Maui Community College to host "Islands of the World IX" conference

International conference on issues related to small islands to focus on sustainability

Maui College
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Posted: Jul 12, 2006

KAHULUI, Maui, Hawaiʻi — Scores of scholars and experts from around the world will converge on Maui to discuss the island‘s sustainability efforts and strategies for sustainable development as it applies to all small islands at the Islands of the World IX Conference, July 29-August 3, hosted by Maui Community College.

Presented by the International Small Islands Studies Association (ISISA), the conference‘s theme of "Sustainable Islands — Sustainable Strategies" will focus on poʻokela (economy), mālama ʻāina (ecology), and hoʻohanohano (social equity and heritage).

Among the conference‘s keynote speakers are:

  • Three-time Presidential Award winner and architect William McDonough of William McDonough + Partners — Architecture and Community Design;
  • Native Hawaiian cultural expert and world-renowned navigator Nainoa Thompson of the Polynesian Voyaging Society;
  • Sustainable agronomy expert Dr. Carlos Hernandez of EARTH University, Costa Rica;
  • Sustainable urban development expert Dr. Ivo Martinac of the UH Mānoa School of Travel Industry Management‘s Environmental Sustainability in Tourism Program;
  • Kahoʻolawe Island Reserve Commission Director Sol Kahoʻohalahala;
  • Maui Land & Pineapple Company President & CEO David Cole;
  • UH Mānoa Center for Conservation Research and Training Director Ken Kaneshiro; and
  • Art Medeiros of the United States Geological Survey‘s Biological Research Division.

Keynote speaker presentations are open to the public and will be held in the mornings from 8:30 a.m. to noon, Monday thru Wednesday, July 31-August 2, at the Maui Arts & Cultural Center‘s Castle Theater.

One of the highlights of the conference will be the use of Teleportec, a three-dimensional video imaging system that is used to "teleport" speakers broadcasting live from remote locations. This will be the first demonstration of this technology in Hawaiʻi.

In addition to presentations, conference participants will have the opportunity to participate in pre-conference activities including excursions around Maui, as well as post-conference excursions to visit the other neighbor islands. A sustainability fair and sustainability video contest are also planned in conjunction with the conference on Tuesday, August 1, from 3 to 6 p.m. on the lawn at Maui Community College.

For more information about the conference and a schedule of activities, visit http://maui.hawaii.edu/isisa2006/.


BACKGROUND
In 1986, the International Small Islands Studies Association (ISISA), made up of scholars, researchers, and island enthusiasts from around the world, organized an international conference on Vancouver Island, Canada, to discuss issues related to small islands. This inaugural "Islands of the World" Conference was so successful that it was followed by others in Tasmania (1998), the Bahamas (1992), Okinawa (1994), Mauritius (1998), Isle of Skye (2000), Prince Edward Island (2002) and Taiwan (2004).

At the 2004 conference, Maui Community College Chancellor Clyde Sakamoto, Acting Dean of Instruction Suzette Robinson, and Academic Senate Chair Dan Kruse represented the islands of Maui, Molokaʻi and Lanaʻi. As a result of the college‘s active participation in the organization and Sakamoto‘s presentation to the ISISA Executive Committee, Maui was selected as the site for the 2006 conference.

For more information, visit: http://maui.hawaii.edu/isisa2006/