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Environment Featured Publicity Science Television 

‘Voice of the Sea’ TV series debuts in January

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A new television show highlighting ocean and coastal scientists and cultural experts from Hawaii and the Pacific will debut on January 5, 2014. “Voice of the Sea” will be broadcast on on KVFE (Channel 5 and 1005) on Sundays at 6:00 p.m.

The show is hosted by Dr. Kanesa Duncan Seraphin, world paddleboard champion, shark researcher, and science education expert.

Dr. Seraphin, director of the University of Hawaii Sea Grant Center of Excellence in Marine Science Education and associate professor at the Curriculum Research & Development Group in the College of Education at the University of Hawaii at Mānoa, has traveled across the Pacific to bring stories of relevance to Hawaii. Each half-hour episode profiles local science and cultural celebrities and presents thought-provoking information in an exciting, original, reality-based way.

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Featured Publicity Technology 

Local startup aims to help other startups

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Is it possible to grow a bootstrapped tech startup in Hawaii? A new boutique solutions and product-focused tech business, Sudokrew Solutions, is looking to answer this question.

Sudokrew is led by local talent Jason Sewell and Spencer Toyama. Sewell is the former lead developer for Outrigger Hotels & Resorts, and Toyama is the former operations director of Kinetiq Labs and the Pele-Award winning Agency Collaborative.

“There are many incredible web developers and designers in Hawaii building the front-facing websites for our local community, and we really want to differentiate our services by focusing on development and enterprise solutions.” stated Spencer Toyama.

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Featured Publicity Transportation 

State launches app for electric vehicle charging stations

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The State of Hawaii has launched a new mobile app designed to help drivers locate publicly available electric vehicle charging stations statewide. The free “EV Stations Hawaii” app is available for Apple and Android smartphones and mobile devices.

“The EV Stations Hawaii app is a great example of our state using new technology to advance the widespread use of electric vehicles in Hawaii,” said Gov. Neil Abercrombie. “Convenience is key to further the adoption of EVs, which are part of Hawaii’s clean transportation future and move us toward reducing our dependency on imported oil.”

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Government Publicity Updates 

Early Childhood Education Discussed Using Google+ Hangout

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Honolulu– Early childhood education providers and stakeholders from across the State, along with lawmakers, Early Childhood Coordinator Terry Lock and Governor Neil Abercrombie, participated in a roundtable discussion on early childhood education in Hawaii today. Stakeholders from Maui, Kauai, Waimea, Kona and Hilo participated in the discussion via Google+ Hangout, hosted by Senate Committee Education Chair Senator Jill Tokuda. U.S. Senator Mazie Hirono’s Chief of Staff Betsy Lin also linked in, via Google+ Hangout from Washington, D.C.

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Art Entertainment Featured Publicity 

Honolulu Theatre for Youth Presents ‘Hold These Truths’

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Actor Daniel Dae Kim is part of the team bringing the acclaimed Off-Broadway drama “Hold These Truths” to Hawaii. Dedicated to the memory of the late Sen. Daniel K. Inouye, the show tells the true story of second-generation Japanese American Gordon Hirabayashi, who resisted the Japanese American internment during World War II in the famous case, Hirabayashi v. United States.

Set in Seattle during World War II, “Hold These Truths” follows Hirabayashi, then a University of Washington student, as he fights to reconcile his country’s betrayal with his passionate belief in the U.S. Constitution.

President Obama posthumously awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom to Hirabayashi (1918-2012), the nation’s highest civilian honor, in April 2012.

Kim said: “I was deeply moved by ‘Hold These Truths’ when I saw it in New York. Having lived in Hawaii for almost nine years now, I recognized how inspiring Gordon Hirabayashi’s story would be to our community.”

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Business Publicity Technology 

Entrepreneur, Deal of the Year awards announced

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The Hawaii Venture Capital Association awarded its 2012 HVCA Deal of the Year to Darren Kimura, CEO of Sopogy, maker of concentrated thermal solar collectors. In addition five local entrepreneurs were acknowledged in various categories with the HVCA Entrepreneur of the Year award.

