Tag Archives: Thirty Meter Telescope

Education, Mauna Kea

TMT Launches Scholarships, Grant Funds for STEM Students

Richard Ha writes:

This is terrific.

As we’ve been talking about all this time, the Thirty Meter Telescope (TMT) people are giving a million dollars per year for Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) education. That’s more than $50 million altogether through the life of the TMT project, and all that money stays on this island for the education of our Big Island keiki.

They’re calling it the THINK fund: The Hawai‘i Island New Knowledge fund.

I wrote a 2010 blog post that explains how TMT President Henry Yang came to understand that keiki education was the lowest common denominator that folks on all sides of the TMT issue could agree upon. That is what led to the THINK fund.

This fund benefits all Big Island keiki, and all Native Hawaiian students will have an additional opportunity for scholarships and grants, as well.

The details:

TMT Launches The Hawaii Island New Knowledge (THINK) Fund

$1 Million Annually to Benefit Hawaii Island Students Pursuing STEM Disciplines

Hilo, Hawaii (November 13, 2014) – The Thirty Meter Telescope (TMT) has launched THINK (The Hawaii Island New Knowledge) Fund to better prepare Hawaii Island students to master STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) and to become the workforce for higher paying science and technology jobs in Hawaii’s 21st century economy. TMT’s founding gift of $1 million marks the beginning of the construction phase of astronomy’s next-generation telescope on Mauna Kea, Hawaii.

TMT’s THINK Fund initiative benefits Hawaii Island students pursuing STEM endeavors with an annual contribution of $1 million over its existing 19-year Mauna Kea sublease with the University of Hawaii-Hilo. Two Hawaii foundations were selected by TMT, Hawaii Community Foundation and Pauahi Foundation, to administer THINK Fund distribution in scholarship and grant making platforms. The two independent foundations are defining their award criteria and decision-making process.

“During our numerous meetings, TMT and the community discussed how to collaborate to fulfill the shared dream of building the world’s most advanced telescope. The idea for the THINK Fund to invest in the education of students in the STEM field was germinated,” said Henry Yang, Chair of the TMT International Observatory Board. “With the launch of the THINK Fund, we are embarking on two transformational adventures – exploring the frontiers of the universe and providing educational opportunities for Hawaii’s students, both now and for future generations.”

The Thirty Meter Telescope initiated dialogue on the formation of THINK Fund in 2008 by asking a group of community volunteers to outline the mission, vision, purpose and implementation strategy of an education fund benefitting Hawaii Island students. The Organizing Committee that developed TMT’s THINK Fund structure was comprised of Hawaii Island residents.

“After years of THINK Fund planning and reflection, the aspirations of dedicated community members are being realized with TMT’s first annual $1 million contribution, set in motion by the start of our construction phase,” said TMT Community Affairs Manager Sandra Dawson. “As a mother of two teachers, I am so pleased with the THINK Fund’s potential to furnish Hawaii Island students with an easier path to reach for the stars. TMT’s THINK Fund initiative will not only help Hawaii Island students with the tools to excel in STEM areas and the channels to get into college, it can also provide students with the means to get through college.”

The Organizing Committee determined that scholarships, grant making and the establishment of an endowment would ensure the sustainability of improving educational opportunities for Hawaii Island students in STEM disciplines. It further recognized that an emphasis be given to improving opportunities for STEM education for Native Hawaiian students, not as an exclusive preference, but focusing on addressing the needs of Hawaii’s host culture.

TMT’s annual $1 million contribution allocates $750,000 to THINK Fund at the Hawaii Community Foundation and $250,000 to THINK Fund at the Pauahi Foundation. The foundations will administer their respective THINK Funds independently and will have autonomy in administering grant funds, determining scholarship recipients, and the selection and governance of Advisory Committees.

THINK Fund at the Hawaii Community Foundation

Grants are available by application to THINK Fund at Hawaii Community Foundation beginning November 20th and will support a variety of Hawaii Island STEM student activities in and after-school, internship programs and teacher-generated STEM classroom projects. Scholarships will support current and future STEM teachers on Hawaii Island as well as students pursuing STEM degrees and training. Scholarship applications will be available online on December 1st, 2014.

