The findings of an international symposium, “Vulnerable Islands in the Sky: Science and Management of Tropical Island Alpine & Sub-Alpine Ecosystems,” hosted by the Office of Mauna Kea Management (OMKM) in Hilo in 2012, were recently published in a scientific journal. The symposium was done in collaboration with the University of Hawaiʻi Hilo Department of Geography and Environmental Sciences with support from the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation.
The scientific journal’s special issue, Arctic, Antarctic and Alpine Research, Volume 46, No. 4 (2014 University of Colorado) contains the article, entitled, “Losing the High Ground: Rapid Transformation of Tropical Island Alpine and Subalpine Environments,” co-authored by UH Hilo Professor Emeritus James Juvik, Institute of Integrative Biology’s Christoph Kueffer, UH Hilo Professor Emeritus Sonia Juvik and Director of the Office of Mauna Kea Management Stephanie Nagata.
“The broad significance of the scientific journal was that it included the papers–all of which were peer reviewed–that were presented at an international symposium that OMKM sponsored on the Big Island in late 2012,” says Nagata.
“The journal reminded me of the new network of communication that was established among scientists dedicated to the study of tropical alpine and sub-alpine ecosystems, research collaborations, and the realization that shared knowledge can play an important role in helping to protect our tropical high mountains including Maunakea.”
The impetus for the symposium was driven by UH statutory responsibility to manage the Mauna Kea Science Reserve, a culturally significant and environmentally sensitive site as well as the location of the world’s largest collection of telescopes.
The symposium organizers wished to gain a global perspective on the current state of atmospheric and terrestrial science relative to tropical island high mountains and various best-management practices for these fragile alpine and subalpine environments and the range of associated land use, cultural and environmental conflicts resulting from public use and development.
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