Climate Resiliency

We are at a critical moment for our state and our planet: we know that unavoidable climate impacts are already here and that even with aggressive climate action, they will persist through the second half of this century and beyond. While the Harold K.L. Castle Foundation’s environmental grantmaking has focused on nearshore ocean resiliency over the past 15 years, the looming specter of climate change has created a need to examine our environmental strategy within a broader climate context. 

The solutions we need for climate adaptation and resilience exist: Hawaiʻi can learn from and apply best practices from other jurisdictions, and we have local wisdom and knowledge that supported generations of Hawaiians in pre-contact times that can be used here and shared beyond our own borders. 

State leaders also see climate as a priority: political leaders at the state and local level have prioritized climate in their agendas, realizing that climate will be a defining issue during their time in office. Similarly, business leaders are stepping up, including through the Hawaiʻi Executive Collaborative’s Climate Coalition. And the next generation of leaders – youth – are in many ways at the vanguard of the climate fight, including through the Hawaiʻi Youth Climate Coalition.  

This fight is ours to win or lose in the next decade: as the inevitable impacts of climate change occur, our communities will face moments of extreme stress. We must do the work now to ensure we are prepared, and to build the social cohesion necessary so that we turn towards one another – not against each other – during cycles of stresses and shocks.

Acknowledging the above, what follows provides a shape, structure, and focus to the Castle Foundation’s Climate Resilience Strategy. This strategy also includes recommendations on leveraging non-financial resources to deliver on Castle’s goals and objectives, including embedding climate resilience as a cross-cutting value throughout the Foundation’s work and the work of existing grantees.

The 2020s have been called the “decisive decade” for the future of humanity and the planet. Global climate change has reached a tipping point, and the world is on track to overshoot 1.5°C global warming potentially as soon as 2026 (in fact, the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) estimates that the world is currently heading for around 2.6°C warming). Exceeding 1.5°C will trigger multiple climate tipping points – conditions beyond which irreversible and dangerous changes in our climate systems become self-perpetuating.

Even under the most ambitious climate action scenarios (far beyond where current policies get us), significant global warming is already “baked in” for decades, if not generations. In other words, climate impacts – including substantial sea level rise from collapsing ice sheets, dieback of biodiverse biomes such as Hawaiʻi’s warm-water corals, and societally destabilizing resource scarcity – are all to some extent now inevitable. 

In Hawaiʻi, climate change is already negatively impacting us today. Tradewinds have been shifting direction altering weather patterns. Rainfall has statistically been proven to be dropping annually.  Sea levels are detectably rising and intruding further inland on full moon and king tide events. Corals are bleaching at an alarming rate. Storms are becoming more severe. With seasonal and weather shifts, animal migration, reproduction, and behaviors are shifting with them. 70 percent of beaches on Maui, Oʻahu, and Kauaʻi face chronic erosion and 13 miles (10 percent of Oʻahu’s beaches) have already been lost.

Like the COVID-19 pandemic, climate change is a threat multiplier for Hawaii’s communities – and its consequences are leading to negative economic, public health, and environmental risks, affecting communities, cultural resources, built infrastructure, biodiversity, and people’s livelihoods. 

In the face of these impacts, Hawaiʻi has demonstrated leadership on the national and global stage to address the climate crisis – including being the first state in the nation to issue a climate emergency declaration, and aiming for the state to be net carbon negative by 2045. Hawaiʻi’s counties have also developed community-driven climate action and resilience plans: Oʻahu, in particular, has released multiple plans just in the last few years, including their Ola Oʻahu Resilience Strategy (2019) and a soon-to-be-released Climate Ready Oʻahu localized adaptation strategy. Maui, Kauaʻi, and Big Island each have a variety of adaptation, mitigation, and resilience strategies as well. Yet many key challenges remain, including ensuring that these plans move from vision to reality.

