The Island of Hawai‘i presents unique opportunities, both immediate and long-term, for island sustainability. Hawai‘i County continues to lead the State in renewable energy generation (32%), agriculture and aquaculture production, commitment to ecotourism, natural and marine science research, green business development, application of social technology, and rural quality of life. Yet, Hawai‘i Island is still highly dependent on importing basic necessities:
- 70% of fuel for electricity generation
- 76% of total material (all goods)
- 85% of total food
- 95% of transportation fuel
Any disruption in the barge service or another spike in fossil fuel prices would be felt across all of the Hawaiian islands.
How do we cocreate solutions to protect and enhance our island “sense of place” while maintaining local diversity that is resilient to shock? To achieve island sustainability will require significant transformation of our organizations and community systems. As such, we cannot get there alone. The ability to understand systems, engage with key stakeholders across value chains, and innovate sustainable ways forward is becoming a business, government, and community imperative.
To succeed at this, a systems approach to sustainability and a common language that enables effective dialogue, decision-making, and collaboration across traditional boundaries is required.
Developed in Sweden and field-tested around the world, this framework is based on a set of guiding sustainability principles that provide organizations and communities with a methodology for making strategic progress toward sustainability in an economically viable, step-wise manner.