#okinawa

Scott Hayashi has been promoted to chief operating officer of SSFM International, a Honolulu-based multidisciplinary engineering and planning firm with operations across Hawaiʻi, Guam, Okinawa and the Philippines, the company announced.

The US House has passed the fiscal year 2026 National Defense Authorization Act without granting the military any authority to condemn public or private land in Hawaiʻi — an outcome US Rep. Jill Tokuda maintains is critical to protecting the state’s open spaces and community trust.

The lyrics of traditional Okinawan songs were found to record past climate and geological history of the Ryukyu Islands (now called Okinawa Prefecture, Japan), according to a new study by a University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa Earth scientist and fellow Ryukyuan music practitioners.

Following a five-year hiatus, the Maui Okinawan Festival returns to the Maui Mall Village on Saturday, Sept. 21, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Kamaʻāina and visitors can savor Okinawan food while enjoying high-energy music and dance, cultural displays with live demonstrations and interactive activities and shopping at the festival’s craft fair featuring Maui and Oʻahu vendors. 

The Maui Okinawan Kenjin Kai, along with co-sponsor Queen Kaʻahumanu Center, will hold its Maui Okinawan Festival on Saturday, Sept. 21, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Governor Neil Abercrombie today said the state is “well-prepared to receive” an anticipated transfer of up to 2,700 US Marines from Okinawa to Hawai’i.