The Young Entrepreneur award went to Scott Mercer of Volta Industries, makers of advertising driven free electric vehicle charging stations. Dan Leuck, co-founder of CONTIX and CEO and founder of Ikayzo won the Software Entrepreneur award. Ken Berkun, founder of Labels That Talk won the Inventor Entrepreneur award for his patented invention, Soundpaper. Winner of the Socially Responsible Entrepreneur of the Year award is Elyse Petersen, founder of Tealet, a social enterprise that connects tea drinkers with small tea growers around the world. David Watumull, co-founder of CARDAX Pharmaceuticals and former CEO of Hawaii Biotech was acknowledged for his many years of devoted entrepreneurship in biotech as the 2012 Legacy Entrepreneur.

“These entrepreneurs are local heroes and role models. They have worked long hard days, made personal sacrifices and taken extreme risks that prove there are people in Hawaii that have what it takes to build great companies,” said Bill Spencer, President of the Hawaii Venture Capital Association.

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STEM Week Luncheon
Education Events Featured Publicity 

Second annual STEM Week in the works

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The Hawaii Academy of Sciences (HAS) this week is putting out an early call to the state’s most innovative companies and organizations to help set the stage for the second annual STEM Week Hawaii.

STEM Week Hawaii is a multi-day celebration of STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering & Math) education across the state, organized by HAS and supported by the Hawaii State Department of Land and Natural Resources (DLNR).

The 2013 program will expand upon the first STEM Week Hawaii, held in April. Scheduled to run concurrently with the 56th Hawaii State Science & Engineering Fair (HSSEF), several special events will culminate in a gala awards dinner. These events include an Industry Exposition and Job Fair, which gives local businesses and organizations an opportunity to demonstrate their technology and services, and two fast-paced “Ignite STEM Week” presentations that will showcase some of the cutting-edge research and development taking place in Hawaii.

Sen. Daniel K. Inouye was on hand to present the inaugural STEM Week Hawaii awards, which recognized STEM programs at 14 local schools. Mililani High and Highlands Intermediate schools took statewide honors, and Hawaiian Electric Company received the first Daniel K. Inouye Award for Commitment to STEM Education.

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Steve Sue at Lemonade Alley | Photo by Ryan Ozawa
Business Featured Publicity Technology 

BizGym partners with Hong Kong accelerator

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BizGym.com, an online rapid business plan building program based in Hawaii, has formed a partnership with CyberPort, the largest information technology accellerator in Hong Kong. The relationship was sparked by BizGym.com’s recent partnership in “Hawaii Tech Asia,” a business development tour organized by Hawaii Business and Entrepreneur Acceleration Mentors (HiBeam).

The two companies will create a Chinese language version of the BizGym online entrepreneur’s toolset, branding it as the “Cyberport Business System powered by BizGym.” It will feature team-matching, collaborative business planning and a direct link to Cyberport’s micro-fund application process. Operations will begin by year-end in Hong Kong and mainland China.

Cyberport is a government-owned enterprise, and when breaking news of the partnership on Hawaii Public Radio’s Bytemarks Cafe show last week, BizGym.com founder Steve Sue said that the co-branded arrangement with a prominent Hong Kong organization will likely discourage copycats from diluting the BizGym.com model in Asia.

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Omidyar Fellows
Business Featured Publicity 

Omidyar Fellows Program Announces First Class

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The Hawai’i Leadership Forum announced today the 13 Fellows selected to participate in the inaugural class of the Omidyar Fellows program. Launched in May 2012, the Omidyar Fellows program was developed to inspire and equip emerging leaders with the skills needed to affect positive, lasting change in Hawai’i.

“Omidyar Fellows is a long-term investment in our shared future. We are eager to work with the 2012 class, exploring new ideas and thinking that may benefit Hawai’i,” said Pierre Omidyar, founder, Omidyar Fellows. “Hawai’i’s next generation of leaders will inherit huge challenges – some of them recent developments, some passed down from their predecessors. Effective leaders must address existing challenges and at the same time, create proactive measures that move Hawai’i forward – all while operating in an increasingly fast-paced and transparent world.”

