CIFAL

Taking Climate Action

July 10, 2024

Chaminade empowers students to seek innovative solutions to environmental challenges

Amid growing concern about the impacts of climate change on Hawaii communities, Chaminade University is developing and expanding programs aimed at empowering students—so they can turn concerns about environmental challenges into projects of positive change.

Dr. Lupita Ruiz-Jones shows her ENV 100 students a chart, which helps identify fish in Palolo Stream. — Dr. Lupita Ruiz-Jones shows her Environmental Studies 100 students a chart to identify fish in Palolo Stream.

Vice Provost Janet Davidson has called on each department at Chaminade to identify priorities that closely align with the United Nations’s Sustainable Development Goals, as well as two goals from Laudato Si—Pope Francis’s encyclical letter released in 2015—that resonate with the mission and outcomes of their programs.

“As a Marianist Catholic institution, we are well poised to demonstrate how our programs contribute meaningfully to the goals set forth by Laudato Si and the United Nations,” Davidson told faculty, in a recent memo. “Further alignment with the 2024 Chaminade University of Honolulu Strategic Plan ensures that we remain forward-looking as a university, continually evolving and growing in accordance with our shared strategic vision.”

The United Nations has underscored the scope of the challenge, writing that a comprehensive global effort is needed to avoid “catastrophic, irreversible climate change.”

Provost Lance Askildson said Chaminade is living up to that call to action.

“We are leveraging our degree programs to help address issues as wide-ranging as climate action, social equality and clean water, which are resonant issues here in Hawaii and the Pacific,” he said.

“This is an incredibly well-aligned initiative for Chaminade. And so we see this as an extension of our University mission in many respects, but it is also an opportunity for us to be more intentional about our approach to sustainability and our contributions here within our local community in Hawaii and Pacific Island neighbors.”

In Spring 2022, the United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR) partnered with Chaminade to establish the CIFAL Center of Honolulu, focused on developing and supporting projects in the Pacific centered on Urban Governance and Planning, Economic Development, Social Inclusion and Environmental Sustainability.

That work is dovetailed with efforts across all of Chaminade’s 25 undergraduate majors and 13 graduate programs, which now incorporate several of the UN’s, Laudato Si’s and the University’s Strategic Sustainable Development Goals.

Some of the common themes—or core competencies—across many of the programs include good health and well-being; peace, justice and strong institutions; climate action; quality education; and responsible consumption and production.

There is also a strong tie-in to workforce development and meeting community needs, university leaders say. According to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), sustainability studies was the fastest-growing green program during the last five years. In fact, the number of graduates more than doubled between 2016 and 2021—from 832 to 1,837.

Chaminade has contributed to that growth.

Since introducing Environmental Studies in 2000, the program has evolved from a certificate to then a minor and today a bachelor’s degree with two different concentrations.

Students help harvest kalo in a Heeia field.

“It was founded at the request of Chaminade’s then-president Sue Wesselkamper, who came to me in 1998 when I was a biology professor and said, ‘Gail we need a major that looks after creation,’ and the rest is history,” recalled Dr. Gail Grabowsky, Dean of the School of Natural Sciences & Mathematics and UN CIFAL Honolulu Executive Director.

“Today, between Environmental Science and Environmental Studies, we have 38 students declaring it as their majors.”

Lucy Lee ’23 decided to pursue a degree in Environmental Studies at Chaminade because she wanted to combine her passion for the environment with her love of the ocean.

Lee is a member of the Polynesian Voyaging Society’s Moananuiākea Voyage, a circumnavigation of the Pacific, which to her, “holds the capacity and stories to change the world.”

“Voyaging is a way to further empowerment of indigenous peoples,” said Lee, adding “it unifies people around common goals like healing the ocean and the earth, and allows for a different pathway for young women to pursue and involve themselves in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics).”

For Lee, the Environmental Studies program at Chaminade was perfect since her ultimate goal, she said, is to offer legal expertise and representation to sustenance fishing and farming communities in Hawaii.

