project Mickie is
working in partnership with Oceanit using their state-
of-the-art Smart Plugs energy-monitoring tools to
measure the electrical usage of appliances. She is
analyzing human interaction with them and find ways
to conserve energy in easily applicable ways. During
the Christmas holidays Mickie begin her research at
her high school campus, at Hawaii Preparatory
Academy. Mickie developed a baseline and measure
how her school uses/wastes energy even when it’s
empty. Once she collects the data Mickie will
analyze trends, outliers, and overall usage. “My hope
is to conduct this research with other schools on the
Island,” says Mickey. “And eventually with other
buildings in Hawaii.” Mickie aspires to a career in
energy design and physics. She loves to learn about
the physics behind energy resources and their effect
on their communities. She believes that technology
advancement will continue to progress the world for
the better, which is why she has strong interests in
energy to support it. Mickie college aspires to a
academic career in physics, and energy design.
Dora Nakafuji, Ph.D
Hawaiian Electric Company
Dr. Dora Nakafuji is the Director of Renewable
Energy Planning at Hawaiian Electric Company. Her
division is spearheading and coordinating many of
the renewable integration initiatives being undertaken
by the island utilities including wind and solar
forecasting, distributed generation impact analysis,
visualization, EMS integration, workforce
development and technical outreach. Formerly she
was a staff researcher at Lawrence Livermore
National Laboratories and she also served as the
Technical Lead for Wind Energy R&D and
Renewable Integration for the Public Interest Energy
Research (PIER) program at the California Energy
Commission. Dora is a graduate from the University
of California at Davis with a Ph.D. in Aeronautical
and Mechanical Engineering with a multi-
disciplinary background in experimental and
computational analysis. She currently is an adjunct
professor at the University of Hawaii at Manoa
supporting education and outreach in renewable
technologies.
For SHYLI’s Job Shadow Day Mickie will travel to
Oahu to share her preliminary research findings and
explore college choices and career options with Dr.
Nakafuji.
Sustainable Hawaii Youth Leadership Initiative
P.O. Box 727 • Honoka’a, HI 96727
P.O. Box 1235 • Kailua-Kona, HI 96745
www.shyli.org
Richard Ha
Hamakua Springs
Country Farms
Richard is founder and
president of Hamakua
Springs Country Farms, a 600-acre
family farm on the
Island of Hawai‘i that sustainably produces
bananas and
hydroponic vegetables. A former U.S. Army captain and Vietnam War
veteran, Ha started farming after he graduated from
UH Mānoa in 1973. He returned to the Big Island to
help with his father’s chicken farm at Waiakea Uka, where he started growing bananas. Since then, Ha
has been founder and president of Ha Brothers
Banana Farm (1975-1977), Koa‘e Banana Company (1977-1982), Panaewa Distribution Company
(1980-Present), Kea‘au Banana Company (1982-
2006), Mauna Kea Banana Company (1995–2004), Big Island Container Sales and Hamakua Springs
Country Farms (2004–Present). Ha has been a
board member of the Hawai‘i Island Economic
Development Board, Hamakua Soil and Water Conservation District, Hawai‘i Banana Industry
Association, Keaholoa STEM Program, and Boys
and Girls Club of Hawai‘i. He is director of The Kohala Center, represents the County of Hawai‘i on
the State of Hawai‘i Board of Agriculture Executive
Board, and co-chairs the Geothermal Working
Group. Ha recently organized community support for the University of Hawai‘i’s proposed $1 billion
Thirty Meter Telescope (TMT) project on Mauna
Kea. He also has served on advisory boards for the UH Mānoa College of Tropical Agriculture and
Human Resources and UH Hilo. In 2008, Ha was
inducted to the Shidler College of Business Hall of Honor. In 2009, Ha was elected to the Social
Science Association, an organization of community
leaders. He is a frequent speaker at conferences
addressing agriculture and sustainability. He recently addressed the Pacific Rim Summit on
Industrial Biotechnology and Bioenergy on the
work of Hamakua Springs Water, which will generate electricity through a hydroelectric system
on the Big Island. Ha is married with two children,
and runs Hamakua Springs Country Farm with his wife, mother, daughter and son-in-law.