Currently, funding for climate resilience in Hawaiʻi is severely limited, and what does exist is not well coordinated (see Appendix B for landscape). Philanthropic support for climate resilience in Hawaiʻi can help to address five key challenges:

1. A high baseline of vulnerability and inequality: as a state, Hawaiʻi is highly vulnerable to climate impacts, and accelerating statewide poverty and inequality means that some communities are at greater baseline risk to climate hazards.

2. Lack of public awareness/education: while the vast majority of Hawaiʻi residents believe that climate change is real, misunderstandings and a lack of knowledge remain – including among policy and decision-makers. The ongoing conflict around the idea of managed retreat – particularly on the North Shore – is one example of this. Without public awareness and support for climate resilience, there is the risk that addressing climate becomes a divisive/“elites” issue – ironically undermining the community cohesion desperately needed to meet the challenge.

3. Drowning in data, thirsty for knowledge: climate data is available in Hawaiʻi, thanks in large part to our institutions of higher education. But we lack the analysis required to inform good decision-making by political, business, and community leaders.

4. Coordination on climate resilience is critical but challenging: many climate plans exist in Hawaiʻi but limited resources and a lack of coordination across jurisdictions hinders implementation, accountability, and the ability to share learnings and best practices across levels of government. There is also a need to build coordination between community-based organizations (CBOs) and government, and amongst communities and CBOs themselves. Finally, there is a need to better coordinate government policy and community concerns leading to practical solutions that truly make a difference – for example, in frontline communities like Kaʻaʻawa.

5. Need for a deeper bench of climate resilience leaders and organizations: the landscape of civil society groups, NGOs, and academia working on climate resilience is fragmented and incomplete, particularly at the community/grassroots level. Groups that do exist have limited capacity and resources. There are no fully resilience-focused organizations developing thought leadership in Hawaiʻi that is actionable, especially focused on state agency policies and implementation.

To prepare Hawaii’s communities for these and other inevitable climate impacts we know are coming, investing in climate resilience is critical. For the purposes of this strategy, we define climate resilience as follows:

Climate resilience: Hawaiʻi communities – especially the most vulnerable and those that have been historically marginalized through underinvestment, exclusion from decision-making, and colonization – are empowered with the resources and information to survive and thrive in the face of unavoidable climate impacts. Hawaiʻi adapts to current impacts and actively prevents escalation of future impacts.

As the Castle Foundation strives to create meaningful and lasting change, it is important to acknowledge and harness key drivers of momentum that could either enhance or hinder a strategy’s targeted impact. While the challenges presented by the climate crisis in Hawaiʻi are significant, so too are the opportunities (and obligations) to act:

1. This is a critical moment for our state and our planet: we know that unavoidable climate impacts are already here and that even with aggressive climate action, they will persist through the second half of this century and beyond.

• In the wake of COVID, understanding of the value of resilience is greater than ever: COVID exposed and accelerated many societal vulnerabilities and inequalities, and frayed many of the same systems which will continue to be hit by climate impacts. There is much to learn from COVID about how we can build more resilient communities and systems responsive to climate disasters.

• Unprecedented levels of federal funding exist for climate action: the Infrastructure, Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) in 2021 and Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) in 2022 represent the largest federal climate investments ever made. The IRA alone provides $369 billion for energy and climate change, with a key role for state and local governments in applying for and effectively implementing funding.

• The solutions we need for climate adaptation and resilience exist: Hawaiʻi can learn from and apply best practices from other jurisdictions. We also have local wisdom and knowledge that supported generations of resilient Hawaiians in pre-contact times that can be revitalized and shared beyond our own borders.

• State leaders are beginning to prioritize climate: Governor Josh Green and many other political leaders at the state and local level have prioritized climate in their agendas and realize that climate will be a defining issue of their time in office. Similarly, business leaders are stepping up, including through the Hawaiʻi Executive Collaborative’s Climate Coalition. 

• This fight is ours to win or lose in the next decade: as the inevitable impacts of climate change occur, our communities will face moments of extreme stress. We must do the work now to ensure we are prepared, and to build the social cohesion necessary so that during cycles of stresses and shocks that we turn towards one another – not against each other.

