Oct 21, 2020 | Education, Innovation
Presented by Maui Economic Development Board, (MEDB), the 3rd annual EMER-GEN® program, which preceded the 2020 Advanced Maui Optical and Space Surveillance Technologies Conference (AMOS), is a joint initiative of AMOS and the Space Generation Advisory Council (SGAC). A global non-governmental organization (NGO) and non-profit network, SGAC represents university students and young space professionals, ages 18-35, to the United Nations, space agencies, industry, and academia.
“EMER-GEN for young professionals builds on the capabilities and network of the AMOS Conference,’ said Leslie Wilkins, MEDB President and CEO. “The 2020 program, with a cohort of 37 participants from 13 countries in 13 time zones, went virtual this year. It was great exposure for the ten Hawaii-based participants in a program that aims to foster commercial space entrepreneurism in Hawaii.”
This year’s EMER-GEN program was developed with the help of the young professionals on the planning committee, including two representatives from the SGAC—Quentin Verspieren, Intelligent Space Systems Laboratory, The University of Tokyo, and Michael Barton, a.i. solutions, Inc. and past participant in 2018 and 2019. They were joined by Amber Imai-Hong, a participant in the 2019 cohort and avionics engineer with Hawaii Space Flight Laboratory.
Imai-Hong reflected, “I thought it was interesting that although our cohort was diverse in background, both technical and ethnic, the traits we valued in leadership were similar and complementary. With the help of mentors from industry, government, academia and NGOs, EMER-GEN® was filled with critical-thinking exercises. The cohort came to understand how nations reach agreements, and how the objectives of different stakeholders enhance effectiveness in a global environment”.
Barton added, “Thanks to MEDB, SGAC and our sponsors for providing the cohort with a successful development program. Additionally, thanks to the mentors for sharing their wisdom on cross-cultural communication, leadership, and career development.”
Tom Kubancik, founder and Executive Vice President of Trusted Space, Inc. and EMER-GEN mentor concluded, “Members of the cohort, distributed all over the globe, had remarkably diverse cultural backgrounds, but similar scientific and career interests in space. All the delegates were interested in making a difference for themselves, their country, and moving the science forward.”
Through the whole program, participants were challenged to create new opportunities for space-based technologies aimed at key issues
Leslie Wilkins, MEDB President and CEO
Oct 14, 2020 | Education
The University of Hawai’i Maui College (UHMC) Engineering Technology Program entered two teams in the 2020 International CanSat Competition. Out of 33 teams from more than a dozen countries, Team Onipa’a placed first and Team Paka’a placed 23rd. The competition required teams to design, build and launch a container holding a science payload. The annual event was organized by the American Astronautical Society to inspire future engineers seeking creative solutions, and the UHMC teams were sponsored by the NASA Hawaii Space Grant Consortium.
“The CanSat competition was designed to reflect, on a small scale, a typical NASA aerospace program,” said faculty advisor Dr. Jung Park, Associate Professor in the UHMC Engineering Technology Program and Associate Director of the NASA Hawai’i Space Grant Consortium. “The challenge included all aspects of research from the preliminary design review to the post mission review, incorporating the telemetry requirements, communications, and autonomous operations. This year’s challenge was to design a glider that is capable of unpowered flight and autonomous navigation, telemetry transmission, and sensor data collection while withstanding the extreme forces of a rocket launch.”
The team’s electronics and ground control station software were designed, fabricated, and confirmed operational in a test environment per CanSat specifications. They designed and 3D-printed the mechanical parts, the close-loop control system, and the Arduino code was written and simulated in Matlab. The results showed that critical payload systems are designed to operate in the conditions outlined in the CanSat Competition Mission Guide.
Onipa’a Team Leader Arthur Agdeppa said, “Each member of my team offered a diverse set of expertise, views, and knowledge, which was optimal to integrate various subsystems of our science payload and container. They took responsibility and pride in their weekly assigned tasks, and they welcomed the CanSat competition opportunity. It pushed us to be creative in our design, be resilient in our failures, and to be team players. One of our project’s external objectives was to promote STEM (science, technology, engineering, mathematics) in our community and gain the confidence of young aspiring engineers. We hope that our winning the competition accomplished just that.”
