Maui’s Opgenorth, Haleakalā Ranch honored during invasive species awareness month

Gov. Josh Green and the Hawaiʻi Invasive Species Council honored community members and organizations on Wednesday as part of Hawaiʻi Invasive Species Awareness Month (HISAM), recognizing efforts across the state to combat the growing threat of invasive species.

“The essence of our shared kuleana is to safeguard Hawaiʻi from the devastating impacts of invasive species,” said Department of Land and Natural Resources Chair Dawn Chang, who co-chairs the interagency council. “This month is about hope and the people and organizations who rise to meet these challenges with passion, commitment and aloha.”

The 2025 awards recognize an “MVP” who has made substantial contributions to this work on Kauaʻi, Oʻahu, Maui Nui and Hawaiʻi Island, as well as winners in the statewide categories “Business Leader,” “Community Hero” and “Greatest Hit.”  The 2025 awardees include:

• Business Leader: Aloha Termite and Pest Control for its leadership in combatting the little fire ant and how the private sector can play a critical role in invasive species management.
• Community Hero: Haleakalā Ranch for protecting rangelands and native ecosystems from invasive species while producing local food and stewarding large open spaces on Maui.
• Greatest Hit: Trenton Yasu for his rapid and professional response to a 643pest.org report involving freshwater eels, a restricted aquatic species.

• Hawaiʻi Island MVP: Kiane Prietto for her outstanding dedication to invasive species education and community outreach.
• Maui Nui MVP: Mike Opgenorth for his leadership in conservation, outreach and invasive species response in East Maui.
• Oʻahu MVP: Thomas Griego for being a proactive community member, by leading outreach and access coordination for little fire ants in Lanikai, which helped crews overcome major obstacles and continue control efforts.
• Kauaʻi MVP: Work It Out Kauaʻi (Jenny and Jasmine Kaohelauliʻi) for their creative and sustained commitment to invasive species outreach through fashion, media and community engagement.

At a ceremony, which marked the end of HISAM’s month-long series of public webinars and volunteer events, Green also signed an official proclamation designating May as Hawaiʻi Invasive Species Awareness Month.

This year’s HISAM theme, “What’s at Risk: from Mauka to Makai,” featured a series of live educational webinars from local invasive species experts, recordings of which are now available online. Webinar topics this year included creating new habitat for critically endangered bird species, controlling coqui frogs on Maui and community engagement in invasive species management.

Though HISAM is nearing an end, the challenge of invasive species is year-round. The community can continue to help prevent and manage invasive species by reporting pests to 643-PEST or 643pest.org, cleaning off shoes and equipment before entering the forest and cleaning boats and marine equipment before use.