“They are ingenious, but they struggle in literacy when it comes to law and defending themselves in justice systems,” Lee said, pointing to decades-long legal challenges over water rights for small farmers on Maui. “I started hearing about that case when I was in elementary school.”

Elementary school was also around the same time that Casidhe Mahuka first visited the National Marine Sanctuary of American Samoa, which forever sparked her passion for ocean science.

It was the first time that she discovered that she could not only breathe underwater, but she could also breathe underwater for a living.

“That was it; I was totally hooked,” said Mahuka, ’22, an Environmental Studies major and now invasive species coordinator (ISC) at the Coral Reef Advisory Group (CRAG) in American Samoa.

“I was determined to be an ocean scientist because I have always loved being in the water. And to get paid for it, I was all in.”

Sustainable Entrepreneurship

April 2, 2024

New ENV 490 Sustainability Innovation class stimulates paradigm shift

Aside from being tongue twisters when said in succession, the terms sustainability and entrepreneurship are indeed big words, as pointed out by ’Inana Sustainability Entrepreneurship Program’s coordinator, Mariane Uehara. Tasked with creating a curriculum for the inaugural ENV 490 Sustainability Innovation course, Uehara admitted that she “jumped into the unknown” when she joined the United Nations’s CIFAL Center at Chaminade University.

At the core of the ENV 490 is a student-driven project that’s in partnership with a local company. The goal was to balance the triple bottom line—people, planet and profit—while addressing the long-term impact of business activities on the environment and society. Sustainable entrepreneurship recognizes the interdependence of economic development, social well-being and environmental health, and seeks to create value in a way that is responsible and ethical.

Lyla Gonsalves, left, and Jasmine Mondelo discussed possible solutions for Ten Tomorrow to become more sustainable.

Sarah Carroll '25 identified potential partners that could help Re-use Hawaii and its sustainable efforts.

Sarah Carroll identified potential partners that could help Re-use Hawaii gain greater community support.

Ten Tomorrow designer Summer Shiigi, center, liked the ideas presented by Chaminade students, from left, Ka‘I‘inipu‘uwai “Mini” Keli‘iho‘omalu-Holz ’24, Lyla Gonsalves ’25, Jasmine Mondelo ’25 and LaVelle White ’26.

Re-use Hawaii’s Workforce Development Coordinator Nathaniel Pak saw value in Chaminade students’ sustainable efforts for the nonprofit. Team members included, from left, Sarah Carroll ’25, Katherine “Kat” Liu ’26, Kaila Frank ’24 and Sano Tanna ’24.

“All the students’ projects had to align with at least one of the United Nations’s 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs),” Uehara explained. “Although the vision was blurry at first, we figured out the puzzle together, and we had fun while doing so.”

According to Uehara, the three goals of the ’Inana Program are: 1) To develop and implement programs for the education and training of undergraduate students in subjects directly relating to successful entrepreneurship; 2) To support minority business enterprises (MBEs), including building a diverse entrepreneurial pipeline to grow the number of MBEs; and 3) to create a UN Certificate program in sustainability entrepreneurship.

Divided into three teams, 14 students presented their final entrepreneurial projects, working alongside with Ten Tomorrow, Re-use Hawaii and Plantoem. Under the mentorship of Uehara, and Cort Isernhagen and Jamie Lui of Diamond Head Research—a company that helps small companies track and assess their activities to identify trends and innovative business models that best support Corporate Social Responsibility, Environmental, Social and Corporate Governance, and philanthropic initiatives—the aspiring entrepreneurs demonstrated their ability to think outside the box.

“First of all, who are you guys,” rhetorically asked Lui after listening to the students’ presentations. “You’re a completely different group from when we started this class a few months ago.”

Exuding confidence, Sarah Carroll ’25 proposed a “Hanau Hana Aloha Event,” which would advertise Re-use Hawai’i as a community-based nonprofit worthy of long-term patronage and donation. Additionally, it would also pose these solutions: Engage an eco-conscious audience; showcase Re-use Hawaii’s mission beyond social media; and connect with long-term donors through a captivating experience.

