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December Newsletter Vol. 17 Issue 12
COMMITTEE CHAIR AGRICULTURE & ENVIRONMENT MEMBER
Judiciary Committee
Government Operations Committee
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Aloha e friends,
I hope you and your ‘ohana are well. Mele Kalikimaka! Hard to believe Christmas is Monday! And that our 2024 legislative session is just around the corner. Opening Day is on January 17. I invite you to stop by for refreshments and to help me kick off the upcoming session. If you have any ideas on bills you’d like introduced, let me know. As always, please contact me at (808) 586-6830 or sengabbard@capitol.hawaii.gov if I can help you or your ‘ohana in any way. I also invite you to follow me on social media: Instagram @SenatorMikeGabbard, Facebook, YouTube, and Twitter @SENMIKEGABBARD. Also, if you’d like to be added to my mailing list, you can send an email to sengabbard@capitol.hawaii.gov with “mailing list” in the subject line.
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Listen Story Meeting
Please join me at my Listen Story Community meeting on Saturday, January 27, from 9 am to 10 am, at Kapolei High School teachers’ lounge. I’ll share Legislative and District 21 Community Updates, with time for Q & A. You also have the option to attend virtually. Please email or call my office for a link to the Zoom meeting. ICYMI, we welcomed Craig Nakamoto, Executive Director of the Hawai‘i Community Development Authority (HCDA), as our guest speaker on Nov. 4. Craig served in various legal and business capacities for companies in Hawai‘i over the last forty years. He was the community outreach officer for HCDA in 2008-2009 and returned to this position in 2021. In May 2022, he was appointed as HCDAʻs Executive Director. What does the HCDA do? View his presentation to find out. You can watch the video recording here and view past recordings of Listen Story meetings on my YouTube channel here.
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Blessing and Grand Opening of KA‘ULU BY GENTRY November 16. (Pictured L-R: Senator Gabbard; Representative Rose Martinez; Quentin Machida, President and CEO of Gentry Homes; and Representative David Alcos.) | |
As I stood before the audience at the Gentry Home blessing on November 16, I got chicken skin. After sharing Gentry Homes updates in my community meetings over the past few years, it was awesome to finally see the vision of Gentry Homes come to fruition! It’s particularly exciting for me because my wife Carol and I live right down the street, and drive by each day watching the progress.... When Polynesian voyagers embarked on a journey in search of a new life, Kalaeloa was one of their first landing spots on the Island of Oʻahu, and the first ʻulu trees were planted here. The name, “Ka‘ulu” was thus inspired by the ulu tree. The first set of homes went on sale during its Grand Opening November 18. I presented Quentin Machida, President and CEO of Gentry Homes, an Honorary Certificate on behalf of the Senate, to recognize the Blessing and Grand Opening of KA‘ULU BY GENTRY. Welcome to the neighborhood :) | |
Enjoying the Special Olympics Hawai‘i Sports and Wellness Center Grand Opening on December 1, with Representative Diamond Garcia. | |
The growing community of Kapolei never ceases to amaze me. I was honored to attend the Special Olympics Hawai‘i Sports and Wellness Center Grand Opening on December 1, and present them with an Honorary Certificate on behalf of the State Legislature. More than fifty-five years ago, the first Special Olympics organization was founded by Eunice Kennedy Shriver. Her mission was to provide people with intellectual disabilities ongoing opportunities to realize their potential, develop physical fitness, demonstrate courage, and experience joy and friendship. Today, Special Olympics is a global organization that changes lives by promoting understanding, acceptance, and inclusion among people with and without intellectual disabilities. Special Olympics Hawai'i has successfully utilized sports as a catalyst to empower individuals with intellectual disabilities and foster a future of acceptance and inclusion here in the islands. Now with the grand opening of their Sports and Wellness Center in the Ewa/Kapolei community, Special Olympics Hawai'i athletes, their families, coaches, and supporters will have a facility all their own.
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YOUTH CLIMATE FUTURE FORUM | |
Talking with the Regenerative Agriculture group during the Second Annual Youth Climate Future Forum Hawai‘i at the State Capitol, December 9. (Pictured L-R: Emi Matsura-Punahou School, Naomi Matsura, Alana Sagaysay- Iolani School, Senator Gabbard, and Vivienne Hill–Honolulu Waldorf School.)
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I had the honor of participating in the 2nd Annual Youth Climate Future Forum Hawai‘i at the State Capitol, on December 9. One of the overarching goals of the forum was to empower youth in Hawai‘i to engage more effectively with state Legislators and make their voices heard in climate policy discussions. The event was a huge success with over 40 youth representing 17 educational institutions. I met with youth (ages 14-26) and discussed their concerns about climate change and how this is affecting our environment, as well as listened to their recommendations for 2024 legislation. The students organized working sessions around environmental bills and policies to be considered in the 2024 legislative session, focusing on five main policy areas: regenerative food systems, clean energy and transportation, climate justice and human rights, sustainable infrastructure, and climate and the economy.
