Here we are well into pumpkin spice season, and you haven't heard from your CERENE neighborhood news yet! Never fear, though it is a little spooky out there. We have a special double issue for you filled with resilience updates from across the island to keep your cup overflowing with ideas, resources, and support for all the work you are doing.

Jump right in to view O'ahu Resilience Hub Updates below, and keep scrolling down to our community bulletin for regional and neighborhood-level resilience stories, invites, videos, updates, and opportunities this month.

Mahalo nui loa,

Dr. Miku Lenentine and the CERENE Team

The City and County of Honolulu Office of Climate Change Sustainability and Resiliency is completing the finishing touches on the "Action 15 Resilience Hub Network" Project Report and new webpage, which will launch soon! The finalized report will be ready in early November.

We are planning a Kaiāulu Climate Resilience Webinar to share the findings from the report. Keep an eye on your inbox for the RSVP notice so you are able to receive the Zoom link for this event.

I have attached a PDF of the Executive Summary to this newsletter so you can take a look at the "10,000" -foot view of the project and report findings. Here is also a direct link to the PDF of the Executive Summary

Some quick highlights:

Over 156 potential Hub locations were identified! (See map above)

Over 3000 resident engagements

Over 110 events were hosted

Over 250 tangible neighborhood-scale, region-specific next steps were generated

The site suitability maps now have the additional Resilience Hub locations identified in the workshops included on them. You can find the updated Resilience Hub Maps Here.

We are in conversations now with our Resilience Hub regional partners who helped host the Action 15 Hub workshops about next steps for creating a Resilience Hubs Advisory Council to guide continued work on this project, and to support the creation of an O'ahu Resilience Hub Collaborative (still to be named). Want to be included in these discussions? Sign up here or update your preferences for staying in touch, and we will follow up: https://go.hawaii.edu/3Lx

Just a quick note on the design: it turned out beautifully! The report was designed by a team of outstanding Resilience Corps Student Leaders, with Giavonna Kalaiwa'a (Kapi'olani Community College Alumni, now in Media Arts at UH West O'ahu) taking the lead on graphics. Here is what Giavonna wrote about the design:

"The inspiration for the report design comes from the Lauhala leaves of the pū hala. They are versatile yet fragile. The lauhala pattern represents the foundation of a conversation that needs to be had in hopes of "Pūpūkahi i holomua" - Unite to move forward (`Ōlelo Noʻeau #2758). The contour lines represent the different layers of this project, whether it's the conversations that were had, the people that met, the places that were talked about, or the ideas that were shared. Like Dr. Miku Lenentine said, "Big or small, we need them all".

~ Giavonna Kauakaʻapuni Kanekoa Kalaiwa'a, Graphics Design Lead

On August 8, 2023, the worst imaginable scenario happened. Deadly wildfires fueled by hurricane-force winds engulfed historic Lahaina and Kula on the island of Maui. Thousands of people were displaced, hundreds of homes and businesses were destroyed, and many were lives lost. Feelings of shock, anger, and sorrow from residents filled the air, while dear belongings and precious memories disappeared. Lahaina, the town I called home for the past 20 years, is unrecognizable; my house is now stripped down to its foundation. Luckily, many of my friends and extended family members are safe, but they are dealing with the harsh reality of losing everything. The words Lahaina Strong erupted from the mouths of many survivors, representing hope in our community’s overall strength and persistence. These words will stick with me for the years it will take for Lahaina to rebuild.

Read Story Here ...

Stories shared with permission from Aunty Manulani Aluli Meyer

From pilialoha, Pulama Collier, of Maui...

Laha ʻĀina

He laha ʻāina ko kākou e mahi ai

Our ancestral land is the source of our strength

A point between two infinities in-between two stories--old and new. We are changing and expanding in correlation with our land. The inevitability of growth is certain. Therefore, clarity in our understanding, along with the purpose and meaning of our people, land, and values, is necessary for our salvation. Whereas people and land are of one essence, the stability and health of the two parallel each other.

During these times, let us turn our hands downward and work on ourselves through our land.

A laha ka ʻāina laha ke kanaka. The breadth of opportunities for learning, living and loving our beloved land is expanding at a rapid pace presenting us with accelerated answers and divine repositioning. The extension of our intentions during these times will be reflected in all of these spaces.

E ola ko Hawaiʻi i ka ʻāina.

Read Full Message Here...

Our amazing assistant program coordinator for CERENE, Christopher Fujimoto, has completed his year of service with the AmeriCorps VISTA program. We will miss him so very much but are thrilled to announce he will be taking a position as _________________ with Wai'anae Coast Comprehensive Health Center supporting food resilience at their new campus and garden. Congratulations Chris!!!! Words cannot express how grateful we are for his tremendous support of CERENE as we launched into islandwide resilience hub planning. He has left his mark on us forever better!

If you missed this, watch the replay of the conversation with Kamanamaikalani Beamer, the Dana Naone Hall Chair at the UH Mānoa, and Peter Vitousek, Professor of Earth System Science at Stanford, on their new book, Islands and Culture: How Pacific Island Provide Paths toward Sustainability. Moderated by Kapuaʻala Sproat, Director of the Ka Huli Ao Center for Excellence in Native Hawaiian Law at the William S. Richardson School of Law.

The Resilience Corps Leadership Award Program is made possible through funding from our generous donors Hawaiian Electric and State Farm.

Copyright (C) 2023 Center for Resilient Neighborhoods. All rights reserved.