“Hosting an upcycle consignment event for Re-use Hawaii would present an innovative solution to address several pressing challenges,” the Data Science and Visualization major said. “It would help Re-Use connect with the community and give it more visibility, as well as broaden its donor pool.”

Other Re-use Hawaii members included Katherine “Kat” Liu ’26, Sano Tanna ’24, Lihau Keoneula ’24 and Kaila Frank ’24.

Pairing with Ten Tomorrow designer Summer Shiigi, Jasmine Mondelo ’25, Ka‘I‘inipu‘uwai “Mini” Keli‘iho‘omalu-Holz ’24, Lyla Gonsalves ’25 and LaVelle White ’26 aligned their entrepreneurial proposals with the local clothing company’s line of modern resort wear. An Environmental Studies major, Keli‘iho‘omalu-Holz identified the problem of having to bring in fabric, which contributes to carbon emissions, microplastics and landfills.

Keli‘iho‘omalu-Holz’s solution was to source fabric that would be less harmful to the environment. She cited such alternatives as hemp, organic cotton, bamboo, recycled material and Tencel fabrics, which are produced with environmentally responsible processes from sustainably sourced natural raw wood fibers. Tencel textiles are also certified biodegradable.

“I have a really keen interest in fashion, which is why I chose Ten Tomorrow ,” Keli‘iho‘omalu-Holz noted. “I wanted to find cost-effective solutions and sustainable fabrics that didn’t have a negative impact on our environment.”

Alexandra Zingarelli ’24, Sydney Danielson ’25, Pūnohu Keahi ’25, Aleeyah Lemons ’24 and Conor McMahon ’24 partnered with Zoe Zhang of Plantoem, a portmanteau of plant and poem, and suggested a “Plantoem’s Appreciation March 2024.” Each week would tackle a different aspect, from the significance of native plants and “Aloha ʻĀina: Environmental Health Talk Story Event” to carbon offset, plant therapy and sustainable living workshops.

“They really listened to what I had to say,” said Zhang, who founded Plantoem because of her love for plants and poetry. “Their proposal to me is highly viable. Since we came up with the awareness month idea during their second visit, I have already been in touch with some of the speakers who are interested in participating. The basic structure of the event month has already been sketched out. And the students are coming back to help work on the events in March.”

In his closing remarks, Isernhagen commented on the diversity of ideas and the prototypes the students developed. “I liked the fact that you met the businesses where they were,” he concluded. “Your lenses were all sharply focused around sustainability. And I liked the fact that you collectively approached one problem but each of you came up with your own individual solution.”

Environmental Science

January 25, 2024

After earning her bachelor’s, Casidhe Mahuka joins CRAG in American Samoa

In recent years, scientists, world leaders, politicians and environmentalists have been warning us about a dire existential threat, noting that climate change poses a grave risk that needs to be urgently addressed and mitigated. As an invasive species coordinator (ISC) at the Coral Reef Advisory Group (CRAG) in American Samoa, Casidhe Mahuka ’22 is doing her part in monitoring and protecting the waters encircling the small U.S. territory.

Since graduating with a BS in Environmental Sciences, the American Samoa native has used her Chaminade education to make an impact in her community. As the ISC for CRAG, Mahuka collects ocean data and implements bi-monthly phytoplankton monitoring in association with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s National Phytoplankton Monitoring Network (PMN), which is a community-based network of volunteers who monitor marine phytoplankton and harmful algal blooms (HABs).

Mahuka explains that she has three overarching goals: 1) Integrate community-based methods to restore village-level ecosystems using ridge-to-reef approach in Aua and Fagasa; 2) increase invasive species management policy and activity coordination in and among local and regional organizations; and 3) bolster invasive species management in other priority sites.

“Other priorities include monitoring ballast water, biofouling, reef flats, and testing the water’s salinity, turbidity and overall quality,” Mahuka further describes. “I also work with the US Coast Guard to stay informed on stony coral tissue loss disease, the Vessel Incidental Discharge Act (VIDA) and other regional biosecurity issues.”