Participants discussed bills and policy goals and selected the ones they wanted to support during the upcoming legislative session. The youth also held sessions on how to track bills and submit testimonies and how to make meaningful connections with their legislators. By the end of the forum, the youth had come up with a legislative agenda that they could follow throughout the following 2024 legislative session. I was impressed with their eagerness to get involved and their knowledge of the various topics. I look forward to continuing to engage with these bright youth during the 2024 session. Many mahalos to the organizers and group leaders, including Paul Bernstein, State Co-Coordinator for Citizens' Climate Lobby and Researcher at UH Manoa, and Debbie Millikin, Director of Sustainability at Punahou, for making this happen.
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Talking with the Regenerative Agriculture group during the Second Annual Youth Climate Future Forum Hawai‘i at the State Capitol, December 9. (Pictured L-R: Emi Matsura-Punahou School, Naomi Matsura, Alana Sagaysay- Iolani School, and Vivienne Hill–Honolulu Waldorf School.)
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Climate Change Informational Briefing
Mark your calendars! I’m co-hosting, along with Representative Nicole Lowen, a joint Climate Change Informational Briefing.. The Senate Committee on Agriculture and Environment (AEN) and House Committee on Energy & Environmental Protection (EEP) are hosting several experts who will speak during the briefing to alert people to the immediacy and magnitude that the threat of climate change poses to Hawaiʻi. The Climate Change Info Briefing will be held from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. on Thursday, January 11, 2024, in Room 325. This will also be live-streamed on YouTube. I hope you can tune in!
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Hawaiian Earth Site Visit
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Visiting with Marvin Min - Senior Vice President Hawaii Division, at Hawaiian Earth Recycling Center in Wahiawa on December 8, and learning about his green waste operation. | |
In 2022, I presented the Hawaiian Earth Products (HEP) (www.hawaiianearth.com) company with an Honorary Certificate on behalf of the Senate for the Hawai‘i Invasive Species Council (HISC) Annual Awards event. HEP is a perfect example of the momentous effort to support the mission of the HISC to eradicate and prevent the spread of invasives in Hawai‘i... HEP was recognized as “Outstanding Business Leader” for its dedication to the fight against invasive species, especially the Coconut Rhinoceros Beetle (CRB). Hawaiian Earth Products has trained employees to adopt best management practices for green waste and to respond when invasive species are identified. HEP recognizes an opportunity and responsibility to Hawaii’s ecosystems.
Their operations turn food scraps, green waste, and wood into usable, nutrient-rich compost and soil products. They’ve invited staff from the CRB Response Team (a collaboration of the Hawaiʻi Department of Agriculture and UH) to train their staff to recognize CRB and distribute information to community members at mulch giveaway days.
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On December 8, I saw how HEP has incorporated CRB monitoring into their workflow and has stopped deliveries based on potential CRB sightings. Hawaiian Earth Products’ focus on the big picture has been a huge asset in minimizing the spread of invasive CRB. Hawaiian Earth Recycling is the largest producer of compost in the state, and the only licensed facility to make and sell compost on Oahu monitored by the State Department of Health. I was thoroughly impressed by their operation.
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2nd Annual Food Systems Summit
UH West O'ahu - December 13, 2023
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Speaking at the 2nd Annual Food Systems Summit at UH West O'ahu on December 13. (Pictured L-R: Senator Gabbard, Representative Kirstin Kahaloa, and Senator Donovan Dela Cruz.)
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On December 13, I sat on a discussion panel at the 2nd Annual Food Systems Summit at UH West O'ahu. The Summit brought together key stakeholders to learn and share priorities around food policy to achieve a more economically robust, sustainable, and resilient food system for Hawaiʻi. The need for a comprehensive food system plan, including strategies for building food system resilience and disaster preparedness, remains a key priority for myself and many stakeholders.
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Speaking at the 2nd Annual Food Systems Summit at UH West O'ahu on December 13. (Pictured L-R: Senator Gabbard and Representative Kirstin Kahaloa.)
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Mahalo nui to HI-PHI (HI Public Health Institute) and all the partners involved in this amazing collaborative statewide project: Transforming Hawaiʻi’s Food System Together. We keep talking about importing 85-90% of our food at a cost of $3B every year...It’s TIME TO ACTUALLY DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT. I plan to reintroduce a bill this legislative session that will do just that.
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Capital Improvement Projects (CIP) 2023 Funding
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- Kalaeloa Airport – $10 million to finance the construction of utility system improvements
- Hawaiʻi State Veterans Home – $255,892
- Daniel K. Akaka State Veterans Home – $1,526,812
- Kapolei High School, ADA Improvements – $400,000
- UH West O’ahu planning costs for a TOD feasibility study f$250,000
- Kapolei Interchange Complex, Phase 3 – $500,000
- East Kapolei Transit-Oriented Development (TOD) Master Plan – $300,000
- Feasibility Study, East Kapolei New High School – $100k.
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