The CanSat project was an excellent way for us to showcase all that we have learned at UHMC.
Arthur Agdeppa, Team Onipa’a Leader, UHMC Engineering Technology Program
Oct 7, 2020 | Community
As Maui County faces uncertain times, Boys & Girls Clubs of Maui (BGCM) is still doing whatever it takes to serve youth, families, and the island community. All the clubs are open for Virtual Clubhouse Time, weekdays from 2:00 to 6:00 pm. The live, interactive virtual time adapts the award-winning programs for which BGCM has been known over the last 20 years, into a virtual environment using Zoom virtual meeting software.
“We are reaffirming our commitment to island families by opening our Virtual Clubhouse Time to all of Maui’s school-aged keiki, not just our active membership,” said BGCM Director of Operations, Stephen Bennett. “Our goal is to reconnect Maui, so any child from anywhere in Maui County, including Molokai and Lanai can join any clubhouse they wish. We have waived the five dollar annual membership fee until 2021, so there are fewer barriers to learning and participating in fun and engaging activities with their peers.”
Utilizing the Zoom program, BGCM Clubhouse staff are providing their members a full calendar of virtual activities including Power Hour, Project Learn, Smart Moves, Fitness-at-Home, Nutrition-at-Home, Hawaiian Marine Science and Ecosystems, Electronic Smoking Device/Anti-Vaping Education, Bridge2Math mathematics support, Keystone and Torch Club programming, and more. The Zoom platform gives BGCM the capacity to host up to 300 members at a time and provide safety measures, enabling their staff to have control over audio and video connections. Students have great interaction with their friends, seeing and talking with them safely. Also, the staff ensures that appropriate behavior is exhibited and acceptable content is shared. Zoom provides the means to do this, allowing only authorized visitors to join the virtual sessions.
“We want to make sure that we are available to the youth and their families with a sustainable platform that can keep them safe,” said Bennett. “Our programs are specifically designed to offer academic support as well as social interaction. Our staff is committed to taking care of our kids, and they have become virtually strong. Thank you to all of our community partners, supporters, and donors. Stay safe and healthy!”
The Virtual Clubhouse is here and it is fun! We are posting a calendar so you can choose what most interests your child at www.BGCMaui.org
Stephen Bennett, BGCM Director of Operations
Sep 30, 2020 | Community, Events
During this time of many health challenges in our life, family, community and the world, it is worthwhile to explore ways to live healthier and happier at home. For example, while we cannot get together for safety reasons, we can still honor seasonal changes and traditions. As Fall approaches, a time of celebration begins in many northern-hemisphere cultures. In Hawaii, one such tradition is the Mid-Autumn Celebration, also known as the Chinese Moon Festival. Honoring the joy of harvest, family and friends reunite during this time of bounty, offering thanks for an abundance of fruits, vegetables and grains.
“Regretfully, the Chinese Moon Festival usually celebrated at Lahaina’s Wo Hing Temple on Front Street is cancelled this year due to the pandemic,” said Dr. Busaba Yip, Wo Hing Museum Docent and Cultural Director. “However, we can still honor the island’s harvest of locally grown products as well as esteemed traditions from China. One of the most important Chinese festivals, the observance is an ancient tradition commemorating the completeness and abundance of life. It occurs during the harvest moon on the 15th day of the eighth month of the Chinese lunar calendar. The date in the Western calendar changes annually. This year, it falls on Thursday, October 1, 2020.
“It is sad that we cannot have a community gathering this year,” Yip reflected. “Nevertheless, knowing the moon festival’s importance will enhance a celebration of the season at home. For example, people can observe the season with an outdoor service, creation walk or pilgrimage, or prepare meals using the fruits of the harvest season. Many symbolic foods are used to give thanks for the bountiful harvest and to promote fertile fields and bigger crops. One of these foods, the moon cake, is the most distinctive. It is a sweet, round cake in the shape of the moon filled with lotus seeds, taro and black bean paste. Some have salted duck egg yolks at the center of each cake representing the moon. I wish you all a healthy, happy Moon Festival—Zhong Qiu Jie Kuai Le!”
