The Hilo Geothermal Industrial Park (January 24, 2012)

What if the billions of dollars being planned for the inter-island cable went immediately into expanding geothermal generation, building a Hilo Industrial Park, building a Hilo Innovation Center (similar to the Manoa Business Incubator), and building a Hilo Energy Lab (similar to NELHA)? Tax credits could be used to spur job growth and innovation. Job creation would be immediate and lasting.

What's The Beef? (December 8, 2011) 
The national media focused on the World Trade Organization’s rejection of U.S. Country of Origin Labeling (COOL) laws. The truth is a little more complicated.

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) returns to Honolulu (December 8, 2011)

Worrying About Green Energy (December 2, 2011)
The Natural Energy Laboratory of Hawaii Authority (NELHA) has selected OTEC International LLC to build a 1 megawatt (MW) Ocean Thermal Energy Conversion (OTEC) generator. So why am I worried.

Flip-Flop (November 21, 2011)
Representative Neil Abercrombie generally opposed U.S. free trade agreements: Peru (2007), Central America Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA) (2005), Australia (2004), and Singapore (2003). Governor Neil Abercrombie sees no down side to APEC.

Where are the voices of passion and justice? (November 17, 2011)
The financial meltdown was caused by the recklessness of large banks. The taxpayers bailed out the banks, saved them from financial ruin. These banks terminated millions of credit cards, used taxpayer funds to buy other companies, handed out lavish bonuses to their elite, worked the backrooms of Congress to rewrite tax codes to decrease their future taxes and put large numbers of people out of work. The number of homeless increased and became more visible on the streets. The homeless were blamed for their visibility. Where are the voices of passion and justice?

Six Years Ago Today (November 15, 2011)
Rep. Neil Abercrombie supported drilling for off-shore gas located on the Outer Continental Shelf to be used to convert corn into ethanol, the so-called green energy product.

Smokers and Drivers Beware (November 13, 2011)
On the 94th anniversary of the death of Queen Lili’uokalani, the last monarch of Hawai`i, the Honolulu Police Department (HPD)  evicted Native Hawaiians camping on the sidewalk adjacent to the Zoo.

APEC Day 3: Inside and Outside of the Barriers (November 10, 2011)
I had to navigate a number of processes to get a press pass and then to discover how to pick up my various press badges. There was no central clearing spot to discover which events were being added to the schedule. At the conference progressed,  physical barriers went up and the areas where the press could go decreased. APEC Shuttles are available for delegates, staff and media to go between the numerous events at the different Waikiki hotels sponsoring APEC events. There are at least three law enforcement divisions within the Honolulu Police Department and three federal law enforcement agencies, each with their own attitudes and approaches to dealing with civilians.

Public Private Partnership Doublespeak (November 09, 2011)

The Pacific Basin Economic Council (PBEC) and the East-West Center (EWC) is sponsoring meetings at the Marriott today and tomorrow.  In a panel on agriculture, a senior member of the USDA who has a Ph.D. in nutrition, worked for a candy company for five years and supports genetric engineering, noted that the world’s population just reached 7 billion and will reach 9 billion by 2050. The amount of food needed worldwide may double.

Two Competing Views of the Future: APEC & Global Capitalism v. Faith & Justice (November 08, 2011) Yesterday at the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum I asked Governor Abercrombie: Are there any downsides to APEC? He replied: “Not for us.” He also said: “Hawai`i is right at the center of the Asia Pacific region” and “Hawai`i is going to be an anchor for all of this.” He added: “There are a whole bunch of people out there who don't believe were making this progress.  There are a whole lot of people, I'm sorry to say, a vested emotional interest in always seeing us on the losing side.”

APEC: Where's Labor? (November 07, 2011)
To produce something you need raw materials, labor and capital. But only capital is represented at the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) meetings. Labor is discussed, promises are made, jobs are outsourced.

Exploiting the Last Frontier: The World’s Oceans (November 07, 2011)
The world’s seabeds are ripe for exploitation and free trade agreements will maximize their use and minimize their regulation.

Uber Security, Civil Rights & APEC (November 07, 2011)

On the eve of APEC the newly hired Hawai`i Convention Center guards proved to be hyped up and ill trained to deal with protesters. Late last night there was a confrontation between a single person using chalk to write a message on the sidewalk in front of the Hawai`i Convention Center. Four security guards came out of the Convention Center to confront the writer. The guards aggressively surrounded the writer and prevented him from walking away on the sidewalk. The writer could have stepped into the street, but there was a lot of traffic.

Two Major Wind Updates (November 04, 2011)
First, State Legislators went to Molokai and found uniform opposition to Big Wind. Second, a federal appeals court ruled against Cape Wind.

Big Wind hits road blocks from State Procurement Office, Public Utilities Commission & the Association of Hawaiian Civic Clubs (November 03, 2011)  On October 27, 2011, the State Procurement Office rejected the exemption. “It seems very short sighted and detached from the subject matter on DBEDT’s part that the public had to inform them they should consider solar/photovoltaic and geothermal technologies. DBEDT knew of these technologies at the time they issued the initial solicitation and had the opportunity to include it in the solicitation for proper disclosure and open competition. DBEDT chose the narrow scope of services.”