More than 150 candidates completed a rigorous application process for the Omidyar Fellows inaugural class, representing a wide range of sectors including government, nonprofit, business, and labor unions. The class was designed to be representative of these sectors.

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Hawaii Community Foundation
Featured Publicity Technology 

Five local nonprofits awarded $427,000 from Island Innovation Fund

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The Hawaii Community Foundation announced today the final round of recipients for its Island Innovation Fund initiative. In total, five grant recipients were awarded $427,920 to support and develop their proposed innovations.

Recipients were selected from a group of eight finalists who presented creative concepts that will affect widespread positive change in the community and transform existing ways the nonprofit sector operates. Applicants from all three funding rounds were also invited to vote for a People’s Choice Award from among the eight finalists.

“While grantee selection for the Island Innovation Fund has wrapped up, the Hawaii Community Foundation is committed to opening doors for local nonprofits that are looking at new and innovative ways to address challenges and issues our islands face,” said Kelvin Taketa, president and CEO of Hawaii Community Foundation.

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Hawaiian Airlines
Business Featured Publicity Tourism Transportation 

Hawaiian Airlines upgrades in-flight meals, hospitality

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In the first comprehensive redesign of its domestic onboard service product in more than a decade, Hawaiian Airlines has cemented its signature ‘Mea Ho‘okipa Service’ as the gold standard in domestic air travel and the only authentic Hawaii experience in air travel.

Hawaiian’s ‘Mea Ho‘okipa’ (translation: I am host) inflight service philosophy has long been embraced by travelers for its celebration of the culture, people and Aloha Spirit of Hawaii. Reintroduced August 1 on all flights between Hawaii and its 11 gateway cities in North America, Hawaiian has taken its acclaimed inflight service and made it even more enjoyable with enticing new made-in-Hawaii products, Island-style complimentary meals and improved service offerings.

The new program was inspired by customer feedback, solicited by Hawaiian to further align its service with the things that customers value most in onboard service and amenities.

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CityView by Code For America Honolulu 2012
Featured Government Publicity Technology 

City unveils web apps for traffic, tsunami sirens, art

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Israel Kamakawiwoole, the City and County of Honolulu’s Department of Information Technology (DIT) says there are “apps for that.”

DIT has partnered with software developers to put key information in the hands of smartphone and computer users. “We are using mobile applications to provide useful information for the public and make them aware of what is happening around them in a timely manner. It’s exactly what a 21st Century city is supposed to do,” said Mayor Peter Carlisle.

“The launch of these applications, and the way in which they were developed and implemented, shows how the City and County of Honolulu is leading in its use of technology to work directly with citizens,” said Jennifer Pahlka, Founder and Executive Director of Code for America. “By using lightweight, innovative approaches, reusing existing software, and building deeper connections with residents, Honolulu is creating real value and strengthening the fabric of the city.”

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Fringe Bites | Photo by Cyrina Hadad-Ralya
Art Events Featured Music Publicity 

Second Oahu Fringe Festival set for November

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The second annual Oahu Fringe Festival is set to hit the stages of Honolulu’s Chinatown November 8-10, 2012. After a successful premiere in 2011, Oahu Fringe Festival returns as a Fringe Festival destination, offering more innovative new works related, but not limited to, theatre, music, dance, improv and comedy.

Based in Chinatown, the Oahu Fringe Festival offers local, US and international artists a place to showcase their work in an atmosphere of community and creativity. Shows will run at various venues in Chinatown including Kumu Kahua Theatre, The ARTS at Marks Garage, Ong King Arts Centre and The Loading Zone.

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Mobile DCCA
Featured Government Publicity Technology 

State business website wins international award

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The State of Hawaii Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs (DCCA) was recently honored with two awards for its suite of mobile business applications. The mobile apps are the first of their kind worldwide and the first mobile apps launched by the state.

The International Association of Commercial Administrators (IACA) awarded a prestigious 2012 Merit Award for Outstanding Innovation, one of the top international honors for business registries, to DCCA’s Business Registration Division (BREG) last month at the IACA annual conference.

“Hawaii’s technological transformation remains a top priority for my administration, and this award is recognition that we are on track to bringing state government where it needs to be in the 21st century,” said Governor Neil Abercrombie. “Through the innovative work now being done by DCCA and others in our state, we are creating technological assets that improve efficiency, expand services and save businesses money.”

