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Civil Beat was barely two weeks old when I went to the University of Hawaii in May and spoke to communications professionals from its various schools and departments.

I told them that I felt that the university and Civil Beat had a common bond. We’re both in what a newspaper publisher friend calls “the knowledge business.” That’s a different way to think of journalism, which is more commonly categorized as the “news” business. What I like about the term knowledge business, and why I think it better fits what we’re doing at this new news service, is that it puts the emphasis on learning.

At Civil Beat we want to provide a forum where citizens can learn about, understand, debate and discover the important issues facing Hawaii. What I learned in my meeting at UH was that there would soon be a book with a similar goal, a book by the name of “The Value of Hawaii: Knowing the Past, Shaping the Future.”

That chance encounter led to what I hope will be the first of many partnerships between Civil Beat and UH, and eventually other local universities, too.

Carol Abe of the University of Hawaii Press introduced me to the editors of the book, Craig Howes and Jonathan Kay Kamakawiwo‘ole Osorio, and the rest, as they say, is history.

I knew when I read this paragraph in Craig’s first e-mail to me that our projects share a common spirit:

“I’m sure that readers will agree heartily with some of the contributors, and question the sanity of others. But the goal of the book is to start discussion in the community about what is important in Hawaii, and how we can preserve — or restore — those things that matter most in our political, cultural, social, economic, and artistic lives.”

We believe that original, thoughtful writing about important local issues will be valuable to you. So, together, leading up to the election, we’re going to publish excerpts from 15 of the 29 essays in the book, plus an original essay by our very own Chad Blair, who wrote the book’s chapter on government (an excerpt of which will appear Monday).

Every Monday, starting on July 26, you’ll find the essay that we’ll discuss that week published on the free section of the site. Here’s the lineup:

• July 26 — The three major themes of the book by Craig Howes; the book’s connection with an earlier collection of essays, “The Price of Paradise,” by Chad Blair; government, by Chad as well.
• Aug. 2 — Hawaiian issues by Jonathan Kay Kamakawiwo’ole Osorio
• Aug. 9 — Economy by Sumner La Croix
• Aug. 16 —Tourism by Ramsay Remigius Mahealani Taum
• Aug. 23 — Agriculture by Charles Reppun
• Aug. 30 — Reinventing Hawaii by Tom Coffman
• Sept. 6 — Military by Kathy Ferguson and Phyllis Turnbull
• Sept. 13 — Law & Courts by Melody Kapilialoha MacKenzie
• Sept. 20 — Public Education by Mari Matsuda
• Sept. 27 — University of Hawaii by Neal Milner
• Oct. 4 — Prisons by Meda Chesney-Lind and Kat Brady
• Oct. 11 — Climate Change by Chip Fletcher
• Oct. 18 — Energy by Henry Curtis
• Oct 25 — Water by D. Kapua’ala Sproat

The authors have all agreed to participate in the discussions during the week that their essay is in the spotlight. So I hope you’ll use this opportunity to engage in conversations with them and with other members.

We’ll also be holding five Beatups over the course of the series. At these forums, you’ll be able to meet the authors and discuss in person the issues raised by their essays. (Of course, you’ll also be able to buy the book and probably get an author’s signature, too.)

I hope you’ll plan on attending. All the Beatups will begin at 5:30 p.m. in our offices at 3465 Waialae Ave., Suite 200. The first Beatup will be on Thursday, Aug. 5, and will feature Craig Howes, Jon Osorio and Chad Blair. The tentative dates for future Beatups based on the book are Sept. 2, Sept. 23, Oct. 7 and Oct. 28. To RSVP to attend a Beatup, please e-mail beatup@civilbeat.com.

To learn more about the book, we’ve created a topic page that includes a complete list of contributors and more about where you can hear the writers talk about their work. I wish we could have included all the writers. The decision on whom to include in our series was all mine and exclusion of any writer is by no means a commentary on the quality of their work. We have invited them all to participate in the discussions over the next few months.

Collaboration is one sure way to build a Hawaii we’ll all value. I’m grateful to Craig and Jon and all the contributing writers for their willingness to work with us and share special versions of their essays in “The Value of Hawaii” with you. I look forward to learning from them and from you about how we can make Hawaii the place it deserves to be.