Dec 17, 2015 | Education
In celebration of National Geographic Awareness Week, November 17-21, the Maui Economic Development Board’s Women in Technology (WIT) Project presented Geographic Information System (GIS) Day at Queen Kaahumanu Center in Kahului. The event featured displays and demonstrations to encourage the community to think and learn about the significance of place and how we affect and are affected by it. Local GIS professionals were on hand to talk about their respective projects utilizing GIS technology, a computer-based mapping technique that links locational and database information. The ability to see geographic features on a map and visualize patterns and trends enables planners, analysts and others to make evaluations and informed decisions about their communities. WIT also hosted a live statewide GIS Day webcast for Hawai’i students, enabling over 600 of them to engage with experts about the exciting projects that use geospatial technologies.
“We are excited to promote GIS awareness throughout the state and to collaborate with National Geographic Education, Hawaii Geographic Coordinating Council, and the Hawaii Geographic Alliance to help make it happen,” said Isla Young, director of K12 STEM Education for MEDB’s Women in Technology Project. “Inspiring the next generation of spatially literate and engaging Hawai’i STEM students are two of our highest priorities.” In addition, the public experienced National Geographic’s Giant Traveling Map of the Pacific Ocean. Measuring 26 by 35 feet, the brightly colored geographic floor-map offered student explorers a chance to ‘walk across the Pacific’, studying the geographic features of our world’s largest ocean. “Teachers and students were also shown how GIS technology and drones work together to capture data in the field,” Young added.
George K. Purdy IV, owner of Drone Services Hawai’i, explained “My company’s mission is to provide high quality drone products and services for personal, professional, commercial and government use. It’s important, for my son Adam and other students, to get our children excited about STEM so they can apply it to their future careers and the sustainability of our islands.”
Furthering GIS and STEM education in our state will guarantee numerous jobs here in Hawai’i.
George K. Purdy IV, Drone Services Hawai’i
Dec 10, 2015 | Education, Small Business
Maui Economic Development Board (MEDB) was the local host for the 2016 InnovateHER “Innovating for Business Challenge.” The U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) launched the nationwide InnovateHER Challenge in August 2015, with the goal of finding products and services that help empower the lives of women and families. This past November, ten Maui finalists proved once again that Maui is a launching pad for empowering entrepreneurs. Each gave a five-minute pitch for their product or service to a panel of judges. The judges took into account criteria such as whether the proposal had a measurable improvement in the lives of community members, potential for commercialization and filled a need in the marketplace.
In a close competition, Pamela Norris of Wailuku was named the Maui winner. Norris won for her product, the ICEBUDDY System, a portable cooling system that utilizes new technology to transport medicine, water and supplies for emergencies. “My lifetime has been spent trying to make a positive difference in the world,” said Norris. “That journey has taken me from teaching everything from the pre-school level to post-graduate, training security and law enforcement officers and directing mental health services. Now this experience has brought me to a point where I choose to focus my talents on developing revolutionary products that serve unmet needs.”
As the Maui winner, Norris took home a cash award from MEDB. She will also have the opportunity to be considered for SBA’s national competition which will be held in Washington D.C. in March 2016 as part of a larger Women’s Summit. If selected, she will compete against other finalists nationwide and have an opportunity to pitch her idea to a panel of expert judges drawn from the private sector. Three winners will be chosen and awarded up to $70,000 in cash prizes.
“I hope SBA continues to grow this competition,” said Gerry Smith, MEDB Director of Business Development. “Not only will programs such as these help women break through that glass ceiling in terms of business and entrepreneurship, but also will provide opportunities to help empower women and families and ultimately help to build communities.”
My winning venture, the ICEBUDDY system, is a portable cooling system that enables ice, water, medication and emergency supplies to be stored and transported easily.
Pamela Norris
Dec 3, 2015 | Education
Molokai Middle School recently received an $88,213 grant from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) for a project titled “Promoting Cultural Based Knowledge and Practices through Environmental Stewardship and Preservation.” The grant extends from August 2015 through August 2016. The work is being led by Molokai Middle School Hawaiian Language Immersion Program (HLIP) teacher and principal investigator Iolani Kuoha, with assistance from school staff and community partnerships.
Kuoha, inspired by her father Joseph Hamakua, a Kahuna La`au Lapa`au (medicinal practitioner), wrote this grant to enable students to perpetuate stewardship and develop leadership skills. “Our goal, through science-based outdoor learning projects, is to instill in the students the need for engaging in cultural-based knowledge and preservation efforts on Molokai,” said Kuoha, who was named 2015 Educator of the Year by the Hawaii Association of Middle Schools. “In addition, with a priority in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) subjects we hope to continually increase our overall school achievement on the Hawai`i State Science Assessment.” The project starts with the students, parents, teachers and community of stakeholders. It includes collaboration, integration of core curriculum with community support, and an island-wide approach to environmental education. The benefits extend to the `aina (land) and the kai (sea) as students learn to protect and restore Molokai’s environment.