Covering more than 70 percent of our planet, the world’s oceans play a crucial role in regulating climate and supporting diverse ecosystems. However, the alarming rise in ocean temperatures due to climate change is threatening marine life, particularly the delicate balance of coral reefs.

Casidhe Mahuka prepares to tie an Anchor Bend knot. — In the summer of 2018, Casidhe Mahuka participated in the SEA Semester, which is Boston University’s Study Abroad Program. The ship traveled from Tahiti to the Hawaii islands.

Primarily driven by human activities such as the burning of fossil fuels and deforestation, climate change has led to a significant increase in global temperatures. As a result, the world’s oceans are also experiencing warming trends, the consequences of which are far-reaching and affect marine ecosystems in various ways.

“Our ecosystems are fragile,” Mahuka says. “Although they cover only a small fraction of the ocean floor, coral reefs support about 25 percent of all marine species. The intricate structures of reefs provide habitats and food for a vast array of marine life, including fish, invertebrates and microorganisms.”

Furthermore, coral reefs act as natural barriers that protect coastlines from the impacts of storms, hurricanes and erosion. The complex structures of coral reefs also dissipate wave energy, reducing the intensity of waves that reach the shore.

Mahuka has had a passion for ocean science ever since she visited the National Marine Sanctuary of American Samoa in the 7th grade. It was the first time that she discovered that she could not only breathe underwater, but she could also breathe underwater for a living.

“That was it; I was totally hooked,” Mahuka says. “I was determined to be an ocean scientist because I have always loved being in the water. And to get paid for it, I was all in.”

As a member of the first cohort of students who majored in Environmental Science at Chaminade, Mahuka mirrors a growing trend among students who are pursuing their degrees in this field, marking a 24 percent increase in degrees awarded since 2016. Data from the U.S. Department of Education shows a steady uptick over five years. In the 2017–2018 academic year—the most recent year for which aggregate data is available—a total of 6,697 students earned bachelor’s degrees in environmental science. That means 1,155 more graduates earned such degrees than did five years earlier.

The trend is illustrated by Chaminade’s School of Natural Science and Mathematics’s introduction of an Environmental Science major four years ago. While a major in Environmental Studies has existed since 2000, the decision to focus on hard sciences was a natural progression for such programs.

While there is an overlap that exists between the two majors, Environmental Science is an interdisciplinary science-based major, which combines biological, ecological, chemical, geological and mathematical principles often used to solve environmental challenges or manage natural resources. Conversely, Environmental Studies is an interdisciplinary social science and humanities-based major. It focuses on the human relationship with the environment, and how environmental challenges intersect with politics, economics, society and culture.

For 10 days in November, Mahuka was aboard the Exploration Vessel Nautilus surveying previously unmapped seafloor in U.S. waters south of the Hawaiian Islands. She was selected as a Seafloor Mapping Intern by Ocean Exploration Trust (OET), an organization that works to explore the ocean, seeking out new discoveries, while pushing the boundaries of STEAM education (Science, Technology, Engineering, the Arts, and Math) and technological innovation.

“It was a great experience after I found my sea legs,” Mahuka says. “I definitely chose the right career because marine science allows you to travel around the world, where you get to meet and learn from amazing and intellectual people who have the exact same passion as you do!”

‘Inana Innovators Program

October 13, 2023

Chaminade students participate in sustainability entrepreneurship

Madison Makishima ’25 was able to make adaptive surfboards out of recyclable materials and ocean plastics so people —like her—with disabilities could have access to the ocean. As part of Chaminade University’s ‘Inana Sustainability Entrepreneurship Program, Makishima and eight other fellow students, including Aleeyah Lemons ’24 and Carly Wieczorek ’24, were able to participate in a 10-week summer program that paired them with businesses that align with the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

“I learned a lot, especially how to effectively network,” said Makishima, whose project was titled Surf Sesh. “The mission of the project—which aligns with the UN’s SDGs—was to help people with disabilities gain access to surfing while recycling and reusing ocean plastic, and educating everyone about living sustainable lives.”