“For the past 98 years, Hawaii Community Foundation has had the privilege of serving our island communities across the state,” said Kelvin Taketa, president and CEO of the Hawaii Community Foundation. “We’re honored to be the stewards of the THINK Fund at HCF that will support STEM education on Hawaii Island for generations to come.”

Advisory Committee members of THINK Fund at the Hawaii Community Foundation are Laurie Ainslie, Roberta Chu, Mary Correa, Kaeo Duarte, Hiapo Perreira, Doug Simons and Barry Taniguchi. The Advisory Committee, facilitated by Hawaii Community Foundation staff, will assist with strategy development, review grant proposals, make grant decisions and encourage STEM education for Hawaii Island.

THINK Fund at the Hawaii Community Foundation is open to all Hawaii Island students including Native Hawaiians, teachers with STEM classroom projects and organizations providing STEM and internship programs that directly benefit Hawaii Island. Learn more and apply at www.hawaiicommunityfoundation.org.

The Hawaii Island office of Hawaii Community Foundation is located in Waimea.

THINK Fund at the Pauahi Foundation

Scholarship Programs will be the initial focus of THINK Fund at the Pauahi Foundation. Grant making is being considered for the future.

“With Hawaii Island having the second largest population of Native Hawaiians in the state of Hawaii, our partnership with TMT provides much-needed financial support for Hawaiian learners from Hawaii Island to pursue educational opportunities in STEM,” said Hawaii Island resident and Pauahi Foundation Executive Director Keawe Liu.

Advisory committee members of THINK Fund at the Pauahi Foundation are Roberta Chu, Kaeo Duarte, Leinaala Enos, David Kaapu, Bob Lindsey, Gail Makuakane-Lundin and Maile Wong.

THINK Fund at the Pauahi Foundation is open to all Hawaii Island students with a preference given to applicants of Hawaiian ancestry to the extent permitted by law. Scholarship applications will be available online on February 4, 2015 at www.pauahi.org.

THINK Fund Collaboration

THINK Fund was designed as an initiative to encourage and attract other funders who align with the mission and goal to improve STEM education and strengthen Hawaii Island’s workforce, and TMT is serving as the founding member of the THINK Fund initiative. The vision of this collaborative approach is to bring together the island community with funders in a partnership that strives to help Hawaii Island students long term.

What’s Next For TMT?

Construction activities in Hawaii include site preparation and grading.

Offsite work has begun in earnest as well. In China, partners are designing the telescope’s fully articulated main science steering mirror system and developing the laser guide star system. Japan has produced over sixty special zero thermal-expansion glass mirror blanks for the main mirror and is designing the telescope structure in detail. Fabricating the mirror support system is ongoing in India. The adaptive optics facility is in final design and the enclosure is ready for construction in Canada.  The primary mirror and mirror control system is in final design in California.

The advancement of TMT to this stage of imminent on-site construction has been made possible by the support of the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation. The foundation has spent $141 million to date to fund the design, development, and construction phases of TMT.

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Geothermal, History, Mauna Kea, Peak Oil, Science

Law of the Splintered Paddle & Today

Richard Ha writes:

Kamehameha's Law of the Splintered Paddle has modern-day application. To those who aspire to be ali’i as they point their fingers in the air and pronounce what we must do to preserve the past: do not forget the rubbah slippah folks. 

You who want to be our ali‘i, our leaders – I don't see you leading us forward, but only back. You want to keep everything the way it used to be, while we are marching into crisis.

The rubbah slippah folks have the right to disagree with the (self-proclaimed) ali’i if those "ali‘i" do not take care of the people.

Read this historical note, from Wikipedia about the "removal of chiefs" due to the mistreatment of common people intolerant of bad government:

It has been noted that Kānāwai Māmalahoe [the Law of the Splintered Paddle] was not an invention of Kamehameha I, but rather an articulation of concepts regarding governmental legitimacy that have been held in Hawaiʻi for many prior generations. Countless stories abound in Hawaiian folklore of the removal of chiefs – generally, but not always, through popular execution – as a result of mistreatment of the common people, who have traditionally been intolerant of bad government. As a shrewd politician and leader as well as a skilled warrior, Kamehameha used these concepts to turn what could have been a point of major popular criticism to his political advantage, while protecting the human rights of his people for future generations.