Many thanks to Maui visitors and volunteers for supporting the tradition of the Chinese Moon Festival for our families and future generations.
Dr. Busaba Yip, Wo Hing Museum Docent and Cultural Director
Sep 23, 2020 | Community
Gabe Amey, founder and director of Our Kūpuna, is concerned about Hawaii’s elderly. “During the deadliest global pandemic our generation has ever seen, I asked myself, how can I help?” said Amey. “This service is that answer. Our Kūpuna was developed to serve a need in the community during a very uncertain time we know as Covid-19. It was launched statewide on March 23, 2020 as a community project started by the team behind Hawaii VA Loans and RISEHI Collective. As an official 501(c)3 nonprofit organization under Hawaii VA Foundation, The mission of Our Kūpuna is to connect Hawaii’s elderly with volunteer sponsors to help them with their daily needs during the pandemic.
Unfortunately, not all seniors in Hawaii have ‘ohana on-island to look out for them during these exceedingly difficult times. After orders for residents in the state to stay at home, many kūpuna were isolated, and everyday tasks, such as getting groceries, prescriptions, and other chores have become impossible for them to do alone.
“We are currently serving over 300 kūpuna, 65 years and older, on five islands and we want to get the word out more about Our Kūpuna,” Amey stated. “We need more volunteers. Our staff members do the screening and manage the volunteers. If everything works out, we connect them to kupuna in the area. Our motto, ‘one-to-one’, creates a special relationship with our network of volunteers in the field and the kūpuna they are helping.”
Amey emphasized, “We cannot help everyone, but everyone can help. Kūpuna do not have to pay for this service. It is free. All volunteers and sponsors are doing this to help in the community because so many seniors do not have family on island. The sponsor calls their kūpuna weekly to see if they need any necessary supplies so seniors can stay home. The main purpose of the volunteer service is to ensure kūpuna do not have to battle crowds at the grocery stores or struggle to get to other public places. It is about making sure the elderly have what they need without putting themselves at risk.”
Kūpuna, let us take care of you! For more information visit OurKupuna.com or call (808) 400-4506.
Gabe Amey, Our Kūpuna, Founder and Director
Sep 16, 2020 | Education, Stemworks
Due to COVID-19, Maui Economic Development Board’s (MEDB) STEMworks™ Summer Internship team strived to personalize work-based learning experiences for students in the new virtual dimensions. They collaborated with internship host companies and community partners to give the students a unique opportunity to explore technical and professional development.
STEMworks Intern Napua Canales, 12th grade, said, “My internship was with BizzyB, a branch of Bizgenics Foundation, a nonprofit organization that fosters creativity, innovation, and entrepreneurship. Specifically, BizzyB is a student innovation platform, where students 13 and older can create market-ready innovation through project-based learning. Our goal as BizzyB interns was to make a project template that other students around the world could use as a guide towards creating their own projects.”
Steve Sue, Bizgenics CEO and STEMworks mentor, explained, “Along with eight other 2020 BizzyB Summer Cohort members, Canales created a first-of-its-kind online project-based curriculum for BizzyB.com. Each student author created a project kit and teaching system for one of the United Nation’s 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Canales is the primary author of SDG 11: Sustainable Cities and Communities. These curriculum kits will be featured in the BizzyB application and thus available to the world. Research, writing, graphics and videos are all part of curriculum authoring. This internship is proving that students are more capable and relevant than ever toward reshaping education. As a student voice project, we are clearly seeing that curriculum by students for students is a powerful new paradigm worth exploring. I believe it is part of the future of education. Information technology has changed access to information and perhaps more importantly, gives students more leverage to have larger impact earlier in life.”
BizzyB discovered that the students are really excellent at online research, and they have proven to be highly resourceful in finding content like video clips and authoritative sources that can be integrated in their teaching materials. Canales reflected, “Not only has the internship itself been a great learning experience on how educators create project lessons, we were also given a great learning opportunity on how to improve our work ethic through professional development.”
The summer interns became curators of content and creative coaches with goals of challenging and inspiring others to act while learning.