After winning a two-year $600,000 Minority Colleges and Universities Grant Competition from the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Minority Business Development Agency (MBDA), a hui of Chaminade professors developed the ‘Inana Sustainability Entrepreneurship Program, which aims to spark minority entrepreneurial innovation among Hawaii-Pacific undergraduates.

According to ‘Inana Sustainability Entrepreneurship Program’s coordinator, Mariane Uehara, the three goals of the program are: 1) To develop and implement programs for the education and training of undergraduate students in subjects directly relating to successful entrepreneurship; 2) To support minority business enterprises (MBEs), including building a diverse entrepreneurial pipeline to grow the number of MBEs; and 3) to create a UN Certificate program in sustainability entrepreneurship.

With the help of Rhea Jose, outreach coordinator for CIFAL Honolulu at Chaminade, Aleeyah Lemons ’24 pursued a project titled “Gender Equity through Malama Mai” or, cleverly, GEMM, and provided menstrual products in the women’s restrooms at Chaminade University.

“GEMM is a program developed to provide resources, care and education on menstrual health to those at Chaminade University, its surrounding community and across the Pacific,” wrote Lemons in her final report. “We aim to end period poverty on campus, and allow our students who menstruate to feel comfortable and supported by GEMM and their peers.”

Meanwhile, Carly Wieczorek ’24 designed a sustainable rooftop hydroponics system. “One major aspect of my activities was actively participating in exchanging ideas with local experts on hydroponics farming, visiting hydroponics farms on Oahu, and entrepreneurial skill workshops with industry professionals,” Wieczorek noted. “I’ve also been investigating innovative business approaches to urban agriculture, such as rooftop hydroponics, and examining how these practices align with the UN’s SDGs.”

The focus of the ‘Inana program is to nurture sustainability entrepreneurs in Hawaii, who will develop businesses that diversify and grow our economy while attending to the health of the planet. This, of course, is consistent with Chaminade’s United Nations CIFAL Center, which is focused on supporting progress toward the UN’s 17 SDGs in Hawai‘i and the Pacific region.

Three of the 17 SDGs in particular are addressed within the program: Promote sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment and decent work for all; build resilient infrastructure, promote inclusive and sustainable industrialization and foster innovation; and improve education, awareness-raising and human and institutional capacity on climate change mitigation, adaptation, impact reduction and early warning.

“Our first cohort consisted of nine students,” said Uehara, a Certified Health and Wellness Coach and former co-founder and director of Lanikai Juice Co. “This second cohort will focus on App creation with eight students. It’s great to see students—who all come from different disciplines—collobarate and solve problems.”

SPICE Institute Peppered with Data

July 5, 2023

Monthlong seminar focuses on helping students understand data

Data science continues to evolve as one of the most promising and in-demand disciplines, and budding data scientists are all too happy to explore the field … one byte at a time. Just ask Rylan Chong, Ph.D., Chaminade’s Data Science Program Director.

“Chaminade received approval in 2018 to launch a Data Science major, which was the first of its kind in Hawaii,” Chong says. “And we had our first cohort of 40-50 students in 2019. Now our classes are practically maxed out each semester.”

This summer, 35 students participated in the Supporting Pacific Indigenous Computing Excellence (SPICE) Data Science Summer Institute—from June 2-30—marking the largest number of participants since SPICE’s inception five years ago. Funded by a National Science Foundation grant, and in partnership with the Texas Advanced Computing Center, SPICE aims to level the playing field for Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander (NHPI) students, who are woefully underrepresented in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) fields, and specifically cutting-edge data science.

Of the 35 SPICE Data Science Institute participants, 19 of them were Silverswords. — Of the 35 SPICE program participants, 19 of them were Silverswords.

“We want to advance computing and data for social change and justice,” says Chong, who graduated with a bachelor’s in Computer Science from Chaminade in 2010, and with a doctorate in Information Security from Purdue University of West Lafayette in 2018. “We want to work with our community partners and upscale people’s knowledge about the use of data.”