Resilience is already embedded in the Castle Foundation’s current grantmaking portfolio: 63% of current grantees from 2021-2023 rated medium or highly relevant to resilience. This Strategy therefore builds on the solid foundation of our existing work and is rooted in the Castle Foundation’s founding principles through the following four pillars: 

1. Investing in promising initiatives and organizations: investing the Foundation’s resources through: 1) grantmaking; 2) convening ability; and 3) introducing and expanding new ideas and approaches, including founding new efforts as needed. Central to this principle is the belief that long-time community leaders and those closest to the problem are best positioned to implement effective solutions.

2. Building resilience resources for Hawaii’s future: resources include financial, cultural, political, policy, natural/land, human, educational, infrastructure, food, housing, health, and others. 

3. Windward Oʻahu as a demonstration of climate resilience: as with much of the Foundation’s Windward Oʻahu work, in-region successes to the most complex problems can be readily exported to other regions throughout the state and across the Pacific.

4. Focusing on impact in the next seven years in Hawaiʻi: 2020-2030 has been called the “decisive decade” within which we must take meaningful climate action. Reviewing progress on this strategy is recommended at the three-, five-, and ten-year marks in line with the Foundation’s standard strategy review cycle.

This Climate Resilience Strategy is designed to be complementary to existing Castle grantee work and consistent with the Foundation’s values, while leveraging Castle’s financial and non-financial resources. The Strategy is also meant to be consistent with state and county climate adaptation and resilience plans, with the goal of leveraging funding from other sources (federal funding, additional philanthropic capital, etc.). Finally, this strategy was developed to generate as many learning opportunities as possible in the first year, while being realistic about what can be achieved with the level of investment available in year one and subsequent years.

The climate crisis is altering our world in ways that impact ecosystems, human health, and community resilience. These impacts cause present and future harm to Hawaiʻi residents, our environment, and the economy. This is especially true for the most underserved and historically marginalized communities, who are the most vulnerable to climate stresses and shocks. In the face of these challenges, our vision for a climate resilient Hawaiʻi is one where communities, especially the most vulnerable and historically marginalized, have the capacity to survive and thrive in the face of unavoidable climate impacts.

Core Assumptions Overall: Healthy people, communities, and ecosystems are more resilient communities (physically, financially, culturally). All current Foundation investments contribute to Hawaii’s resilience. Governance: Rapid action by state and local government is possible when leadership has the knowledge and political will. Community: Prioritizing frontline communities who are the most vulnerable, least prepared, and disproportionately impacted by climate change will lead to more equitable outcomes. Accessible information and resources will help communities, especially low income and communities of color, to prepare for impacts. Community leaders and those closest to the problem are best positioned to implement effective solutions. Leadership: A rich ecosystem of current and future leaders and organizations will provide the analysis and advocacy required to propel government forward. Public Sector: The scale of the problem requires multi-jurisdictional strategic partnerships. Better coordination between government policy and community concerns will lead to practical solutions that make a difference for frontline communities. Unprecedented federal funds can be used to help unlock state and local public resources. Private Sector: Private sector leadership is essential to achieving the scope and speed of action necessary for resilience. Influencing the private sector requires effective and respected coalitions.

The Castle Foundation’s available resources to implement this strategy can largely be organized into three categories: 1) assets; 2) abilities; and 3) networks. 

1) Assets: The Foundation has allocated an initial $500,000 in funding for this climate resilience strategy. In addition, the Foundation can leverage staff time and effort, consultant/contractor capacity, physical assets (e.g. Kaneohe Ranch Building at Castle Junction), and the ability to unlock other funding – including federal (IIJA and IRA); state, city and county; other philanthropic funding; and private sector funding. 

2) Abilities: The Foundation has a unique set of abilities, including its influence and leadership team, which can help introduce and spread new ideas and approaches. The Foundation also has influence as a result of its grantmaking, and the ability to push for greater cooperation and coordination amongst grantees. One of the Foundation’s greatest strengths is its facilitation and convening power. Further, the Foundation also has the ability to influence other foundations.