HECO's Approach to Uncertainty (October 22, 2011)
The Hawaii Clean Energy Initiative (HCEI) involved many issues but was centered around two key principles: decoupling and Big Wind.

Trading Places (October 22, 2011)
A series of Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) conferences will meet  in Honolulu in November. A new Asia Free Trade Agreement called the Trans-Pacific Strategic Economic Partnership Agreement (TPP) will be signed by President Obama and some other world leaders.

FERC Ruling re Kauai Hydropower Permits (October 20, 2011)
Kaua'i Blogger Andy Parx has published an interesting article on the recent Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) ruling dismissing two Kaua`i hydroelectric projects in favor of State Regulation.

There's Something Going On Up There (Oct. 18, 2011)
Governor Neil Abercrombie replaced the Young Turks with the Old Guard and then there was a replacement at DBEDT. For some reason most efforts to cover the story missed the real story.   Governor Abercrombie’s New Day: “Hawaii’s most important economic enterprise right now is to pursue energy independence.”

APEC Hawaii 2011 Meetings & Protests Start Monday Oct. 17, 2011
The Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) and the Asia Development Bank (ADB) will hold conferences at the East West Center at the University of Hawaii, Manoa this fall.

Legislative Tourism (October 15, 2011)
With the great economic powers of Asia about to converge on Honolulu in November as part of APEC 2011, several members of the House fly to Taiwan to discuss economics.

Yesterday Returns (October 09, 2011)
New Day becomes Yesterday as old guard replace young turks. Four key young turks forced out by the old guard.

Blame Shifting (October 07, 2011)
The problem is that the Governor had a listening campaign and all of a sudden he became Governor and he stopped listening. Now people are saying it was his staff.  No, ... it was the Governor. He does not listen and he shoots at all of his allies.

Governor Abercrombie: The First 10 Months (October 06, 2011)
The Governor likes to shoot from the lip attacking people at random, but does not like anybody to take offense at him, or to show any independence.

Public Utilities Commission issues landmark biofuel ruling (October 01, 2011). The commission finds and concludes that the contract price for the AKP-produced biofuel is excessive, not cost-effective, and thus, is unreasonable and inconsistent with the public interest.

APEC Meeting at the East West Center, Honolulu, Hawai`i (September 25, 2011) Police, federal law enforcement and peaceful protesters are preparing for the Asia Pacific Economic Forum (APEC) leadership meeting to be held in Honolulu, Hawai`i in early November.

Biological Capital (60 minutes)

Tomoyo Nonaka, Keynote Speaker at World
Congress on Zero Emissions (45 minutes)

Sustainable Agriculture & Biofuels with Senator Russ Kokubun (9 minutes)

Dr. Makena Coffman re Energy Independence (12 minutes)

Dreaming About Agriculture with Kyle Datta (25 minutes)

Dr. Stephen Schneider, Nobel Peace Prize (2007): A Global Citizen Lecture on Climate Change (61 minutes)

Windpower returns to Kahuku (26 minutes)

Hawaii Sea Water Air Conditioning: Interview with Dr. David Rezachek  (27 minutes)

Representative Mina Morita discusses Hawaii's Hydrogen Future (Life of the Land's 2000 Energy for the Millenium II Conference) (9 minutes)

Representative Hermina Morita (1999): Energy Solutions for Hawai`i (Life of the Land's 1999 Energy for the Millenium Conference)  (8 minutes)

Donald Aitken (Union of Concerned Scientists) (1999): Energy Efficiency in Buildings (Life of the Land's 1999 Energy for the Millenium Conference)
(13 minutes)

Interstate Renewable Electrons. IEEE questions/answers with Kris Mayes, Chris Cook and Rhone Resch  (9 minutes)

Hawaii Panel at IEEE discusses Hawaii Clean Energy Initiative  (84 minutes)

Hawaii's Energy Efficiency Utility wants to reduce your energy bill !!! (25 minutes)

Kristan Mayes advocates firing PUC Commissioners who do not aggressively support renewables. Chairman of the Arizona Corporation Commission. 35th IEEE Photovoltaic Specialist Conference, Hawaiian Convention Center (June 20-25, 2010).   (21 minutes)

Energy Efficiency Utility: separate companies should seek to increase & decrease sale of electricity (31minutes)

Hawaii Experts discuss ocean-based baseload renewable energy: Interviews with

Dr. Luis Vega, Reb Bellinger and David Robichaux. (18 minutes)

Abbas Akhil: Grid-Connected Batteries for Lana`i and Kaua`i. Hawaii Energy Storage Seminar (June 16, 2010) (41minutes)

Interview with Dr. Ted Johnson: Ocean Thermal Energy Conversion. Director, Alternative Energy Programs Development for MS2 Undersea Systems, Lockheed Martin   (28 minutes)

