Hawaii Department of Transportation has unveiled a brand new program called SustainableDOT-A, becoming a leader in the international conversion to sustainable airport operations. SustainableDOT-A started as an agency response to local legislation mandating the use of green rating systems for public facilities. What began as a group of hard-working employees intent on fulfilling the new mandates grew into a meet-over-lunch volunteer sustainability committee creating a trailblazing program that exceeded standards.

With SustainableDOT-A, Hawaii is now one of two states to implement a statewide program and one of four to include Sustainable High-Performance Guidelines, a LEED-like resource outlining best practices for design and construction.聽Moreover, Hawai鈥檌 is now the first in the nation to create guiding documents designed to safeguard the unique heritage of the state, the Cultural Appropriateness Guidelines and Sense of Place Primer. Airports are the places of first and last impressions, so the authentic, respectful portrayal of host and local culture is paramount. Sound like something the Abercrombie administration would get behind? It is.

In July, Abercrombie congratulated DOT-A leadership for the ongoing work of the SustainableDOT-A program. Recognizing the pivotal role airports play in the economic and environmental future of Hawai鈥檌 is not unusual for Abercrombie. In May, he signed HB865 into law to decrease the spread of invasive species with new biosecurity inspection facilities at Honolulu International Airport (HNL), the first airport to begin implementing the SustainableDOT-A program.

At HNL, four elements were examined to create baselines: carbon, waste, water, and energy. For sustainability professionals, establishing baselines is essential to implement lasting change because the results expose complex layers of resource management and consumption. Completion of the SustainableHNL Elements Baseline report means the busiest airport in Hawai鈥檌 is now poised to increase waste diversion, produce more renewable energy, reduce water use and decrease reliance on non-renewable energy.

Like the long flights sharing recycled air with chain smokers, the days of unsustainable airports are numbered.

About the author: Amy K. Brinker recently graduated from the William S. Richardson School of Law with an Environmental Law and Native Hawaiian Law Certificate. She is the Director of Policy at KYA Sustainability Studio, an innovation firm in Honolulu specializing in sustainability.

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Without an exception for pa驶i 驶ai, cultural practitioners were unable to sell or even give away their pounded kalo (taro), once the staple food of Hawaiians. The rules did not honor the traditional preparation and implements used in this time-tested K膩naka Maoli culinary art, nor did the rules allow consumers to make the ultimate decision about whether or not they would assume the risk of eating food made with (gasp!) a porous stone. With the Governor鈥檚 signature, that will all change. New DOH rules will allow for consumer choice, provided the pa驶i 驶ai chefs provide a disclaimer and comply with a few safety requirements.

This bill has the potential to be a game changer. The starchy kalo needed to make high quality pa驶i 驶ai has led to kalo farmers getting a decent price per pound. This is also an entry point for folks that would otherwise have no interest in other issues associated with kalo, like land and water. Ancient Hawaiians elevated the art of cultivating kalo to a level not found anywhere else in the world. Yet, today the acres of land in kalo production pale in comparison to historic levels. There are people that may not like poi but find they love pa驶i 驶ai, with its mochi-like consistency and mild sweetness. When someone with a newfound taste for pa驶i 驶ai has trouble finding it because there is not enough kalo to meet the demand, the stage is set for more folks to take up farming. In particular, this bill makes kalo farming viable because it allows a new farmer to make a value-added food product, pa驶i 驶ai, without a heavy investment in a commercial kitchen. As an island state dependent on outside sources for food, looking for solutions like this that encourage local food production and processing are key for our long-term economic, environmental, social and cultural health.

Some people ask me, 鈥淲hy is a girl from Texas working on something like this?鈥� A background in culinary arts coupled with a legal education at the William S. Richardson School of Law provided me with a skill set to look at an issue that combined food and law. The cultural element is important for me in a way that is difficult to express in words. On a tangible level, I grew closer to kalo by spending time in lo驶i (taro patches), learning about the many varieties of kalo, making my own papa ku驶i 驶ai (poi pounding board) and pohaku ku驶i 驶ai (poi pounding stone); the intangible level encompasses a deep respect for Hawai驶i鈥檚 host culture and their connection to kalo as H膩loa, their ancestor with whom a reciprocal relationship of giving and receiving continues from many generations past. For me, the Pa驶i 驶Ai Bill was like streams of my past and present merging into one river, winding its way to Hawaii鈥檚 State Legislature.

As far as the legislature is concerned, I am a novice…at best. The learning curve was steep this session, as it was my first. The lessons that follow are not meant for battle-tested activists and lobbyists; rather, these are just a few things I picked up this session, from one newbie to another:

1. Calendar is King

I had NO idea how important the session calendar was before I started. Let鈥檚 say you have a great bill that everyone loves. If the bill is not introduced in time, it鈥檚 dead. If the bill is introduced in time but the bill is not assigned to committees and scheduled for hearings in time, it鈥檚 dead. If the bill is heard but the committee report is not issued in time, it鈥檚 dead. If the bill moves through all the committees but not in time to make the deadline for it to cross over to the other house, it鈥檚 dead. Then, it needs to be assigned to committees, scheduled for hearings and go through the whole process in the other house, making all the deadlines again. If not, it鈥檚 dead. These do-or-die deadlines can create the kind of situation where you feel like you have a small child that must be watched constantly. The folks in the Public Access Room are like having a wise, kind, patient grandmother that has helped rear thousands of children. They have copies of the session calendar and can help you decode the deadlines.

2. Shoot for the Stack

There was a guy that just got a job in a legislator鈥檚 office. On the first day, the legislator approaches him and said, 鈥淚 want you to follow this bill very closely because we have a lot of interest from the community on this one.鈥� The legislator then reaches into his coat pocket and pulls out 16 letters and hands them to the guy. This story was told to me to illustrate how responsive politicians really are to community interest. Sixteen letters was 鈥渁 lot of interest.鈥� It shows that statement about your voice making a difference is actually true. In about 30 seconds, someone can log on to and submit testimony for a bill. Since you generally only have 48 hours to submit testimony, you have to check your bill status online regularly and let everyone know it鈥檚 time to send in emails for your bill. Right before the hearing, all those emails are printed out and stacked up for each bill on the agenda. It always helps to have people there in person but getting a nice stack of emails shows that there is 鈥渁 lot of interest,鈥� even if everyone is not able to come down and testify in person.

3. Give Updates and Mahalos Regularly

Though I have only one session under my belt, I imagine it would be tough to get a bill through without giving regular updates and thanks to the folks that are involved. At the Capitol, it is important to spend some time meeting and then thanking the Reps and Senators that will be directly involved with your bill (especially if they are chairs of committees your bill is assigned to), but equally important is to give thanks to their office staff. The folks in the offices work hard to keep track of hundreds of bills. Yours is just another piece of paper, so spend the time to thank them for keeping yours moving. Outside the capitol, use social media or emails to let the folks sending in those supportive emails how your bill is progressing. One supporter of the Pa驶i 驶Ai bill told me it was nice to get updates, since it seemed like often people asked for help but never followed up to let everyone know the outcome.

About the author: Amy K. Brinker is pursuing her J.D. at the William S. Richardson School of Law, with a focus on Hawaiian and environmental law. She has a B.A. in Asian Studies with a focus on Japan and China. Amy sits on the UH Manoa Sustainability Corps board, the Sierra Club Oahu Group Executive Committee, recently curated and is the founder of .

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