3) Networks: The Foundation has access to large and diverse stakeholder networks, including public, private, NGO, and philanthropic relationships; affiliations (e.g. Biodiversity Funders Group); the Hawaiʻi Environmental Funders Group; and the Hawaiʻi Executive Collaborative Climate Coalition, among others. 

This grantmaking strategy focuses on three main funding priorities: 1) Coordination and Capacity-Building, 2) Thought Leadership and Innovation, and 3) Education and Leadership Development. These priorities were informed by a variety of factors, including Castle Foundation’s existing grantmaking areas, its strengths, and areas where philanthropic capital is best positioned for catalytic impact.

1) Coordination and Capacity-Building:

Lack of coordination across jurisdictions and between non-profit organizations, government, business leaders and other stakeholders, and amongst communities themselves hinders implementation, accountability, and the ability to share learnings and best practices across levels of government. 

Funding in this area will support the facilitation of community and government communication and coordination to support climate resilience implementation. Examples of funding could include: 

• Supporting government capacity, such as via additional staff capacity and/or external technical assistance; 
• Investing in community groups, such as seed funding for local resilience hubs on Windward Oʻahu and beyond to support inclusive community engagement and help shape government planning and policy processes, or extending the scope of the Pilina Fund.

2) Thought Leadership & Innovation:

There is a need to better build awareness and shared understanding of the challenges and opportunities related to climate resilience through analysis, demonstration efforts, and a deeper bench of climate resilience leadership organizations. Examples of funding could include: 

• Investing in new tools and identifying knowledge gaps and additive solutions, such as a Hawaiʻi-specific climate equity and resilience mapping tool;
• Incubating new initiatives and supporting local leadership in providing coordination and information to the field, such as investing in Resilience Hubs, especially in Windward Oʻahu’s frontline communities, or incubating new resilience-focused organization(s) that can coordinate a coalition of diverse stakeholders and drive policy outcomes.

3) Education and Leadership Development:

There is a lack of public awareness and education when it comes to climate resilience in Hawaiʻi. While the issue is steadily climbing the priority ranking of political, business, and community leaders alike, there is a need for education and leadership development to ensure that those current and future leaders are prepared with the knowledge, tools, and skills required to successfully achieve the transition to a climate resilient future. To help catalyze momentum through thought leadership and leadership training and development, funding could include: 

• Expanding existing leadership training programs to focus on resilience and include professionals from all sectors;
• Implementing community learning programs to educate and establish a shared understanding of climate impacts and resilience; 
• Investing in Hawaiʻi’s youth with a focus on resilience; 
• Mobilizing a diverse constituency for action on climate risks, impacts, and resilience strategies through a local networked community of resilience practitioners, facilitators, and advocates. 

By deploying philanthropic capital according to the proposed funding priorities and associated activities above, this strategy will produce three overarching outputs: 

1) Community Resilience Capacity:

 This includes inclusive community input and capacity-building, e.g. around emergency preparedness, cross-jurisdictional collaboration and coordination, community cohesion, cultural resilience, and greater self-determination. 

2) Catalytic Implementation Support: 

This includes resource mobilization (e.g. through federal funding) and support for implementation of climate policies and plans, facilitation to increase efficiencies and reduce loopholes, and high-quality analysis to support better policy decision-making.

3) Equitable Leadership: 

This includes leadership and governance that is resilience and equity-driven, including through leadership training and development and the institutionalization of climate resilience through policy, the development of credible climate resilience messengers and informed decision makers, and strengthened perception and understanding of climate resilience issues amongst political, business, youth, and community leaders alike. 