SPICE participants include 22 undergraduate students from Hawaii, including 19 from Chaminade University. The remaining eight undergraduates hail from the Northern Marianas College (5), Mount Mercy University in Iowa, University of Portland and Guam Community College. Five undergraduate student mentors also were involved.

“Not to sound cliché, but data science is everywhere,” says Biology Assistant Professor Chrystie K. Naeole, Ph.D. “Students get to mesh science with data science, and to look at disparities among Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders.”

With one of the largest wealth gaps in the nation, high rates of incarceration, and high rates of illness and health disparity, Hawaii has a compelling need to address social justice issues. Students of Hawaiian descent have something they want to fix because they see the inequality every day in their families and their communities, from health and homelessness to the environment and sustainable energy.

“Most people have a passion. Most people care about something significant, something that they have a personal connection to,” says Kelly Gaither, director of Health Analytics at TACC and Associate Professor in Women’s Health at the Dell Medical School. “When you have a personal connection, it’s like a glue. It allows other concepts that you need to stick. In the absence of that glue, students may not realize they’d be happy working in computer science or data science because of the way it’s taught and presented to them.”

Chong believes we already apply data science in our daily routines. We compare prices, for example, when we’re shopping for groceries. We’ll shop at stores that offer better deals. Think of Longs Drugs on a Sunday or Safeway on $5 Fridays. We compare quantity and quality, a generic brand versus brand name.

“You can apply data science to every field—education, healthcare and mental health, environment science and climate change, and criminal justice,” Chong explains. “It’s not just about crunching numbers, but ensuring the numbers reflect different viewpoints and getting those numbers into the right hands.”

A 2022 Chaminade University alumna with a degree in Data Science, Analytics and Visualization and one-time SPICE participant, Zoey Kaneakua is now a data analyst with the Department of the Attorney General’s Crime Prevention and Justice Assistance Division. And her job: To monitor crime statistics in Hawaii and to share the data with the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s National Incident-Based Reporting System (NIBRS), an incident-based reporting system in which law enforcement collects data on each crime occurrence.

Zoey Kaneakua '22 at her computer — Zoey Kaneakua ’22 now works for the Department of the Attorney General’s Crime Prevention and Justice Assistance Division

“That was my first independent research involving juvenile justice,” recalls Kaneakua of her participation in SPICE during her junior year. “And I think I built my first dashboard in three days using Python (a high-level, general-purpose programming language).”

Like Artificial Intelligence (A.I.) of the past, data science was barely mentioned a decade ago in scientific circles. Now it’s everywhere. In the same way that A.I. is an umbrella term for intelligence, Data Science is an umbrella term for insights from data. Sometimes these two terms appear to be in conflict or competition, but this is not the case. The field of data and machine intelligence is vast and involves everything from understanding data to helping computers learn from the data and solve problems automatically using their learnings. Arguably, both Data Science and A.I. are critical for businesses and maintain a complicated symbiotic relationship.

“The underlying theme of SPICE is about building capacity and learning communities in the Pacific to harness the power of technology and data to address challenges,” Chong says, borrowing from the National Science Foundation’s Harnessing the Data Revolution initiative. “We focus on social aspects, applied ethics and responsibility working with people and data.”

In their final projects, SPICE participants studied various issues, from Indo-Pacific Resilience and Hawaii Biodiversity to Tax and Housing Equity and Health.

“All their projects were based on the United Nations’ 17 Sustainable Development Goals,” Chong said. “These students upskilled in analytics, research and programming. We also had a lot of firsts this year. To name a few, it included an opportunity to use the TACC supercomputers at the University of Texas at Austin; we had technical directors who joined us in helping on sponsored projects; and three students presented their projects in their preferred or native language that included Spanish, Carolinian and Native Hawaiian.”

People, Planet and Prosperity

June 21, 2023

Three-day conference sharply focused on issues of sustainability

We can no longer use the NIMBY (not in my backyard) argument when it comes to advancing future projects. We’ve arrived at a hinge moment when solving our biggest problems—from environmental to social—means we need to start saying YIMBY, yes to some things: from solar panels and wind turbines to battery production and lithium extraction to universal basic income and food security. These are challenges for sure, but left unaddressed, the consequences could spell disaster, as discussed during a three-day conference sponsored by Chaminade University’s CIFAL Center of Honolulu.