The price of oil is four times higher than it was ten years ago and the price of everything is through the roof (and still going up). More and people people cannot afford to live here; in fact, more Hawaiians live outside Hawai‘i than on these islands. Isn't that the same as losing our land?

How are you addressing that? How is trying to shut down our geothermal resource (which will substantially reduce our electricity costs), trying to outlaw our biotech options (which will substantially reduce our food costs), and trying to keep out the TMT (which will open up all sorts of new options), helping our people?

The world is changing. There is more and more homelessness. More than half of all Hawaiians no longer live in Hawai‘i. Young folks cannot find jobs. Farmers are getting older and older, because young people are not going into farming.

What will happen to the rubbah slippah folks in the face of finite resources? Those who aspire to be ali‘i, remember this: "You cannot be ali’i if you cannot feed the people."

  • Geothermal is a gift from Pele that will protect us from electricity and other costs that are spiraling out of control. Why would anyone aspiring to be ali’i want to take away this gift in the face of declining resources?
  • The Thirty Meter Telescope brings our young people great opportunity and inspiration, and it brings the island economic gain, jobs, and more than $50 million in cash to a fund for the education of our keiki. Why would anyone aspiring to be ali’i take these opportunities away from our future generations?
  • Biotechnology is a tool that will safely feed our people. Why would anyone aspiring to be ali’i take  this tool away from farmers trying to feed the people? Farmers representing ninety percent of the farm sales on the Big Island favor using biotech tools. Why look to outsiders for advice when Big Island farmers are telling you what you need to know?

If it wasn't used in pre-contact time, it's bad? Is that really your thinking? Would Kamehameha agree?

Mauna Kea

Protest at the TMT Groundbreaking

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Richard Ha writes:

Tuesday morning was the groundbreaking ceremony for the Thirty Meter Telescope (TMT). The blessing took place – Kahu Kaniela Akaka blessed the four corners of the site – but the speeches, the cutting of the maile lei and the ‘o‘o symbolically breaking the ground had to be cancelled due to protestors.

I understand and am okay with folks expressing their passionate opinions. But I am very embarrassed that they attacked the foreign dignitaries at the ceremony, our guests, yelling at them close up and calling them thieves and snakes. That was truly bad manners.

It is not Hawaiian style. That made us all shame and reflected very, very poorly on all Hawaiians.

Kaliko Kanaele of the Royal Order of Kamehameha was present at the protest. The Royal Order’s mission statement says this:

The purpose of the Royal Order of Kamehameha I as it is known today is to unite in fraternal and benevolent work, men of Hawaiian descent, of good moral character, of sound bodily health; to cultivate the cardinal principles of friendship, charity and benevolence; to aid widows and orphans; to improve the social and moral conditions of its members; to provide scholarship assistance; to preserve and perpetuate the ancient culture, customs, and traditions of Hawai’i, uplift the Hawaiian people; infuse the spirit of patriotism, loyalty, helpfulness and kindness among its members; advance the interest of its members in every rightful cause, and to encourage and develop leadership.

I don’t see how protesting the TMT uplifts the Hawaiian people. The leadership of the Royal Order needs to do some soul searching, or else they should change the organization’s mission statement.

The TMT is one way of taking care of our people and our future. It provides jobs, money for the economy, money for our keiki’s education, furthers our scientific knowledge, and moves us and our families and our island forward.

There is more than one way to respect and honor our ‘aina and our ancestors and our mauna. Our people have always been brilliant and managed to honor the past at the same time they move forward and take advantage of the best of the present. I don’t know why people now are so hell bent on fighting to stay in the past.

Mayor Billy Kenoi was there; he spoke with the protestors and handled it well, trying to find common ground. He gave the police explicit instructors that no one got hurt and there would be no arrests. He handled it very well and I was proud of him. No one felt any danger. It was the manners part that was a big problem.

Education, Mauna Kea, Science

Thirty Meter Telescope Receives Final Approval!

Richard Ha writes:

Today the Land Board approved the Thirty Meter Telescope (TMT). That's the final word. It's over.

