The Hawaiʻi Leadership Forum announced 16 local leaders who are joining the eighth cohort of its Omidyar Fellows program, and nine are alumni from the University of Hawaiʻi. The program seeks to cultivate the conditions in which Hawaiʻi thrives by equipping leaders with the skills and cross-sector relationships necessary to collectively affect societal change.
Individuals were selected through a rigorous application process, based on their accomplishments, motivation and ability to make positive change in Hawaiʻi. Their courageous leadership continues to be demonstrated through their response to the COVID-19 pandemic and the ongoing health and economic crisis.
“One thing that has become incredibly clear to all of us in the last six months is the importance and impact of thoughtful, credible and intentional leadership,” said Bill Coy, director of Omidyar Fellows. “We see leadership as an activity, not a role, and we have appreciated all of those who have stepped forward to diagnose the real and deeper challenges, engage others and intervene skillfully. Cohort VIII joins us at a juncture of critical demands and remarkable opportunity.”
The nine UH alumni who were selected as the eighth cohort of Omidyar Fellows:
- Tony Au (UH Mānoa’s Shidler College of Business), executive vice president–residential real estate division, First Hawaiian Bank
- Danielle Bass (UH Mānoa’s Department of Urban and Regional Planning), sustainability coordinator, State of Hawaiʻi, Office of Planning
- Daniel Chun (UH Mānoa’s Shidler College of Business), director of sales, community and public relations–Hawaiʻi, Alaska Airlines
- Jocelyn Howard (UH Mānoa’s Myron B. Thompson School of Social Work), executive director, We Are Oceania
- Janice Ikeda (UH Hilo’s Department of Communication, Hawaiʻi Community College’s Information Technology program), executive director, Vibrant Hawaiʻi
- Ashley Lukens (UH Mānoa’s Department of Political Science), executive director, Frost Family Foundation; principal consultant, Ashley Lukens Consulting
- Darragh O’Carroll (UH Mānoa’s John A. Burns School of Medicine), emergency physician, Kuakini Medical Center; writer and climate change advocate
- Diane Paloma (UH Mānoa’s Shidler College of Business), chief executive officer, King Lunalilo Trust and Lunalilo Home
- Suzie Schulberg (UH Mānoa’s Center on Aging, previously housed in the Office of Public Health Studies), president and chief executive officer, Arcadia Family of Companies
For the full list of the eighth cohort, see the Omidyar Fellows website.