KaMele Sanchez is an enthusiastic junior attending Honoka’a High on Hawaii Island. She is fascinated
by math and sciences and loves the natural world,
learning about it and working in it. She strives to pursue a degree in environmental science and civil
engineering, and as career wants to specialize in
hydrology or geology. Her interest in science has made KaMele very passionate about exploring
sustainable solutions to different issues on her
island. She believes that her island relies too much
on imports from the mainland, which significantly contributes to Hawaii’s carbon footprint. After
college, KaMele plans to continue to spread the
awareness and generate more support for environmental issues on Island. KaMele is very
active in her school and community. She holds
leadership roles in National Honors Society, Science Club, Math League, Future Farmers of
America, Upward Bound, her class’ Relay for Life
team, Honoka’a School’s Anti-Bullying Club and
Student Government, where she serves as President of her Junior Class. KaMele is a wrestler, school
mentor and volunteers with organizations such as
the Lavaman Triathlon and the Honoka’a Girl Scout Troop. KaMele is an active member of the
Sustainable Hawaii Youth Leadership Initiative.
Her Sustainability-In-Action Project (with Sherry
Anne Pancho) is HYDROPONICS. Her goal is to educate the local public, especially children on the
benefits and usage of hydroponic technology. They
have assisted Waimea Elementary and Honoka’a Middle School students with projects and labs
associated with hydroponic knowledge.
Sustainable Hawaii Youth Leadership Initiative
P.O. Box 722 • Honoka’a, HI 96727
Sherry Anne Payson
Sherry Anne Pancho is a junior at Honoka'a High
School on the Island of Hawaii. After her high
school, she plans to attend a university to major and obtain a Master's Degree in Biomedical, Aerospace,
or Computer Engineering. Sherry served as a
delegate to the 9th Youth Leadership Summit for Sustainable Development. An active member of the
Sustainable Hawaii Youth Leadership Initiative,
Sherry’s dream for her island is to support local farmers and businesses in order to become more
sustainable. Her current goal is to educate the public
about the science of hydroponics and explain its
benefits in order to encourage its use. Sherry participates in her school's Academic Decathlon
team, where she was awarded a medal in Art History.
She was chosen to showcase her prepared speech after successfully performing it to Judges' Panel in
the Honors category. Sherry holds office as Student
Body Treasurer at Honoka'a High School and is a
second-year student in her school's Leadership Program, which plans and organizes various school
activities and community events, such as the
Community Thanksgiving Dinner and Relay for Life. Sherry is also a student mentor in her school's
Mentoring Program, where 10th, 11th, and 12th
graders help 9th graders adjust to high school during their freshman year. In addition, she is an active
member of her church's youth group, where she
spends much of her time and energy in various
community service projects, such as building houses with Habitat for Humanity or being a religious
educator to the young children at her church. Sherry
has also recently joined her school's Robotics Club and serves as one of the team's programmers, hoping
that it will help better her understanding of
engineering through hands-on experience.
!
Sustainable Hawaii Youth Leadership Initiative
P.O. Box 722 * Honoka’a, HI 96727
Linda Connelly PhD & Aaron Jacobs PhD Assistant Professors, Pharmaceutical Sciences
Daniel Inouye College of Pharmacy
University of Hawaii Hilo
!
Aaron T. Jacobs studies the activation of cellular
stress responses and their effects in relation to disease
processes. Reactive compounds: antineoplastic drugs; xenobiotics; and endogenous metabolites are capable
of inducing large-scale adaptive responses at the
cellular level. His research examines the role of electrophilic metabolites in the activation of the heat
shock response. This response is regulated by the
activation of heat shock factor-1, which then drives the expression of numerous genes. His laboratory is
investigating the role of specific heat shock-induced
genes in tumor cell growth and viability. His work
examines stress-mediated gene expression in neurons. Aaron received his B.S., Biology, UC,
Irvine; his Ph.D., Pharmacology, UC, Los Angeles;
Postdoctoral Fellow, Vanderbilt University.
!
Linda Connelly studies the molecular basis of
primary tumor growth and metastasis. She focuses on the role of osteoprotegerin in breast cancer using both
in vitro techniques and the chick embryo metastasis
model. Her lab is also investigating the role of the
macrophages and inflammatory signaling molecules in tumor progression. She received her Biochemistry
University of Glasgow, UK; Ph.D., Molecular
Pharmacology, University College London, UK and Postdoctoral Fellow in the Dept. of Medical and
Molecular Pharmacology, UCLA; Dept. of Cancer
Biology, Vanderbilt University Medical Center.