Along with several others, I attended the Land Board meeting today in Honolulu where they heard testimony. Then they went into executive session and made their decision. 

It's hard for me to find the words to say how important this is.

Last night I attended a presentation at ‘Imiloa Astronomy Center of students from about ten different high schools from around the world. Each gave a scientific report and they were so high-level they were just mind-boggling. One was some kids from India describing how to measure the mass of the Milky Way. They went into every little step of how a planet forms and dies, and it was evident they hadn't memorized anything, they actually knew it. It gives you so much faith in human beings and their ability to think and do these kinds of great things.

There was also a presentation by high school students from Keaukaha on how to make a koa and fiberglass canoe. It was much more involved than I would have thought. And a robotics team from Kalani High School that was made up of three girls. One of them told the audience that before she got involved in robotics she was very shy. But now, through robotics, she has discovered a passion for teaching small kids and especially girls. She raised her hand and said, "YES!!" It's amazing to see students achieving what they didn't think they could achieve. 

The Thirty Meter Telescope sponsored this event at ‘Imiloa. There are all sorts of interesting things going on, which we don't necessarily know are happening, because of the Thirty Meter Telescope and its commitment to education.

YES!!

Here is the testimony I gave this morning to the Board of Land and Natural Resources:

Aloha, everyone,

I have been involved with the TMT project from the beginning and decided to support it because of TMT's efforts to do the right thing for our Big Island. This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for us. A project like the TMT will never come our way again. The benefits to the Big Island's young people – not just today's generation, but future generations too – is enormous.

The TMT is giving $1 million dollars annually to The Hawaii Island New Knowledge (Think) fund. The annual installments begin next month and last through the ten years of construction and the 50 years of viewing time.  

The Big Island has the lowest median family income in the state, and education is the best predicted of family income. The TMT partner's contribution is strictly discretionary spending. It is money out. There is no money coming in. If we stretch the waiting period too far, we could lose the whole project. 

Time is of the essence. Please do not jeopardize this education fund for our young people.  

Aloha,

Richard Ha

President, Hamakua Springs Country Farms and its 70 workers.

Also representing the Hawaii Farmers and Ranchers United. This grass roots organization represents 90 percent of the farm value produced on the Big Island

Also, President of the Big Island Community Coalition. Its steering committee members in their private capacities are:

Dave DeLuz, Jr., President, Big Island Toyota
Rockne Freitas, Former Chancellor, Hawaii Community College
Michelle Galimba, Member, Board of Agriculture and Ka'u rancher
Richard Ha, President, Hamakua Springs Country Farms
Wallace Ishibashi, Former Chair Big island Labor Alliance, DHHL commissioner. 
Kuulei Kealoha Cooper, Trustee of Kealoha Trust
D. Noelani Kalipi, Former Staffer for Senator Akaka. Helped to write the Akaka Bill.  
Ka‘iu Kimura, Executive Director, ‘Imiloa Astronomy Center
H.M. Monty Richards, Kama‘aina Cattle Rancher
Marcia Sakai, Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs, UH Hilo
Kumu Lehua Veincent, Principal of Kamehameha Schools, Hawai‘i Island campus
William Walters, President, W.H. Shipman., Ltd.

Mauna Kea, Peak Oil

OHA Will Not File Contested Case Hearing

Richard Ha writes:

The Office of Hawaiian Affairs trustees decided against filing a contested case hearing about the Thirty Meter Telescope.

Five of us flew over from the Big Island to testify at the OHA meeting. We were all concerned about the possibility of losing the education and employment opportunities that the TMT will bring to future generations. 

I was very impressed at the power of the testimony of the group from the Big Island. Wally, Nani, Herring and Bill’s testimony was eloquent, from the heart, powerful, and simple. I was very proud to be a part of this group of strong, community-minded people.

People

Left to right: Bill Brown, Herring Kalua, Wallace Ishibashi, Nani Kahea, and myself

After we testified, the OHA Trustees went into deliberations, and a few hours later we received word that the Trustees decided not to file a request for a contested case hearing.

Here is the testimony I gave:

Aloha trustees.