Napua Canales, STEMworks™ Summer Intern
Sep 9, 2020 | Education, Stemworks
College freshman Ethan Covello completed his Maui Economic Development Board (MEDB) STEMworks™ Summer Internship at the Hawai’i Space Flight Laboratory (HSFL). The mission of HSFL is to promote space engineering and scientific research. They develop, launch, and operate small spacecraft from the Hawaiian Islands to accelerate the validation of new space technologies. HSFL also promotes synergistic collaborations between educational, governmental, and corporate institutions interested in space exploration.
Amber Imai, HSFL avionics engineer and STEMworks mentor, said, “Covello worked on creating a deployable ultra-high frequency amateur radio antenna for our Artemis CubeSat kit, which will serve as a platform for community college and undergraduate students to access space at a lower cost. Much of Covello’s work has been to create a design on SolidWorks and to 3D print the prototype. The previous design has proved to be unreliable due to its simplicity and Covello helped create something that is robust and reliable using a different method to deploy the antenna. We thank MEDB for the opportunity to work with such talented interns this summer!”
Covello explained, “I worked with several engineers and fellow interns to design the mechanical and structural aspects of the model satellite. I started this process by creating a Solidworks model of the deployer, then 3D printed my prototype to check for issues with my design and tested the deployer’s compatibility with the structure. After that, I detailed my findings and developed a new design that would fix the previous design’s flaws. My deployment system works through a gate system in which the antenna was attached. The gate keeps the antenna coiled into the base of the deployer using a nylon string. This string is attached to a resistor and when the resistor is activated the string melts, releasing the gate which releases the antenna.”
Reflecting on his internship Covello said, “Through working with seasoned engineers who guided me through using complex machinery and software, I was able to gain a new understanding of what being an engineer means. I will carry these new skills with me throughout my undergraduate education and continue to develop these skills to help prepare for a future career in mechanical engineering.”
My STEMworks Internship allowed me to develop my passion for engineering. Thank you MEDB!
Ethan Covello, STEMworks™ Summer Intern
Sep 2, 2020 | Environment, Events, Small Business
The 2020 Hawaii Energy Conference (HEC), postponed in March due to Covid-19, aired in July with a live-stream virtual event. Presented by the Maui Economic Development Board (MEDB) and supported by the Mayor’s Office of Economic Development, the conference welcomed over 600 participants from 24 different states and Puerto Rico. “An exciting feature this year was our international participation,” said Leslie Wilkins, MEDB President and CEO. “Six countries joined us, spanning time zones from Europe to Asia.”
One of the nation’s leading energy conferences, the HEC brought together experts on energy policy, strategies, leadership, and innovation to focus on how the energy sector should respond to the challenges imposed by the pandemic. The program included four panels plus brief video presentations with information related to the theme, ‘Imagining a Just Recovery: What would that look like for the grid?’
Jennifer Potter, Commissioner of the Hawaii Public Utilities Commission, and member of the conference program committee said, “The HEC has regrouped at a critical time for Hawaii and our country. The incredible macroeconomic stress and individual financial burdens across our nation mean that there is no better time to have dialogue on affordability and equity. Building a recovery plan that includes all socioeconomic groups is imperative.”
In his keynote, Scott Seu, President and CEO of Hawaiian Electric Company, explained, “It is not enough anymore to simply say we will all benefit from cleaner, cheaper renewables someday. The duration and the depth of our current economic downturn is unlike anything we have ever experienced, so someday is not soon enough. The leaders of Hawaiian Electric are looking at what bold strategies we can use to benefit the most people, the most quickly. Equity, opportunity, and participation are as important for our successful transition to renewable energy as any field source or technology.”
Seu added, “I have challenged myself and my team to think outside of our traditional role of keeping the lights on; to be bold, creative, and come up with ideas, such as a community solar program, that will strengthen our economy; to be the better Hawaii we can all imagine.”
The renewable energy transformation must include everyone. That is what equity looks like to me. Then, no one gets left behind.
