Laserfiche WebLink
<br /> <br /> <br /> Council Chair James Arakaki <br /> General Fund Balance Request <br /> Page 2 <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> There are still many, many things the Department can be doing to build capacity <br /> within communities that encourages economic and entrepreneurial endeavors, <br /> strengthens families, and enables collaborative planning and activities toward a <br /> preferred future. There are missed opportunities to work more closely with the <br /> University Of Hawai'i at Hilo, the Hawai'i Community College, the Pacific Basin <br /> <br /> Agricultural Research Center, Kamehameha Schools, The Kohala Center, and so <br /> many others. There are enormous opportunities to facilitate businesses, <br /> agricultural commodity groups, energy projects, and the film industry, and <br /> provide them with technical assistance and grant writing resources. And of <br /> course we must more earnestly pursue international relationships with China, <br /> <br /> Taiwan, japan, etc. to build bridges for economic opportunities. <br /> <br /> In order to position the Department to be more effective for our various <br /> constituencies, R & D must have the ability to do such things as: <br /> <br /> <br /> Create Department publications, including statistics, forecasts, and <br /> projections useful to businesses, students, government entities, non- <br /> profits, and community groups; <br /> Create a High Resource Think Tank to address responsible growth; <br /> Collaborate with the Planning Department to establish a community <br /> <br /> based template for the development of Community Development and/or <br /> Regional Plans; <br /> Work more closely with statewide groups such as the Hawai'i Rural <br /> Development Association and the Hawai'i Association for Community <br /> Based Economic Development to identify broader opportunities for <br /> <br /> appropriate funding resources; <br /> Focus on the work of the Resource Center, especially as regards <br /> o Completing the island wide communications network; <br /> o Establishing the volunteer resource pool; <br /> o Securing more grants for communities to work against drugs; <br /> <br /> o Enhancing our community based economic development <br /> effectiveness; <br /> o Providing better connectivity between communities and county <br /> departments, as well as more technical assistance to both. <br />