Hawai‘i Energy Policy Forum to hold ‘Power Up’ Virtual Community Education Series, Nov. 19

Hawai‘i has been battered by a series of storms this past year and simulated models show the frequency of tropical storms that make landfall in Hawai‘i will double because of ongoing warming. This could mean prolonged power outages that affect our access to water, communications, medical equipment and much more. What can we do as a community to become more resilient to severe weather?

The Hawai‘i Energy Policy Forum presents a “Power Up” virtual session to empower the community with information to help build a more energy-secure ecosystem for our islands — without sacrificing our values and our fragile island environment, while keeping energy affordable for all.

Jennifer Potter, energy specialist with the Hawai‘i Natural Energy Institute, will moderate a panel discussion titled, “Disaster Resilience: It’s More than Keeping the Lights On” on Thursday, Nov. 19, 2026, from noon to 1 p.m.

Our virtual panel discussion will discuss recent lessons learned, current challenges, and options to build more community resilience to be better prepared for the next extreme weather event, reduce our vulnerability, improve reliability, and restore power to make Hawai‘i more resilient.

The panelists will include: 

• Dr. Miku Maria Lenentine is the director of the CERENE Sustainability Lab and CERENE Program at Kapiʻolani Community College. She is leading the efforts to identify community resilience hubs across Oʻahu and supports resilience-building initiatives islandwide through the Oʻahu Resilience Hub Learning Community.
• Rocky Mould is the executive director of the Hawai‘I Solar Energy Association (HSEA), and responsible for leading HSEA’s advocacy efforts before the federal, state and county government officials and the Public Utilities Commission. He promotes solar, energy storage, and distributed energy resource policies in alignment with Hawai‘ï’s critical economic, affordability, and clean energy priorities.
• Kurt Tsue is the director of community affairs at Hawaiian Electric Company (HECO). He oversees community outreach, public engagement, and communication for Hawaiian Electric’s capital projects, emergency preparedness, and wildfire safety initiatives.

For more than 20 years, the Hawai‘i Energy Policy Forum has been tackling the state’s most challenging energy issues and translating cutting-edge research into real-world solutions to improve Hawai‘iʻs energy resilience. 

The Hawai‘i Energy Policy Forum is best known for its an annual signature event held before the start of each legislative session as a resource of research findings, primarily for legislators responsible for making sound energy policy decisions for the state.

To register for the Power Up series, visit https://hepfpowerup.com/