PCF— Big Island retreat, part 2

We then traveled to the Pacific Aquaculture & Coastal Resources Center to hear from Dr. Kevin Hughes about their initiatives. Their mission is to engender sustainable aquaculture, marine science, conservation biology, collaborative research, outreach and training. Hilo is an ideal location for this type of venture because it has all marine environments represented and a wide diversity of communities.
Most of their money comes from "soft" which Dr. Hopkins encourages because then they don't become complacent due to a guaranteed revenue stream and have to respond to a "customer" (i.e. those providing their grants).
Our next stop was at the Hawaiian charter school Ke Kula Mauli Ola Hawai'i 'O Nawahiokalani'opu'u. We were greeted with a traditional oli from the upper school students, presented with lei, and then given a tour of the facilities. One of the highlights was seeing the preschoolers and hearing them speak and sing their songs in Hawaiian. It was a really impressive display.
The day culminated with a lunch panel session at the "Imiloa Astronomy Center where we heard about the Mauna Kea Management plan. The cultural significance of this area had been neglected in the past so group of community leaders and representatives got together to create a master plan. Native Hawaiians see Maunakea (the preferred spelling by the UH-Hilo Language department) as the piko of Wakea, the creator of the Hawaiian people. It is a connection to history for them and must be respected and preserved accordingly. There is future development planned with the Thirty Meter Telescope but it is being pursued with heightened cultural and environmental sensitivity.
That evening we were hosted at a dinner reception back at 'Imiloa to honor PCF alumni from the Big Island, and community leaders. We were joined by our main benefactor Mufi Hannemann who was very gracious just a few days after his election defeat in the Democratic gubernatorial primary. He showed a lot of class and fed off Billy Kenoi's positive energy and humor to enliven the evening.