Scott Seu, Hawaiian Electric Company, President and CEO
Aug 26, 2020 | Community
On August 1, 2020 Hawaiian Electric Company moved forward with the ownership and operation of the existing EVohana network on Maui, which has been temporarily owned and operated by Maui Economic Development Board (MEDB). The EVohana charging sites were initially established as part of the JUMPSmartMaui demonstration project, a cooperative venture between, Japan, Hawaii, Maui, MEDB, Hitachi, and Hawaiian Electric. The pilot project operated from 2011 to 2017 to exhibit smart grid technologies that could enable the efficient use of renewable energy on an island grid.
“MEDB has been grateful for the longstanding partnerships and dedication of our EVohana members,” said Leslie Wilkins, MEDB President and CEO. “You were the pioneers in adopting electric vehicles (EVs) in our community. Thank you for helping move us forward towards our clean-energy goals. We appreciate Hawaiian Electric for ensuring our island continues to have access to reliable public fast-charging options for EV drivers, and for planning to replace four sites with new systems. Without Hawaiian Electric taking on some of these sites, the entire EVohana charging network would have been retired earlier this year.”
Sharon Suzuki, President of Hawaiian Electric’s Maui County and Hawai’i Island Utilities, said, “Mahalo to the EVohana members and partners MEDB, Ulupono Initiative, and the County of Maui for helping to advance clean transportation on Maui through this EV charging program. With the retirement of the EVohana Program, we remain committed to bringing as many as four new public fast-charging sites online later this year.”
EVohana member Damon Glastetter added, “The project coordinated by MEDB was an important test of how electric vehicles and renewable energy will impact Maui and the planet in the near future and beyond. When the project started EVs were a novelty. Fast-charging was predicted to overwhelm the grid, and solar photovoltaic (PV) power was not as ubiquitous as we see now. I was happy to be involved with Phase 1 and Phase 2 of the project, with my EV sending power back to the grid during peak demand hours. I look forward to a clean-energy future with more EVs and more PV.”
Maui has taken a leading role in the world adopting clean energy and this project is a major reason for that leadership. Thank you MEDB for your leadership in the EVohana.
Damon Glastetter, Solar-HI Maui, Jackson Electric, LLC
Aug 19, 2020 | Community, Sustainability
On Thursday August 27 at 9:00 pm, PBS Hawai’i will present the world premiere of Hawaiiana, a new documentary about the late Winona Kapuailohiamanonokalani Desha Beamer, or Aunty Nona as she was fondly called. Credited with coining the term Hawaiiana as early as 1949, Aunty Nona used it to describe the absolute best of all things Hawaiian: the people, their knowledge, culture, wisdom, and aloha. Keola Beamer, Aunty Nona’s oldest son, assisted by his wife Moanalani and veteran Maui-based filmmaker Tom Vendetti, made the documentary about the well-known and much loved Hawaiian heroine who is renowned for her integrity, scholarship, and love.
“My mother is a lifelong teacher of helping to nurture the love of hula and mele in Hawai’i, and her legendary wisdom continues to spread much needed aloha around the world,” said Keola, a Hawaiian slack-key guitarist and Grammy Award nominee. “She was a revered Hawaiian cultural treasure and is warmly remembered by thousands of her students. When Moanalani and I think of her many contributions, we are filled with gratitude. Her existence on this earth was a blessing to all.”
Vendetti said Beamer, his dear friend, asked him to do the project. “Even though there have been other films made about her, with basically people talking about her, this film is focused on Aunty Nona telling her own story, along with family members,” Vendetti explained. “After hearing Aunty Nona’s definition of Hawaiiana, I thought it would make a wonderful title for the film, as she explores, in her own words, the journey of her life and her fight toward preserving, perpetuating and creating awareness of Hawaiian culture. I was truly touched and honored to take on the project, which will also be distributed this Fall around the nation and beyond by American Public Television.”
Vendetti reflected, “Aunty Nona is still well-known as a pioneer, ali’i, musician and a humanitarian. Her wisdom of spreading aloha around the world is something that everyone should hear. Considering the current cultural issues that we are confronting, I think her message will resonate and offer hope for the world. She was truly a Lady of Aloha.”
Aunty Nona was the granddaughter of Helen Desha Beamer and cousin to Hawaiian Music Hall of Fame inductee Mahi Beamer.
Tom Vendetti, Maui-based Filmmaker