Please do not initiate a contested case hearing. Several things happened recently that could have a strong bearing on your decision.

My name is Richard Ha. I am a farmer on the Big Island and our family and our workers have produced more than a hundred million pounds of fruits and vegetables over the last 35 years. My family is Kamahele from lower Puna.

I was the only person from Hawai‘i to have attended five Association for the Study of Peak Oil (ASPO) conferences. I went because I wanted to learn about oil and how we could adapt to a world of rising oil costs.

Albert Bartlett, a professor of physics and a member of ASPO, said the greatest failing of humankind is its inability to understand the exponential function.

If someone stood in the middle of Yankee Stadium at 12:00 noon with an eye dropper, and started a drop of water and doubled it every minute and you were handcuffed to a chair at the top, how many minutes woukd you have to escape? The answer is 50 minutes. At what time would the stadium still be 93 percent empty? 12:45! At that point, the water would only be 5 feet high and hardly anyone would be aware that there was a serious problem ahead in just five minutes. That is the nature of compound growth.

Several weeks ago, the Energy Information Agency, the government agency that keeps track of energy information, said the Monterey Shale, consisting of two-thirds of the nation's oil reserves, was downgraded to just four percent of its previous estimation. The nation's total oil reserve supply before the announcement was estimated to be 100 years.  This means that our oil reserves is estimated to last somewhere around 34 years, and only if the price is high enough can we get all of it. So, if oil supply is limited, the price will eventually rise. 

The problem is that at $150 per barrel oil, our tourism industry will be hit hard. At $200 per barrel oil, an IMF economic team modeling that situation could not model any further because they were in uncharted waters. I heard the team leader, Michael Kumhoff say at the last ASPO conference that the results would be utterly improbable. Utterly improbable??? Scary words coming from an economist. 

My good friend Robert Rapier, a well-respected chemical engineer who has been on 60 Minutes and many news and magazines, gave his take on British Petroleum's recent annual report. He basically said that if it wasn't for the shale oil and gas boom in the U.S., the world would already be going down the backside of the oil supply curve. And if not for that, we could already have been seeing $150 to $200 per barrel oil.  That was just last week!

Will the shale gas and oil boom last? In the data from 19,000 oil and gas wells, we see that the average shale oil and gas well lasts only five years. Clearly that is not sustainable. In contrast, the Saudi old oil finds have lasted for more than 50 years. Things have clearly changed.

So, what happens if China, India and other countries start to become worried that we have economic trouble ahead? The Chinese know that you cannot be king if you cannot feed the people. Would they cut funding for the TMT? There is a strong possibility they and other countries would. The TMT represents money going out and no money coming in.

I was on the TMT subcommittee of the Hawaii Island Economic Development Board, so I was involved from the start. I volunteered because I was determined that if it was going to be done, it should be done right. Henry Yang, the new president of the TMT, was a good guy that you could do business on a handshake. He flew in to the Big Island 15 times and never talked to the press. He met with the people on the ground. The last trip he asked me where they should  go since they had a couple of hours. I suggested we go to Kupuna Day at Keaukaha. When we got there, the people were so used to him and Jean Lou Chameau, president of Cal Tech, visiting them, they just said, Come, come, come, go eat, where you guys going?

From meeting with the people, Henry Yang came to find out that the lowest common denominator that folks on all sides of the issue could agree ok was Keiki education. That is how the THINK $1 million annual education fund was born.

One of the most important principles I learned came from Kumu Lehua Veincent, former principal of Keaukaha Elementary school. When I first got involved, I suggested to him that we could ask the TMT folks to give his students five full-ride scholarships to the best schools in the nation. He thought about it a few minutes and then he said these profound words. He said simply: "What about the rest?"

And that is what this decision is all about. What about the rest?

Aloha

Big Island, Education, Geothermal, Hydrogen, Lowering Electric Rates, Mauna Kea, Peak Oil, Science, Sustainability, Where We Live

A Big Picture Look

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Richard Ha writes:

Yesterday I sat in Judge Nakamura’s courtroom full of people both for and against the Thirty Meter Telescope (TMT) being built on Mauna Kea. I looked over at Kealoha Pisciotta, who has led the opposition all these years, and thought about how much I admire her.

