There are a lot of initiatives towards sustainability, both from the government and the grassroots levels. According to the Hawai'i 2050 Public Opinion Poll, eighty percent of the public supports mandatory recycling; eighty percent of the public indicated that the state's public education system should be improved, no matter how much it costs; and sixty-seven percent support greater energy independence for Hawai'i through renewable sources, even if it means paying more (p14). True sustainability is going to require large, systematic change from both the bottom-up and top-down.

Hawai’i 2050 is the state’s response to people’s desire for a more balanced and sustainable economy, society and environment. After a long process of gathering diverse public input on what sustainability means, a draft plan was released in September. To learn more about Hawai’i 2050, read the draft plan, or submit your comments to the task force, click here. To read other’s comments on the plan, click here.

To read about Malama Kaua'i Community-Resource Center, an interesting grassroots project that is addressing a range of sustainability issues, click here.