!
Bethany Anderson
Bethany was born and raised in Hilo and attends
Waiakea High School. Her dream is to be a
veterinarian, starting with a Bachelors of Science
degree in biology. Bethany takes honors and AP
courses (A average). Bethany is a member of the
Sustainable Hawaii Youth Leadership Initiative.
She is featured in SHYLI’s 2014 Newsletter.
Bethany partnered with Rainbow Friends and
helped to host 6 spay and neuter clinics in 6 months
and neutered 300 cats. Bethany helped secure a
facility the clinic, prepped a meal for volunteers,
and worked as a volunteer. As a volunteer she
prepped cats for surgery by shaving and scrubbing
the surgical area, brought cats to the vet for the
surgery and monitored their recovery. This year at
Ocean Day, Bethany will address the feral cat and
dog overpopulation and the importance of spaying
and neutering your pets. Feral cat overpopulation is
a problem in our small, island community. There is
no winter or predators to keep the population in
check. Cats can have up to 6 litters per year. When
there is overpopulation cats are often treated badly.
They are susceptible to abuse, disease, starvation
and untreated injuries. Bethany is passionate about
addressing the problem of feral cat overpopulation
and the impact of this on Hawaii’s delicate eco-
system. Bethany has been a Girl Scout since third
grade, and her troop is focused on the environment
and service projects. These projects inspired her to
earn her Girl Scout Silver Award and to work
toward her Gold Award. Every year they learn
about a different environmental issue and then they
do some public education at Earth and Ocean Days.
Past topics have included buying and growing local
food, solar energy, sustainable fishing practices,
and the negative impacts of the use of plastic.
Dr. Lei Imaino-Hata
Aloha Vet
Dr. Lei Imaino-Hata was born and raised in Hilo,
Hawaii and graduated from the University of
Hawaii at Manoa on the Dean's List. She spent her
summers working in the UH Manoa's Beaumont
Research Center and the Animal Science and
Entomology Departments.
With an undergraduate degree in Animal Science,
Dr. Lei pursued her veterinary career at Washington
State University where she graduated Cum Laude
with a Doctorate in Veterinary Medicine. Before
returning home to Hawaii she interned at a animal
emergency clinic and at a private practice in
Spokane, Washington. As a dedicated veterinarian,
Dr. Lei's special interests include internal medicine,
dermatology, and oncology.
With her loving personality, Dr.Lei goes above and
beyond with each patient to treat them with the
utmost compassionate care. Her love for animals
truly shows in her work and is seen through the
eyes of our clients.
Sustainable Hawaii Youth Leadership Initiative
www.shyli.org
Daniel Forsythe
Daniel Forsythe is a full time student
University of Hawaii Maui College on
Lana’i, studying Applied Business and
Information Technology. Daniel was nominated by LHS Environmental Science
teacher, Lisa Galloway to the Youth
Leadership Summit for Sustainable Development on Martha’s Vineyard. At the
Summit Daniel made a presentation on
Aquaponics on Lana’i and learned about best practices with the island’s 40 farms,
school gardens and hydroponics. Upon his
return, he assisted Ms. Galloway with
teaching her students. He now works part time at the Lana’i Library, and has a full
time commitment to sustainability and
community service. He shares his free time between facilitating a weekly junior youth
group, and interning at Kumu Ola, a
sustainable aquaponics farm on island. Daniel created the SHYLI Lanai logo.