The specific results of these outputs are mapped across the three designated outcomes sought in the table below:

The outcomes of this strategy are based on the idea that there are three key foundational drivers of climate resilience, adapted from an article entitled “Sustainability Strategies for a Rapidly Changing Planet”: 1) Increasing the overall baseline health of systems (ecosystems, communities, economies); 2) reducing vulnerabilities of these systems to known stresses; and 3) strengthening the ability of society to proactively develop strategies to shape uncertain change.

These drivers of resilience have been translated into the following outcomes for the purposes of this strategy:

1) A Healthy Baseline: Castle Foundation helps to create the preconditions for resilience by making ecosystems and communities as healthy as possible. 

• Hawaii’s communities are actively engaged and are leaders in the creation of climate resilient communities.
• Ecosystems and livelihoods are cultivated for sustainability and climate resilience.

2) Preparedness: Reducing climate vulnerabilities as much as possible. 

Hawaiʻi has developed several essential capacities for climate resilience:

• Cross-jurisdictional partnerships and coordination
• Ability to leverage and obtain public and private funds to invest in infrastructure, other resilience actions.
• Proficient and diverse civil society ecosystem.
• Policies and actions effectively implemented.

3) Capacity to Transition: Where climate impacts are unavoidable, optimizing for and navigating necessary transitions.

• Emerging Hawaiʻi leadership is more climate ready for future challenges, both identified and unknown.
• Social cohesion and connectedness is measurably strengthened through resilience efforts that build social inclusion, social capital, social mobility, equity, and self-determination.
• There is an increased ability to host productive, hard conversations at the grassroots level.

This strategy aims to achieve impact at multiple levels:

• Local impact. Communities—particularly in Windward Oʻahu and other climate vulnerable areas of the state —are empowered through resources and partnerships to design the climate resilience solutions they need.

• County planning. As the State’s commerce hub, Honolulu has a clear climate plan and implementation pathway to ensure statewide resilience.

• Statewide coordination. The State of Hawaiʻi is prepared for climate impacts and actively reduces climate vulnerabilities through implementation of statewide adaptation and resilience goals:
  • Data, mapping and analysis needed to address climate vulnerabilities, particularly in the most impacted communities, tracking progress against a set of clear indicators;
  • Effective, coordinated policy development & implementation; continuous improvement of state plans, policies, and ordinances; 
  • Resilience-related educational and career opportunities.

• Global ripple effect. Hawaiʻi attracts resources and expertise globally, and grows them locally, serving as a “lighthouse” leader and global demonstration archipelago for climate solutions for the Pacific Community and beyond.

A set of 10 key metrics are proposed across three outcomes—improved baseline, greater preparedness, and increased capacity to transition—to measure community, ecological, and governance resilience. To measure progress and assess the Foundation’s contribution, we recommend collecting and analyzing data as follows: 

1. Grantees’ self-reported activities and results (e.g., annual surveys, interviews, and grant reports); 
2. An annual compilation by Hawaiʻi Green Growth (HGG) summarizing progress on climate resilience in the State as part of Castle Foundation’s existing grant to them. 

The ability of Castle Foundation to directly drive climate resilience is limited. This strategy therefore includes opportunities to leverage non-grant contributions to deliver on this strategy, including:

1. Embedding climate resilience as a cross-cutting value that underpins the whole of Castle Foundation’s strategy.
2. Directing existing grantees to consider and address climate resilience in their work.
3. Considering contributing additional resources to implement this strategy, including support to staff to manage grantees, convene key stakeholders, etc.

In developing a definition for climate resilience for the Foundation, the following definitions and concepts were taken into consideration:

