Department of Interior: $20 million provided for climate resilience in Hawaiʻi

The Department of the Interior announced Monday a $20 million investment through President Biden’s Investing in America agenda to bolster climate resilience in Hawaiʻi.

Funding will be awarded to 17 Native Hawaiian organizations to restore native ecosystems and plants and enhance food security while incorporating indigenous knowledge and practices. One of the awards went to Hōlani Hāna Inc. for a project to amplify Native Hawaiian knowledge systems and place-based practices to strengthen the resiliency and self-reliance of the Native Hawaiian communities of East Maui from Koʻolau to Kahikinui.

Funding will be implemented through the Department’s Office of Native Hawaiian Relations’ Kapapahuliau Climate Resilience Program. It aims to empower the Native Hawaiian community by placing indigenous knowledge, practices and ingenuity at the center of programs that will cope with past and present climate impacts, develop adaptation strategies to manage future climate challenges, and create systemic change. These efforts will contribute to the vision laid out in the Biden-Harris administration’s National Climate Resilience Framework of a climate-resilient nation. 

The Office of Native Hawaiian Relations hosted two virtual information sessions and a series of in-person scoping meetings for the Native Hawaiian Community on several islands, including Oʻahu, Hawaiʻi, Maui, Kauaʻi and Molokaʻi, ahead of making these awards. The meetings were to ensure selected proposals reflect the needs and values of the Native Hawaiian community.

Island ecosystems such as those found in Hawaiʻi are incredibly biodiverse, and more susceptible to climate-related impacts, such as wildfires and warmer and more acidic oceans. As part of its Restoration and Resilience Framework, the department is working to foster stable and sustainable island communities by building climate resilience across critical habitats, ecosystems and infrastructure, and reducing threats from pollution sources, invasive species, increased fire risk and changes in ocean conditions.

The funding is part of more than $2 billion through the president’s Investing in America agenda.

“The Hawaiian Islands face unique and intensifying climate-related challenges that pose an existential threat to lives and livelihoods,” said Secretary Deb Haaland. “The indigenous knowledge within the Native Hawaiian community will be invaluable as we face these challenges head-on. As the state faces some of climate change’s most damaging effects, this investment through President Biden’s Investing in America agenda is a critical step toward planning for and implementing climate resilience measures, and safeguarding Hawaiʻi for generations to come.”

Funding for the program comes from the Inflation Reduction Act – the largest-ever investment in climate resilience. Across the country, these investments are providing affordable high-speed internet, safer roads and bridges, modern wastewater and sanitation systems, clean drinking water, reliable and affordable electricity, and good-paying jobs. 

Today’s announcement advances the Biden-Harris administration’s Justice40 Initiative, which sets the goal that 40% of the overall benefits of certain federal investments flow to disadvantaged communities that are marginalized by underinvestment and overburdened by pollution.