Daniel’s power point presentations 2013
http://www.slideshare.net/harpstar/daniel
-forsythe-aquaponics-the-pinnacle-of-
sustainable-agriculture
P.O. Box 631669 • Lana’i City, HI, 96763
www.shyli-lanai.org
Fred Lao
Mari’s Gardens, LLC
Fred Lao is a farm owner who is committed
to sustainability. He has been farming since
1978, and operates Mari’s Gardens, LLC, a 18-acre combination garden/aquaponics
facility in Mililani, O’ahu, that produces a
variety of Certified Organic, and Food Safety Certified food. Mari's is Hawaii's
largest aquaponic farm with 32,000 square
feet of grow beds spread over an acre of land. Lau, a landscape nursery owner,
expanded into aquaponics in early 2010
concentrating on lettuce, tomatoes and
cucumbers connected to tanks housing 30,000 tilapia and Chinese catfish. He also
has experimented with strawberries,
blueberries, watercress, taro, spinach, sweet potato, green onion, beets, basil, mint and
cilantro. Lau said his aquaponic operation,
which cost about $400,000 and is led by his son Brendon. The goal he shares with his
partners is to reduce food imports to Hawaii,
and to shift local agriculture production back
to suiting the local population.
Brendon Lao graduated from University of
Hawaii CTAHR in Tropical Plant Production. He manages Aquaponics at
Mari’s Garden’s Mililani Nursery. He is in
charge of water quality management, fish
hatchery fry production, marketing and sales of our products and plant propagation.
!
Lucy with David Palumbo, Nursery Manager, Pulama Lana’i LLC
!
Darren Okimoto UH Sea Grant Program & Lucy
!
Lucy at SHYLI’s Job Shadow Day Reception at Oceanit, Honolulu
!
Lucy at Sheraton Princess Kaiulani, Thanks to Ernest Nishizaki
!
Lucy Gaceta Sustainable Hawaii Youth Leadership Initiative – Lanai
www.shyli-lanai.org
In-kind sponsors Island Air, Four Seasons Lanai Lodge, Hotel Lana’i
Lucy Gaceta is a freshman at University of Hawaii’s
Maui College. Born in California, Lucy has lived in
Guam, Oahu, and now Lanai. She is in interested in
geographical and sociological perspectives of sustainable landscaping and natural resource
management. Returning from the Institute’s Youth
Leadership Summit for Sustainable Development on Martha’s Vineyard Lucy’s passion for creating a
more sustainable island was more refined and given a
new sense of direction. She enjoyed the Sustainable
Vineyard Tour of the Vineyard Golf Course (organic, doesn’t damage the water system); electrical car
charging station at the local grocery store. She was
concerned to see the beach erosion and its effect on habitat and homes. Lucy is interested in traveling the
world to learn from other people and their green/blue
initiatives to improve their communities. She wants to bring this learning back to help improve her island
community of Lanai.
Dolan Eversole is a Coastal Geologist and graduate
of University of Hawaii, Bachelor’s and Master’s in
geology and geophysics; certificate in Disaster Management and Humanitarian Assistance at UH,
Manoa. Dolan served as a technical and policy
advisor to the Office of Conservation and Coastal
Lands (OCCL), of the Hawaii Department of Land and Natural Resources on coastal issues. Dolan
serves as the NOAA Coastal Storms Program, Pacific
Islands Regional Coordinator (American Samoa,
Guam, CNMI, the Republic of the Marshall Islands and the Federated States of Micronesia, the Coastal
Storms Program (CSP) identifying technological and
socio-economic solutions to reduce their vulnerability through measures that improve adaptation and
community resilience. As a scientific advisor to the
DLNR, Dolan provided technical review and oversight for a variety of coastal land use proposals
for the DLNR including applications for beach
nourishment. Dolan draws from years of experience
as a ocean enthusiast and ocean lifeguard that has complimented his position as a coastal
geomorphologist working with the state of Hawaii.
.
Matthew Gonser is an extension agent for the University of Hawai'i Sea Grant College Program
(UH Sea Grant). He was hired by UH Sea Grant in
2012 as a community planner and designer. In the short term, he'll be supporting the on-going work of
perceptions of sea water air conditioning (SWAC) in
Waikiki, participating in working groups such as the
Ocean Resources Management Plan (ORMP), and working towards reconvening a Water Resources
Working Group to look at rainwater catchment
systems for Hawai'i. Additionally, he'll work closely with the Center for Smart Building and Community
Design on issues related to sustainable coastal
development and smart growth. Lastly, he'll act as the point of contact for the national Sustainable Coastal
Community Development network as well as the
Nonpoint Education for Municipal Officials (NEMO)
network. Matt’s degrees include: BS, Natural Resources, MLA, Landscape Architecture, and MRP,
Regional Planning, Cornell University.