On the final day of the People, Planet and Prosperity for a Sustainable Future symposium, Dr. Gail Grabowsky addressed the United Nations Institute for Training and Research’s (UNITAR) Agenda 2030 for Sustainable Development and its corresponding 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDG), which cover a vast range of subjects that impact all of us.

“I’ve been steeped in environmental studies for more than 25 years,” said Grabowsky, Chaminade’s Dean of the School of Natural Sciences & Mathematics and Executive Director of CIFAL Honolulu during her keynote address to attendees. “And a year and a half into establishing CIFAL Honolulu, we’ve brought sustainability into people’s consciousness. And we’ve sponsored more than 50 events.”

The CIFAL Global Network is composed of 32 International Training Centers for Authorities and Leaders, all coordinated by UNITAR’s Social Development Program. The strategic locations of the 32 centers, which can be found across Asia, Oceania, Africa, Europe, the Americas and the Caribbean, ensure a global outreach. Each CIFAL—a French acronym for Centre International de Formation des Autorités/Acteurs Locaux (International Training Centers for Local Authorities and Local Actors)—outpost provides innovative training and serves as a hub for the exchange of knowledge among government officials, the private sector and civil society.

Chaminade President Dr. Lynn Babington with Hawaii Gov. Joshua Greene during the People, Planet and Prosperity Conference. — Chaminade President Dr. Lynn Babington with Hawaii Gov. Josh Green during the People, Planet and Prosperity Conference.

In his keynote address, Hawaii Gov. Josh Green pledged to generate billions of dollars from philanthropy and outside investment to make Hawaii the first state to become fully reliant on clean energy. It’s a familiar stance that Green has taken since he introduced a slew of major climate policy initiatives earlier this year, including a recommitment to the U.S. Climate Alliance and the establishment of a Climate Advisory Panel.

“We have so many people in this room, find a project that will help Hawaii, help us with health care, help us with the environment,” Green told attendees. “I will bring in investors from across the globe because they are interested in Hawaii, but we will still need to do the job. Be ready. It should be a dynamic few years.”

The presentations indeed reflected this dynamicism, featuring such diverse topics as “Teaching the Importance of the Ocean to Fight Climate Change,” “The First Statewide Initiative to Connect All Public Universities to Advance PK-12 Climate Literacy, Justice and Action,” “Innovation and Sustainability: The Negative Impact of the Protectionist Leadership Style” and “Food Insecurity.”

“Being part of the UN, we bring awareness to sustainable issues, and train people to get involved and to act on sustainability,” Grabowsky said. “We support economic sustainability in the context of still maintaining an aesthetic environment.”

As the only CIFAL Center in the Pacific, the Chaminade campus is part of a region that includes China, Korea, the Philippines and Australia. The CIFAL Network focuses on topics within four thematic axes: Urban Governance and Planning, Economic Development, Social Inclusion and Environmental Sustainability. Each center is locally managed by a host institution, with UNITAR providing academic content, technical support and quality assurance measures for their training activities. This allows each CIFAL to prioritize action in specific thematic axes, depending on local needs and priorities.

“The basic lesson of the Sustainable Development Goals is that human hopes, human aspirations, human fears are all interconnected,” said United Nations Assistant Secretary-General and executive director for UNITAR, Nikhil Seth, during last November’s “XIX Steering Committee Meeting of The CIFAL Global Network at Chaminade. “You can’t separate them and follow them in discreet ways. The SDGs are like an umbrella of issues and almost everything you can possibly think of are probably covered in the 17 SDGs.”

And that includes Grabowsky’s pet project, “Pono Popoki Project: Malama Management of Free-Roaming Felines.” “Cats can be good for people’s mental health, which is Goal 3 of the SDGs,” said Grabowsky, pointing to a colorful chart that depicts all the SDGs. “And it also teaches our students biology and wildlife conservation.”