As I sat there, I thought back to 2008, when rising oil prices started being such a big concern. At the top of my mind then was finding an economic alternative to tourism and opportunities for keiki education, both of which the TMT will provide. Locating the TMT here is a great opportunity, and I put a lot of effort into supporting it.

As I sat there yesterday, I thought, too, about how the TMT will help the Big Island cope with our rising energy costs and changing economy; because of it, money will flow into our economy instead of out. It will bring 10 years of construction jobs, and $1 million/year toward Big Island student education for each of more than 55 years. More importantly, it will bring to the Big Island an attitude of “Not, No Can. CAN!”

In 2007, I’d met Gail Tverberg at my first Peak Oil conference in Houston. A former insurance actuary whose job was to price insurance risk, she is someone who approaches the world oil supply problem from a risk management perspective. I helped bring her to the Big Island to give presentations, and she observed that our dependence on tourism makes Hawai‘i very vulnerable.

In 2008, shale and gas production hadn’t yet started in earnest. Natural gas prices were very high at $12/thousand cubic feet. According to a USDA analysis, there was an 80 percent correlation of natural gas price to ammonia fertilizer cost, and that had a frightening effect on local farmers. The price of natural gas dropped to $2/mcf, and now it’s around $4.50/mcf. This, coupled with a subsequent increase in natural gas supply, has given us some breathing room. But it’s only temporary.

We have another fairly unique opportunity to protect ourselves against seriously rising energy costs, which are already impacting our lives negatively and will continue to go up if we don’t make changes:

Geothermal energy.

After having attended five Association for the Study conferences (the only person from our state to do so) I’ve found that it’s all a matter of 1) cost, 2) what works and 3) comparative risk.

Geothermal addresses all three of those points. It’s inexpensive compared to using oil to produce our energy; we already know that it works; and after decades of experience with it here, the comparative risk is low.

It also allows the possibility of making hydrogen, which we can use to fuel our ground transportation, and also ammonia fertilizer for farmers. There are a lot of wins there.

Aquaponics, Bananas, Big Island, Blog, Family of Farms, How It All Started, Hydroelectric, Lowering Electric Rates, Mauna Kea, Our Story, Peak Oil, Sustainability, Video, Where We Live

Huffington & Omidyar Visit Hamakua Springs

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By Leslie Lang, blog editor

Thursday was such an interesting day. Arianna Huffington of the Huffington Post, and Pierre Omidyar, founder of Honolulu’s online newspaper Civil Beat (and founder of eBay), spent some time at Hamakua Springs Country Farms.

The background is that Huffington Post and Civil Beat have teamed up to start HuffPost Hawaii (and they asked Richard to blog for the new online news organization. Here’s his first HuffPost Hawaii post, by the way.)

So this week, Arianna and Pierre were making the rounds in Hawai‘i for the big HuffPost Hawaii launch. They spent Thursday on the Big Island, where they were welcomed with a big reception at ‘Imiloa Astronomy Center.

The only other Big Island stop they made was to Richard’s farm. They had asked if they could come and meet Richard and learn about what he’s doing. So that happened Thursday afternoon, and Richard invited me to join them there.

What a completely fascinating day. There’s something about being around really smart people who are doing big and really interesting things, making things happen and making a difference. Richard is completely like that, too, as you know if you’ve been reading this blog. It’s invigorating to be around that kind of energy.

Both Arianna and Pierre are very friendly and down-to-earth, and both are interested in issues of sustainability and what Richard is doing.

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Richard told them about his background — flunking out of college the first time around and ending up in Vietnam, coming back and trading manure from his father’s chicken farm for bananas to start what eventually became Hamakua Springs Country Farms — about seeing prices start rising, rising, rising and wondering why; about attending five Peak Oil conferences and starting to learn what was happening. He talked about how he forces the changes needed to get to where he needs to be five or 10 years in the future.