• The Climate Resilience Collaborative at UH Mānoa (adopted from the Union of Concerned Scientists): “Solving the climate crisis isn’t just about cutting carbon emissions. It’s about protecting people from harm. We’re in a climate crisis. As the world warms, people across the globe face daunting new challenges, on a scale never seen before. To withstand those challenges—and to thrive—we need climate resilience. Climate resilience is about successfully coping with and managing the impacts of climate change while preventing those impacts from growing worse. A climate resilient society would be low-carbon and equipped to deal with the realities of a warmer world. There’s only one real way to achieve climate resilience: cut the heat-trapping emissions that drive climate change while adapting to the changes that are unavoidable—and do so in ways that make the world more equitable and just, not less.”
• 2019 Oʻahu Resilience Strategy: “The capacity of individuals, communities, institutions, businesses and systems within a city to survive, adapt and thrive no matter what kinds of chronic stresses or acute shocks they encounter.” 
• U.S. Climate Resilience Toolkit (referenced in HB 239 (2023)): “Resilience is the capacity of a system to retain essential functions before, during, and after a hazard strikes.”
• The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC): “The ability of a social or ecological system to absorb disturbances while retaining the same basic structure and ways of functioning, the capacity for self-organization and the capacity to adapt to stress and change”  – IPCC AR4, 2007
• Hoʻomau: To persist, perpetuate, persevere, continue, carry on. To be steady, constant, enduring, unceasing.
• The Climate Analytics Caribbean outlines three key pillars for building climate change resilience:  
  • Resilient People and Livelihoods: Invest in early warning systems, create green jobs that are secure and sustainable, and implement stronger social protection and climate finance programmes that work.
  • Resilient Environmental Systems: Protect natural ecosystems as our first line of defense and invest in programs that support biodiversity and preservation.

Resilient Businesses and Economies: Create and support a network of governments, businesses, investors and active society where all climate resistance are fully understood and agreements are made to act ethically and responsibly.

Adaptive Coastal Management Recommendations, Actions and Strategies. North Shore Coastal Resilience Working Group, 2022. 

This community-driven report lays out a set of recommended actions and strategies to address the chronic coastal erosion of the North Shore of Oʻahu. The report lays out short-, mid-, and long-term strategies to address coastal erosion. The working group was a collaborative effort of the Surfrider Foundation Hawaiʻi Region, UH Sea Grant, and SSFM International. 

Barr Foundation: Climate Resilience. 

This provides an overview of the Barr Foundation’s Climate Resilience grantmaking strategy, team, and recent blogposts. The Barr Foundation’s resilience priorities are to 1)  Build awareness and mobilize a diverse constituency for action on climate risks, impacts, and resilience strategies; 2) Mobilize key stakeholders to advance equitable policies and resilience plans; and 3) Catalyze momentum through demonstration projects that integrate resilience into the fabric of cities. 

Chen, Maggie. 2021. Assessing Hawaiian Climate Resilience Plans on Flood Management. University of San Francisco. 

This report analyzes the robustness and effectiveness of climate resilience plans in Hawaiʻi – particularly on Kauaʻi, Maui, and Oʻahu – as relates to flooding and coastal hazards. 

Climate Justice Resilience Fund (CJRF).

Launched in 2016, CJRF is a pooled fund supported by multiple philanthropies which has mobilized $25 million to date in grants supporting grants that support women, youth, and Indigenous Peoples to create and share their own solutions for climate resilience. 

Climate Justice Resilience Fund. 2019. “Indigenous communities are at the forefront of climate resilience.” Climate Home News.

This article written by the Climate Justice Resilience Fund highlights the importance of Indigenous communities and knowledge in addressing climate resilience, highlighting the work of the organizations Indigenous Climate Action and Pawanka Fund. 

Climate Ready Oʻahu: Risk Assessment Results. City & County of Honolulu OCCSR, ICF. 2020. 

This Risk Assessment was done as part of groundwork for the forthcoming Oʻahu Adaptation Plan, assessing the following climate risks: hurricanes, “rain bombs,” sea level rise and coastal erosion, decrease in precipitation, and increase in temperature. These risks were assessed in terms of affecting the population (physical health and safety, mental health, community cohesion and equity), economy (economic prosperity and infrastructure), and environment and culture. 

Climate Resilience Collaborative: 2022 Annual Report. Climate Resilience Collaborative (CRC), University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa, School of Ocean and Earth Science and Technology (SOEST).