The project will include research plans directly related to culture and science through the study of native plant propagation, relevant watershed issues, erosion from ungulates, invasive-species removal and more. Community stakeholders will assist students with their research, written reports, technological tools and oral presentations. The NOAA grant has already helped the school gain recognition as the Most Improved School in the State.
“School partnerships with community organizations enhance the common goals and objectives of this project,” said Kuoha. “Maui Economic Development Board (MEDB) and Women in Technology are among the NOAA partners that are helping all HLIP and other students learn employable skills using STEM resources. We hope to continue mini-workshops with support from MEDB and to present our achievements at their annual STEM Conference on Maui.”
Our goal with the NOAA grant is to instill in the students the need for cultural-based knowledge and preservation efforts on Molokai.
Iolani Kuoha, Molokai Middle School HLIP Teacher
Nov 25, 2015 | Community
Recently, A Cup of Cold Water (ACCW) Community Care-Van held its 2nd annual gathering to give thanks for the success of its outreach ministry. In October 2013, the four Episcopal churches on Maui, Good Shepherd, Holy Innocents, St. John’s and Trinity-by-the-Sea, moved on the vision of one man. Keku Akana felt called to serve the growing homeless population on the island. It was in that spirit that Akana, retired Maui County Deputy Chief of Police, formed ACCW. At present, a rotating team of volunteers works to improve the situation of the disadvantaged in the community.
“Our most important program measure is that we offer nourishment and hope to our fellow citizens and neighbors,” said Akana. “We realize these simple acts of ‘no-strings-attached aloha’ are more necessary than ever. We cannot help everyone, but we can help someone. We are not here to solve poverty; we are here to comfort while we look for ways to minimize poverty and restore human dignity.”
The all-volunteer outreach ministry includes participants from various church groups, Hongwanji missions and those with no particular affiliation. ACCW, making three runs a week, visits Central Maui each Wednesday, Lahaina on Saturdays and South Maui on Sundays. In addition to pantry items, the van delivers clothing and slippers, tarps and towels, first aid and hygiene items, toys and books. ACCW also helps clients locate and maintain partnerships with other Maui County support organizations. The volunteer tasks are varied, including van drivers and riders, storage and distribution room organizers, administrators and others.
ACCW is a shining example of how dedicated people can bring compassion into the public arena to serve the common good. “Many of these people, 600-700 homeless men, women and children each month, have no one to lean on, no one to go to,” said Akana. “Outreach is a boomerang that echoes back into our own lives, reminding us that anyone of us could be that person in need. Unfortunately, homelessness on Maui is increasing, not decreasing.” Please contact ACCW (acupofcoldwatermaui@gmail.com) if you are interested in learning more.
ACCW’s most important program measure is that we offer nourishment and hope to our fellow citizens and neighbors. We cannot help everyone, but we can help someone while we look for ways to minimize poverty and restore human dignity.
Keku Akana, A Cup of Cold Water
Nov 18, 2015 | Community
Maui Economic Development Board (MEDB) and High Technology Development Corporation sponsored Maui County’s participation in the first statewide, 36-hour, 2015 DevLeague/Uber Hawaii Hackathon. The free event, held October 23rd to 25th, was partnered with Livecoding.tv, an educational streaming platform to connect participants around the state. Ten thousand dollars worth of prizes, and an opportunity to meet with an Uber engineering team in San Francisco, was offered to winning teams in various web-design categories. “This exciting event was a key initiative to continue to grow and connect the developer community and provide valuable skills,” said DevLeague co-founder Russel Cheng. “The weekend-long program and new partnership between DevLeague and Uber enabled participants to come together in both physical and virtual spaces.” The teams collaborated and built web-based transportation applications using Uber’s application programming interface (API) which are protocols and tools for building software applications.
“I’m thankful to MEDB for stepping up to host the Maui location,” said Web Designer Ben Ward. “The event brought entrepreneurs, programmers and designers together to build prototypes, test business ideas, assemble skills, make friends and lose sleep.” Beginning Friday night, participants presented their web and app ideas that could integrate with Uber.
“We ended up with two great projects,” explained Ward. “Ride Guardians, which allows the user to utilize a buddy system that will notify friends about where or when he/she will arrive at the agreed destination. This improves safety and builds trust with the Uber service.” The second project, Nightout, is a quick way for friends to vote on where to spend their night out and get around safely with Uber. “I’m happy to report that Nightout was selected out of nine teams across the state and took the Best Overall Application Award!” exclaimed Ward. “Our winning team, Jordan Amor, Milo Turner, Steve Homer and I, plus all Hawaii participants, proved that tech talent doesn’t just grow in California.” The main sponsor, DevLeague, is a Honolulu-based code boot camp where students can learn to code at a professional level through an intensive hands-on 12-week camp or a 26-week accelerated learning program.
I’m thankful to Maui Economic Development Board for hosting the first statewide, 36-hour, 2015 DevLeague/Uber Hawaii Hackathon on Maui, an event that brought entrepreneurs, programmers, and designers together. The winning Maui team, Jordan Amor, Milo Turner, Steve Homer, and I, plus all Hawaii participants, proved that tech talent doesn’t just grow in California. The Best Overall Application Award went to our app Nightout.
Ben Ward, Maui Web Developer