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He talked about the current threat to Big Island farming from anti-GMO bills, and Pierre asked some very salient (and polite) questions about some common GMO fears, such as of:

  • Commercial control of seeds. Richard replied that in many cases, such as with, for instance, the Rainbow papaya, virus-resistant seeds are developed by the university and not controlled by any big business at all. This, he said, is often the case.
  • Cross-pollination, or “pollen drift.” Richard responded that due to numerous studies, we know how much drift there is for different crops. Farmers work together, he says, to plan what is planted where, plant so many lines of “guard rows” and it’s completely manageable.

They asked about Richard’s new hydroelectric system, and we took a dusty, bumpy country road drive out to see where the water runs through an old sugar cane flume, and then through a turbine.

Car

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Arianna and Pierre were very interested in this, and in how, when the switch is thrown very shortly, the farm will be saving perhaps almost half of its monthly electric bill, which now averages $10-11,000.

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Pierre asked about returning excess power to the utility, and was shocked to learn that due to a technicality, Richard will not be paid for the power he feeds to HELCO. Pierre kept returning to that and said, more than once, “That’s just not right.” Richard finally replied, “Well, at least it’s not wasted.”

IMG_3584

Richard Ha, Arianna Huffington, Pierre Omidyar, Leslie Lang, June Ha

Richard talked about how they have converted the farm from growing mostly bananas to being a family of farms, which brings in local farmers who then have a close-to-home place to farm. This, in turn, means the farm produces a more diverse crop.

He told Arianna and Pierre about growing their current experiment growing tilapia, to learn how to add a protein component to the food they produce and also use the waste as fertilizer. Workers can fish for tilapia there and take some home for their families.

Arianna and Pierre both seemed sincerely interested. They paid close attention and asked good questions.

Richard told them about talking with Kumu Lehua Veincent, who was principal of Keaukaha Elementary School back in the early days of the Thirty Meter Telescope (TMT) push. He told them that he asked Kumu Lehua, “What if we ask the TMT for five, full-ride scholarships to the best schools in the nation for your best students?” He told them that Kumu Lehua thought about it for a minute and then quietly asked, “And what about the rest?”

This was a turning point, explained Richard, who said that at the time he could feel his ears turning red. He told Arianna and Pierre that that phrase, What about the rest? gives him an “unfailing moral compass.”

It always brings him back to the rubbah slippah folk, he told them. The “rubbah slippah” folk are in contrast to the “shiny shoes” folk. When he explained this, Pierre looked down at his own shoes.

“I wore my shiny shoes today,” he said, “but I meant to change into my sneakers before coming to the farm.” He mentioned his shiny shoes a couple more times during the visit.

“I felt they absolutely got what I meant when I advocated for the ‘rubbah slippah’ folks,” Richard told me, “and completely support that idea.”

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Richard’s daughter Tracy had laid out a beautiful spread of Hamakua Springs produce back by the office, where there was a tent set up, and Arianna zeroed in on the longan.

“What’s this?” she said, and Tracy explained that it’s a delicious fruit. She handed one to Arianna, along with some wipes (they are juicy and messy), and Arianna loved it.

Arianna gives the impression of being very family-oriented. “At what point did you and June get married in this long process?” she asked, when Richard was explaining how he got started farming 35 years ago. (The answer: 32 years ago, and when June joined the family she took all the farm receipts out of a big banana box and straightened out the accounting.) Arianna asked Tracy if she had siblings. When she was introduced to Richard’s grandson Kapono, she looked at him, and at his parents, and asked, “Now, are you Tracy and Kimo’s son?” (Yes.)

She gave June a copy of her book, On Becoming Fearless.

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Both Arianna and Pierre are such interesting people. One of the things Richard talks about is forcing change, and that is something that both his guests are all about, too: Looking down the road and fixing things, forcing the change instead of letting things bumble along.

It is refreshing to be in the presence of such interesting thinkers and doers. Great day.

This is a video Civil Beat did with Richard recently, before Arianna and Pierre’s visit. It’s really nicely done and you get to hear a bit about some of the topics they discussed yesterday (while seeing gorgeous views of the farm).

Education, Mauna Kea

TMT Offers High School Students Course on Observatory Careers

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Richard Ha writes:

The Thirty Meter Telescope (TMT) people are offering a summer “Observatory Career Exploration” session for West Hawai‘i high school students to learn about the range of observatory and other technical careers available here on the island. It will be held at Kealakehe High School in June.