Interview with Dr. David Rezachek (Alternative Energy) (25 minutes)

Interview with Darren Kimura (Concentrated Solar Power) (15 minutes)

Interview with Dr. Hans Krock (Ocean Thermal Energy Conversion) (28 minutes)

Energy Efficiency & Renewable Energy Systems on Historic Houses: a conversation with Architect Scott Wilson  (8 minutes)

2008 Climate Summit

Josh Stanbro (8 minutes)

David Turner  (5 minutes) 

Jeff Mikulina (9 minutes) 

Henry Curtis (7 minutes) 

Shanah Faith Trevenna (8 minutes) 

Barry Huebert, Ph.D. (9 minutes) 

Charles Fletcher, Ph.D.  (7 minutes) 

Dr. Charles Pe’ape’a Makawalu Burrows  (8 minutes)

Lorenz Magaard, Ph.D.  (8 minutes) 

Makena Coffman, Ph.D.  (7 minutes) 

Terry Surles, Ph.D. (8 minutes) 

Ocean Energy with Reb Bellinger (25 minutes)

Should Hawaiian Electric become the first utility to use rainforest Palm Oil for Electricity? Hawai`i Public Utilities Commission Evidentiary Hearing (27 minutes)

Big Wind, Geothermal & Inter-island Transmission Lines Includes public hearing on Lana`i re Big Wind.  (28 minutes)

Civil Unions Forum (64 minutes) 

Sunil Aggarwal, Ph.D., M.D. (28 minutes) 

Justice Reinvestment (60 minutes)

Kat Brady Interview with Sunil Aggarwal, Ph.D., M.D. (31 minutes)

Kat Brady addresses Association of Hawaii Civic Clubs  (12 minutes)

Reentry, Substance Abuse & Women

Judge Steven Alm receives Jurist of the Year Award (2010) (13 minutes)

Kua O Ka La Charter School (28 minutes)

DLNR Chair Laura Thielen press conference re occupation of `Iolani Palace (29 minutes)

Downtown-Nuuanu National Hawaii Heritage Area: A conversation with Tamar deFries (57 minutes) 

Out of the Blue: Open Ocean Fish Farming in Hawai`i (57 minutes)

Faye Hanohano (Hawaii State Representative) 

Senator Akaka speech on the floor of the Democratic State Convention

Colleen Hanabusa interview following the withdrawal of Ed Case 

Rafael del Castillo for U.S. House 

Ed Case drops out of race for U.S. House  

Smart Justice (Kat Brady)

Governor Benjamin Cayetano on Civil Unions 

Governor Benjamin Cayetano on Marriage 

Can Hawaii's proposed Civil Unions be Challenged in Court?

Unlocking Justice Conference (2009)

Michele Deitch  part 1  part 2  part 3
CarrieAnn Shirota part 1  part 2

Steve Alm 
Renee Schuetter 
Dr. Geri Marullo
RaeDeen Karasuda 
Lisa Haan and Jackie Bissen
Marilyn Brown
Dr. Meda Chesney-Lind

Pre- ililani Media Videos uploaded to Youtube

Dr. William Steiner speaks on sustainable agriculture, biofuels (7:02)  Dean of the College of Agriculture, Forestry and Natural Resource Management, University of Hawaii, Hilo.

Hawaii Interfaith Power and Light Kick-Off Meeting (6:52)

Shanah Trevenna: University of Hawai`i's Saunders Hall is undergoing an Energy Efficiency Revitalization. (5:33)

Exporting Money Importing Climate Change: Bryan Collins and Kelly King discuss HECO's plans to import palm oil for electricity (2:06)

Commercialized Ocean Wave Energy Power Facilities:
Australian Wave Energy (Blowhole) Oceanlinx comes to Hawaii with Dr Tom Dennis, Peter Kalish (4:30)

Hale Na`au Pono: Rally to Save the Wai`anae Coast's Hale Na`au Pono ("The House for Inner Balance") which provides culturally and socially sensitive, community-based, behavioral health services for children and adults. Stella Pihana-Young, Poka Laenui, Ho'opio DeCambra. (7:13)

Reduce Your Energy Bill (8:31) with Scott Wilson


Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO): The world's first palm oil fired electric power plant has failed. The Hawai`i Public Utilities Commission has rejected the HECO-Imperium palm oil biodiesel contract. (8:00)

Climate Change (1:03)
Climate Change will cause extinctions 

The Collapse of Imperium Renewables: Imperium Renewables planned to supply palm oil biodiesel to the world's first commercial palm oil power plant (2:17)

Hawaii Biofuels (6:41) Interview with Mililani Trask


Genetic Engineering: State Senate Hearing re Genetic Engineering. Bills on kalo (taro), fish, labeling. Una Greenaway. Kalehuekea. Life of the Land. Bills pass first Senate Committee. (6:26)

Hawaii Energy Independence (7:38) Life of the Land's Henry Curtis and Kat Brady discuss Hawaii's Energy Future