This report summarizes CRC’s first year of work which heavily focused on sea level rise-related flooding and coastal erosion, including modeling and future projections, and analysis of past climate change-induced events.

Climate Resilience Fund (CRF).

Launched in 2016, CRF is a multi-foundation initiative which supports resilience and sustainability outcomes in communities across the U.S. and for the natural systems on which they depend.

Hawaiʻi Highways Climate Adaptation Action Plan (2021) 

This plan from HDOT addresses potential risks and impacts to state roads and bridges from severe weather hazards including landslides, lava flow, floods, wildfires, and sea level rise. The plan also offers strategies for a more resilient highway system going forward.

Hawaiʻi Ocean Resources Management Plan (2020 update)

This statewide plan seeks to resolve coastal problems and issues that are not adequately addressed by existing laws and rules.

Hawai‘i Sea Level Rise Vulnerability and Adaptation Report (2022 update) 

This report addresses the threat posed by climate change to public health, natural resources, economic well-being, and the environment of Hawai‘i, and assesses progress made over the past five years in preparing the state for the impacts of sea level rise.

Honolulu Climate Change Commission – Climate Change Brief 2023. City and County of Honolulu Climate Change Commission 

This report updates the Commission’s 2018 Climate Change Brief, updated with the latest climate science and accompanied by various topically-focused guidance documents.

Kīlauea Recovery and Resilience Plan,  see page 92, 94

This Plan lays out strategies in the Puna region addressing past and potential future Kīlauea eruptions, disaster readiness, and overall community resilience. 

Maui County’s Climate Action and Resiliency Plan (CARP): 2022 Status Update. Maui County Office of Climate Change, Sustainability, and Resiliency.

This is Maui’s first CARP, putting forth a strategy to address climate on Maui, Lānaʻi, and Molokaʻi. 

The Multi-Hazard Pre-Disaster Mitigation Plan. City and County of Honolulu OCCSR. 2020. 

The multi-hazard strategy presented in this plan addresses the relationship among various types of hazards, evaluates the effects of climate change, and prioritizes mitigation policies, actions, and projects.

Maui County’s Climate Action and Resiliency Plan (CARP): 2022 Status Update. Maui County Office of Climate Change, Sustainability, and Resiliency.

This is Maui’s first CARP, putting forth a strategy to address climate on Maui, Lānaʻi, and Molokaʻi.

Ola Oʻahu Resilience Strategy 2019. City and County of Honolulu; Office of Climate Change, Sustainability, and Resiliency (OCCSR); and 100 Resilient Cities.

This report outlines a set of 44 actions developed with input from thousands of residents which “address the challenge of long-term affordability and the impacts of a climate crisis.” The strategies fall into four pillars: 1) Remaining Rooted, 2) Bouncing Forward, 3) Climate Security, and 4) Community Cohesion. 

One Climate, One Oʻahu: City and County of Honolulu Climate Action Plan 2020-2025. City and County of Honolulu OCCSR, University of Hawaiʻi Economic Research Organization (UHERO) and Institute for Sustainability and Resilience (ISR). 

This is Climate Action Plan outlines 9 climate strategies and 47 actions for the City to pursue in the next 5 years to substantially reduce GHGs from ground transportation, electricity, and waste sectors — a reduction of 45% by 2025 relative to 2015.

Transcending Oil: Hawaiʻi’s Path to a Clean Energy Economy. Elemental Excelerator, 2018.  

This report lays out how Hawaiʻi can transition away from fossil fuels more rapidly than planned, and how it can economically benefit in the process. This report was commissioned by Elemental Excelerator and independently conducted by Rhodium Group in partnership with Smart Growth America, Polygraph, and Sudokrew Solutions.

Waypoints: Charting Hawaiʻi’s Course to a Resilient Future. Blue Planet Foundation. 2020. 

This report was published in mid-2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic, and outlines 50 actions Hawaiʻi can take to rebuild economically, equitably, and sustainably after suffering the negative societal, health, and economic effects of the pandemic.