TMT

2013 Akamai Observatory Career Exploration Looking for West Hawaii High School Students

TMT, in partnership with Akamai Workforce Initiative (AWI) and Hawaii Community College, encourages high school students to sign up for this summer’s Akamai Observatory Career Exploration session, offered June 10th through June 21st at Kealakehe High School.

Developed to inspire students to explore the range of observatory and other technical careers available in Hawaii, this introductory course gives high school students an opportunity to meet with scientists, engineers, and staff from leading observatories and the Natural Energy Laboratory of Hawaii Authority facility.

Students will improve scientific and technical problem-solving skills and leave with knowledge that could direct them to an observatory career path!

Approved by the DOE, each 60-hour course is equivalent to a 1/2 high school elective credit. Class sizes are limited, so early registration is encouraged.

To register or for more information, call Tiana at Office of Continuing Education & Training (OCET) 934-2696 or email tmkoga@hawaii.edu.

More about the program, and registration information, in
this brochure. Or you can contact Tiana Koga, who is coordinating the program at Hawaii Community College, at the number or email above.

Mauna Kea

Permit Granted to Thirty Meter Telescope!

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Richard Ha writes:

Big news! The State Board of Land and Natural Resources has just granted the Thirty Meter Telescope (TMT) a permit to build and operate its observatory on Mauna Kea. Read more at Hawaii 24/7.

We ran the following article here on the blog back in July 2009, at a much earlier phase of this project. It really explains it all and I’d like to share it with you again:

TMT Selects Mauna Kea, Promises Big Island $50 Million For Education

Initially published July 22, 2009

After deliberating for two days, the Thirty Meter Telescope Observatory Corp. board voted yesterday to site its new telescope here on Mauna Kea, not in Chile.

Although I’ve been working on this project for almost three years now, I was not prepared for the emotional rush that came when Henry Yang, president of the TMT, called to tell me of the decision.

All I could think about was how this would help our people launch their kids into the middle class. All that most of us want is for our kids to do a little better than we did.

The median family income in Hawai‘i is around $56,000. Here on the Big Island, it is $46,000. But on the east side of the Big Island, the median family income is in the mid-$30,000s. And in some communities it is in the low-$30,000s.

We all know that low family income is sometimes associated with social problems. And Hawaiian families occupy the lowest rungs on the family income ladder.

Education is directly related to family income. The more education, the higher the family income. Education is the great equalizer.

The Thirty Meter Telescope folks have pledged $1 million dollars annually for 50 years, which will be administered by carefully selected community members, primarily for K-12 education.

We all know that many of our students who enter college fail, or lower their aspirations, because they are not prepared to succeed. We want this TMT fund to prepare students to succeed.

So if we are truly interested in elevating our people and taking them away from drug problems, abusive relationships and other social ills, then we must help parents to launch their kids into the middle class. For those who are prepared to succeed, the sky is the limit.

My pop influenced me at an early age. When I was 10 years old, he inspired me with the attitude of “Not, no can. CAN!”  So I know the value of influencing elementary school kids. They are very impressionable, and with the right environment and the right teachers, anything is possible.

This is why we created the Adopt-A-Class project. Sometimes the Keaukaha School kids come to our farm on their excursions. I tell them stories and give examples of how a positive attitude can overcome any problem. And at the end of the tour when I yell out “Not, no can!” they all yell back: “CAN!”  Right on!

I see the annual $1 million Education Fund as a way of opening up kids’ minds and making them understand that they can do anything. We do not want our kids to wallow in victim-ism. That is waste time.

What we need is for them to have an optimism and a pride that our people were astronomers and the best navigators in the world. We want all kids, not just Hawaiians, to feel that high aspirations and goals are normal and not out of the ordinary.

The TMT leadership—Henry Yang and Jean Lou Chameau—listened to our advice very early on. They went and talked to community folks, like Kumu Lehua and Patrick Kahawaiola‘a, and they understood that the common denominator on which people on all sides of the issue could agree was the education of our keiki.

We have our eye on a goal, and so yesterday’s announcement that the TMT Board has decided on Mauna Kea for its new telescope is a huge, huge deal.