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Home My WebLink AboutCD1 (rcvd 9.22.25) HWMO_2025-26 Professional Services_CD.1 22 September 2025 To: Mr. Talmadge Magno, Civil Defense Administrator County of Hawaiʻi 920 Ululani Street, Hilo, HI 96720 RE: Professional services available to the County of Hawaiʻi during FY2025-26 To whom it may concern, Our organization is interested in being considered a provider of professional services for the County of Hawaiʻi during the fiscal year 2025-26. This letter serves as our formal statement of qualification and expression of interest in the following category of professional service: CD.1) Accounting (Grant Management) Hawaii Wildfire Management Organization (HWMO) is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization focused on wildfire readiness and resilience for the people and places of Hawaii. We serve as the state’s one-and-only hub of wildfire prevention, mitigation, and planning activities through proactive, collaborative, and forward-thinking projects. We work collaboratively with those living and working in fire-prone areas to reduce fires and maximize protection. The services we provide are based on the needs and priorities of our partners across the region who are dealing with wildfire as emergency responders, natural resource managers, and community members. Most of our services are those that otherwise might be limited, due to jurisdictional boundaries, or unmet, due to agency capacity limits. HWMO has won three national awards for both wildfire mitigation innovation and for leadership in wildfire prevention and preparedness services in Hawaii. The attached letter contains the required information as stated in the Notice to Providers (HRS 103D-304). Mahalo for your time and consideration. With gratitude, Nani Barretto Elizabeth Pickett Co-Executive Director Co-Executive Director nani@hawaiiwildfire.org elizabeth@hawaiiwildfire.org 65-1279 Kawaihae Road, Suite 211 Kamuela, HI 96743 808-885-0900 admin@hawaiiwildfire.org 1 Required information as stated in the Notice to Providers (HRS 103D-304) Name of the organization Hawaii Wildfire Management Organization Contact information Andrea (Nani) Barretto and Elizabeth Pickett Co-Executive Directors directors@hawaiiwildfire.org (808) 209-6204 Principal place of business Statewide Location of our office 65-1279 Kawaihae Rd, Suite 211 Kamuela, HI 96743 Age of organization 25 years (founded in 2000, incorporated in 2002) Avg # employees over past 5 yrs 8 Education, training, and qualifications of the organization 1. Lead author and developer of all existing Community Wildfire Protection Plans (CWPPs) in the state 2. Lead facilitator and author of various wildfire hazard assessments at various levels across the state (single property, community, and multi-community/regional) 3. Two combined Master's degrees (Environmental Science degree from Yale School of Forestry and Environmental Studies, Health Science degree from Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health) 4. 20+ years of combined experience in nonprofit leadership (e.g., grant writing and management, strategic planning, needs assessments, board/staff development) 5. 20+ years of combined experience in project planning and management (e.g., social/behavioral/environmental program design, implementation/coordination, monitoring and evaluation) 6. 25+ years of combined experience in community and stakeholder engagement (cross-boundary collaborative coalition/partner-building, facilitation, trust-building and relationship management) (e.g., coordinating/facilitating meetings/workshops to specifically identify wildfire-related concerns, develop next step ideas to address wildfire, and carry out hazard reduction activities; bringing together state, federal, and local stakeholders and partners to assess hazards and prioritize mitigative actions) 7. Trained expertise in Wildfire Mitigation Best Practices (Coalitions & Collaboratives, Inc trained) 8. Trained expertise in assessing structure ignition potential from wildfire (NFPA trained) 9. Trained expertise in geographic information systems (GIS) mapping, analysis and communications 65-1279 Kawaihae Road, Suite 211 Kamuela, HI 96743 808-885-0900 admin@hawaiiwildfire.org 2 List of recent projects 1. Ongoing coordination of the statewide Firewise program (assisting 50 Firewise USA sites across the state as they work with neighbors and partners to reduce community wildfire risks, connecting Firewise sites to one another, and providing resources and communications to support their efforts) 2. Ongoing coordination of the Pacific Fire Exchange project, which is a joint effort with University of Hawaii to facilitate fire knowledge exchange and enable collaborative relationships among related stakeholders in the Pacific 3. Lead coordinator of the statewide wildfire awareness and preparedness campaign, Wildfire & Drought LOOKOUT!, with information going out through radio public service announcements, press releases, various social media platforms, and elected officials’ and other partner communications 4. Development of Community Wildfire Protection Plans for Leeward Haleakala on Maui and for North Shore on Oahu (a CWPP is a document that is developed by community residents, county/state agency partners and other interested parties, and identifies and discusses their local wildfire hazards, collaboratively establishes hazard reduction priorities, and influences wildland-urban interface wildfire mitigation planning and funding) 5. Ongoing facilitation of regionally-specific, localized wildfire coordinating groups that meet on a regular basis to connect, share information, and partner on activities and projects in an effort to increase wildfire protection at a regional level 6. Ongoing management of a database that collects and stores contact information of wildfire interested/impacted organizations and individuals, for purposes of connecting and sharing wildfire information and resources across locations, professions, and interests Names of up to 5 clients who may be contacted, all for whom services were rendered during the preceding year 1. Darwin Okinaka Assistant Fire Chief Operations Division Hawaiʻi Fire Department E: Darwin.Okinaka@hawaiicounty.gov Ph: (808) 557-4209 2. Mike Walker State Fire Protection Forester Division of Forestry & Wildlife E: michael.j.walker@hawaii.gov 65-1279 Kawaihae Road, Suite 211 Kamuela, HI 96743 808-885-0900 admin@hawaiiwildfire.org 3 Ph: (808) 348-5834 3. Clay Trauernicht Extension Specialist in Ecosystems and Fire Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Management University of Hawaii, Manoa E: trauerni@hawaii.edu Ph: (808) 956-6875 Promotional or descriptive literature to support our work includes but are not limited to the following: 1. HWMO website: https://www.hawaiiwildfire.org/ 2. Pacific Fire Exchange (PFX) project website: https://www.pacificfireexchange.org/ 3. Sample_Community Wildfire Protection Plan: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1XyQqw02dyx0B7cEJYZJRGWiECCX3pjem/view?usp= sharing 4. Sample_Site-specific Firewise Informational Sheet: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1KyjIMGDDZj3ghPvmasylpnroVKaX5WiP/view?usp=sh aring 5. Sample product_Pacific Fire Exchange Factsheet (“Changing Climate & Wildfire”): https://drive.google.com/file/d/1PHO2XO4Cht_qYiAXF-woI4D_49tFeEWS/view?usp=s haring 6. Sample flyer_Community Meeting: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1RxNK4ODwX5A3RYdr0nl2iM0G8Vnwitoy/view?usp= sharing 7. Sample grant proposal_Submitted to US Forest Service: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1K94NbTglG3ldSgSNVw8Mkg6a1JkSfgTf/view?usp=sh aring 65-1279 Kawaihae Road, Suite 211 Kamuela, HI 96743 808-885-0900 admin@hawaiiwildfire.org 4