Illumination Hawaiʻi, a 1-hour film on energy and climate, premiered on Earth Day 2022 and was shown on multiple TV stations across the state. Footage for the film was collected over 10 months and included one-on-one interviews and talk story sessions with numerous Hawaiʻi leaders—including University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa experts—and an Illumination Village with learning stations.
UH Mānoa experts who contributed to and were featured in the film included:
- Director of the Institute for Sustainability and Resilience Makenna Coffman discussed the impacts of climate change on Hawaiʻi and what Hawaiʻi is doing to mitigate or adapt to climate change.
- Associate Professor of Natural Resources and Environmental Management Susan Crow spoke on a panel discussing decarbonizing the economy and carbon sequestration.
- Professor of Information and computer sciences Jason Leigh and his LAVA team’s project HAVEN—an interactive 3D energy planning modeling tool—was featured in the film. HAVEN was created in partnership with Hawaiian Electric and the Hawaiʻi State Energy Office.
- Director of the Spark Matsunaga Institute for Peace Maya Soetoro-Ng expressed what gives her hope.
The film showcased the diverse efforts and the innovative solutions charting the way in Hawaiʻi, navigating a path toward a resilient and sustainable future. Narrated by Kathy Muneno, the filmmakers hoped to inspire new conversations around adapting to and mitigating the effects of climate change, transitioning to clean energy, creating a decarbonized economy, conserving our natural resources, and reducing our collective carbon footprint.
Other speakers include: Navigator Nainoa Thompson, Barack Obama, Scott Glenn (Hawaiʻi Chief Energy Officer), Mike McCartney (DBEDT), Celeste Connors (Hawaiʻi Green Growth Local 2030 Hub), Melissa Miyashiro (Blue Planet), Ulalia Woodside (Nature Conservancy) Peter Ingram (Hawaiian Airlines), Scott Seu (HEI), Shelee Kimura (Hawaiian Electric), Vic Angoco (Matson), Brian Kealoha (Hawaiʻi Energy), David Bissell (KIUC), Matt Gonser (Honolulu Office of Climate Change), Micah Kane (Hawaiʻi Community Foundation).
Learn more about the Illumination Hawaiʻi film and summit at the website.
