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Hawaii has a chronic leadership problem. Look around and let’s call it the way it is.

Our elected government officials, the people we tend to look to for leadership, are consumed by intra- and inter-party politics. Even in the best of times, they have very little running room to take on bold solutions if they have any hope of getting re-elected.

Politicians in Hawaii have to make some individual noise to distinguish themselves from the crowd but in the end, they have to go along to get along or get sidelined. Let it also be said that elections themselves tend to change a few of the faces but they don’t change the basics of the game itself.

Nor do other sectors in Hawaii seem able to fill the leadership vacuum. Business leaders, once powerful, have no unified voice. The Native Hawaiian community (which many non-Hawaiians, me included, had hoped would assume a more inspired mantle of leadership) is consumed with external complaints and internal jealousies. Hawaii’s unions, which should be offering strong leadership, seems to squander their assets defending narrow interests regardless of wider external costs. The University, traditional media outlets, and religious, ethnic and cultural associations are all less influential than they once were.

…which leaves you and me. That’s where the problem really sits.

It isn’t the divisiveness and adversarialism of others that’s to blame. It’s our own inability to find common ground that is at the heart of Hawaii’s leadership dilemmas. There is, of course, no shortage of things to focus on: new business development; jobs; education; food and fuel security; waste management; crime; infrastructure; strengthening tourism in ways that leaves more money in local pockets; ensuring better health care; or reducing some of the poverty that is more and more palpable across the State.

What we need now are some new ways to incubate the next set of leaders who are pragmatic, collaborative and ready to roll up their sleeves and get to work. One way to do this is to create something I’ll call a set of “Hawaii Leadership Boards,” targeted and well designed forums that are not just more gab fests, but real “think and do tanks.” If this interests you, and you have the patience for a slower walk across our current problems and prospects, read on.

Peter Adler, Ph.D. is a longtime Hawaii resident. He currently serves as President & CEO of The Keystone Center, an international organization that creates consensus-based solutions to pressing environment, energy and public health issues. Prior to his appointment at Keystone, Adler held executive positions with The Hawaii Justice Foundation, The Hawaii Judiciary’s Center for Alternative Dispute Resolution, and Mediation Centers of the Pacific. He is the author of numerous publications including two books about Hawaii, Beyond Paradise (Ox Bow Press, 1993) and Oxtail Soup for the Island Soul (Ox Bow Press, 2000).