HomeMy WebLinkAboutYouth Congress Resolution 2024 - Final.docxCOUNTY OF HAWAI‘I YOUTH CONGRESS
RESOLUTION 2024
A RESOLUTION DECLARING THE FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDATION OF THE
HAWAI'I COUNTY SUSTAINABILITY SUMMIT YOUTH CONGRESS 2024 ON THE
2030 SUSTAINABILITY GOALS OF THE STATE OF HAWAI'I
WHEREAS,on May 2nd,2024,the County of Hawai‘i convened the inaugural Youth
Congress to provide a platform for the youth of Hawai‘i to contribute their findings and
recommendations regarding the 2030 sustainability goals adopted by the state of Hawai‘i;and
Whereas,the Natural Resource Management committee of the Hawaiʻi Youth Congress
finds that native species are being harmed,invasive species are rapidly increasing in Hawaii nei
and there is a lack of knowledge of Komo Ka'ihi (animals with negative impacts);
Now therefore be it resolved,that a hands-on program in the county of Hawaii will be
available to our lāhui to provide knowledge on the negative impact on indigenous species,along
with our environment;and
Be it further a resolved,that a 1 unit high school Malama ʻāina class,including education
on invasive species shall be created and all high school graduates in the state of Hawaii will be
required to obtain 1 credit in a Malama ʻāina class.
Whereas,the Green Work Force and Education committee of the Hawaiʻi Youth
Congress finds that only 8.5%of schools in Hawaii have accessible education pertaining to
sustainability programs and goals such as the Aloha+challenge and our goal is to increase the
accessibility of these programs by making them a part of the regular curriculum at public and
private schools across the state and ensuring that there is have enough funding,so all schools
have equitable funding for these programs.
Now therefore be it resolved,that more funding should be dedicated from the Department
of Education for schools with below average state testing scores,and there should be observers
to make sure our educators are teaching purposefully.
Whereas,the Clean Energy and Transportation committee of the Hawaiʻi Youth Congress
finds climate change is affecting every community in Hawaii,forcing us to adapt to new systems
and Hawaii Island has 59 county buildings with a footprint of over 5000 square feet,
encompassing 121 meters,accounting for 5555 metric tons of CO2 emissions annually;and
Whereas,Hawaii Island has 14,000 photovoltaic systems,and though we are committed
to the goals set by the Aloha+challenge,we still need more renewable energy systems in place
to achieve them.
Therefore be it resolved,the county should require all buildings to have photovoltaic
systems on the rooftops.They should also require all parking lots for large buildings with high
energy needs to have overhead covering photovoltaic systems and excess energy should be
diverted to a micro-grid within the community.
Whereas,the Clean Energy and Transportation committee of the Hawaiʻi Youth Congress
also finds that climate change is affecting every community in Hawaii,especially local
businesses and including the tourism industry.
Now therefore be it resolved,the county should require profit from hotels and tourism
activities to go to clean energy systems for hotel complexes.They should also require an
increasing percentage of energy powering the hotels to be clean energy and provide incentives to
local and non-local businesses to lower their carbon emissions.
Whereas,the Solid Waste Reduction committee of the Hawaiʻi Youth Congress finds
Hawaiʻi is producing too much waste across the pae ʻāina.There is 1.4 million pounds of waste
produced every day in Hawaiʻi,There are 1.4 million people in Hawaiʻi,300,000 of which are
kids under the age of 19 and waste produced in schools from youth needs to be reduced.
Now therefore be it resolved,that the schools should self-evaluate and be evaluated by
the Department of Education and the Department of Health and graded based on materials such
as bio-degradable and food waste that are not diverted.The grading shall be based off of an A-F
scale and poorly graded schools shall follow options suggested on how to improve their waste
diversion and further help the community.In order to improve school waste evaluations,options
should be provided for waste containers and offerings to local farmers or ʻāina educators.
Schools should have until the next evaluation to go forth and follow their options and use these
resources to help reduce waste reduction or share waste with those who may need it.Schools that
are doing well can help out around the community and educate others on food that’s being
wasted.
Whereas,the Local Food committee of the Hawaiʻi Youth Congress finds that according
to hawaii.gov,Hawaiʻi imports 85-90%of it’s food from the continental United States or other
sources and there has been a 10.4%decrease this year in the number of farms in Hawaiʻi due to
infrastructure development or just ceasing production,according to civilbeat.org;and
Whereas,a lot of local public school here only offer electives and extracurriculars for
agricultural programs,rather than required course for farming practices;and
Whereas,there is not enough coverage about local food production.One example is the
multiple loko iʻa (fishponds)located in Hilo,HI,specifically Keaukaha.From the road,at first
glance it appears as if there are only 4 fishponds,but in actuality there are 12 that are not being
promoted at all.
Therefore be it resolved,that the local food committee of the Hawaiʻi Youth Congress
call upon the Hawaiʻi County to provide more marketing and campaigns for local non-profits
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dedicated to producing food here to have more community outreach opportunities.This can be
implemented by providing public classes and required agricultural courses at all schools here in
Hawaiʻi;and
Be It further Resolved,food insecurity and lack of local food production should be
considered as one of the main problems facing our islands today.This resolution provides the
call to action needed for the promotion of local food production and consumption.
Whereas,the Smart Sustainable Communities committee of the Hawaiʻi Youth Congress
finds that according to the Untied Nations Development Program only 50%of people showed
public support for climate action when surveyed;and
Whereas,No one will change if they don’t think change is necessary,and therefore we
need to educate our local population on why change is needed to create a more sustainable
community.
Therefore Be It Resolved,that education for youth and adults should be available
through community engagement,work initiatives,and educational opportunities and these
opportunities should consist of hands-on learning experiences and environmentally based team
building workshops;and
Be it further resolved,that after school programs starting from 3rd grade going through
12th students should engage in hands on experiences and sustainable learning,and the students
may continue on the work to create policy creation focused and solution-based projects;and
Be it further resolved,that local sustainable small business should collaborate with
community members to volunteer their time at different locations including loko i’a (fish pond)
Lo’i kalo (taro patch)and other wahipana (sacred site)across Hawai’i.
BE IT FINALLY RESOLVED that the County Clerk shall transmit a copy of this
resolution to the Honorable Joshua B.Green,M.D.,Governor of the State of Hawai‘i;the
Honorable Brian E.Schatz,United States Senator;the Honorable Mazie K.Hirono,United
States Senator;the Honorable Edward Case,United States Representative;the Honorable Jill
Tokuda,United States Representative;the Honorable Ronald D.Kouchi,President of the
Hawai‘i Senate;the Honorable Scott K.Saiki,Speaker of the Hawai‘i House of Representatives;
the Honorable Mitchell D.Roth,Mayor of the County of Hawai‘i;the Honorable Richard T.
Bissen,Mayor of the County of Maui and the Council of Maui County;the Honorable Richard
Blangiardi,Mayor of the City and County of Honolulu and the Council of the City and County of
Honolulu;and the Honorable Derek S.K.Kawakami,Mayor of the County of Kaua‘i and the
Council of the County of Kaua‘i;and the State of Hawai‘i Department of Health and the
Department of Education.
Dated at Kailua-Kona,Hawai‘i,this 2nd day of May,2024.
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