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DR Fortress President Fred Rodi | Photo by Ryan Ozawa
Featured Publicity Technology 

Local datacenter launches pay-as-you-go cloud computing service

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DRFortress, Hawaii’s leading colocation and cloud services provider, today announced that it has launched “DRFcloud,” which it says is the first local, pay-as-you-use, cloud computing services based in the state.

This new service, offered in partnership with Appcore, follows the successful start of the Nirvanix cloud storage service and is available to Hawaii customers as well as clients throughout the Pacific Rim.

Both the “DRFcloud” and the Nirvanix cloud storage hybrid node are maintained at the DRFortress datacenter in Hawaii with redundant mainland nodes for disaster recovery purposes.

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Liquid Robotics Wave Glider
Featured Publicity Technology 

Robotic wave gliders leave Hawaii for Australia, Japan

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Liquid Robotics, an ocean data services provider and developer of the Wave Glider — the first wave-powered, autonomous marine robot — launched the PacX Wave Gliders from the Big Island of Hawaii on Monday on the final phase of a first-of-its-kind scientific expedition across the Pacific Ocean.

Continuing their record-breaking journey across the high seas with approximately 5000 nautical miles until their final destinations of Australia and Japan, the Wave Gliders have collectively already traveled more than 13,000 nautical miles. This is more than twice the distance from San Francisco to Tokyo, Japan. During their voyage, the Wave Gliders are collecting and transmitting in near real-time, unprecedented amounts of ocean surface data on a scale never before continuously collected across the Pacific Ocean.

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HCF Office
Environment Publicity Technology 

Foundation announces $450,000 in Innovation Fund awards

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The Hawaii Community Foundation announced the second round of grant recipients from its Island Innovation Fund, which was created to serve as a catalyst for innovation within the nonprofit sector. From a group of eight finalists, a total of $480,591 was awarded to five recipients for projects that will: increase energy awareness through real-time energy monitoring web and mobile application tools; allow residents statewide to actively follow and monitor the Hawaii legislative process; distribute a replicable exercise and fall prevention program to Hawaii’s seniors; deploy a new access control mechanism to maintain public access to trails and pathways on Hawaii Island; and encourage schools to eliminate its waste to create green schools.

For the first time, a “People’s Choice Award” was also selected by the more than 200 nonprofits that submitted proposals over the first and second grant rounds.

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Chevron & Kuehnle
Business Environment Featured Publicity Technology 

Algae demonstration commissioned at West Oahu refinery

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Kuehnle AgroSystems, a producer of specialized algae strains and bulk concentrated algae designed to meet the diverse needs of the animal nutrition, specialty chemical and biofuels markets, has announced the commissioning of an algae demonstration project at the Chevron Hawaii refinery.

The demonstration project, funded by the Hawaii Renewable Energy Development Venture and the Office of Naval Research, produces algae using recycled CO2 waste streams and wastewater by-product from Chevron’s refinery to cultivate algae in specially designed closed growing systems.

Chevron’s role in this project is to serve as a host site and a source of recycled CO2 and wastewater for KAS to conduct its research.

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Playhouse | Photo by John Petrella, REALTOR®
Business Featured Publicity Updates 

Isle Realtors help Habitat for Humanity

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“Realtor Raise: Project Playhouse” was held recently on the Big Island, a fun event to boost home ownership in Hawaii. Hawaii Life was one of four playhouse contributors, raising thousands of dollars to support the Habitat for Humanity mission.

The playhouses were generously donated, including the “Life Boat” from Hawaii Life Real Estate Brokers. Wildly imaginative and solidly constructed, the playhouses were then given away to the lucky key holders. Leading up to and on the day of the event, key-chains were sold to raise money for Habitat for Humanity. The key-chains qualified the contributors to try their keys in the playhouse doors, and if they opened, they won the playhouse.

The Hawaii Island Board of Realtors (HIBR) also donated a playhouse to the fundraiser. Mealoha Kraus, who works in public relations with HIBR, “was overwhelmed by the number of people who came and waited for their turn to see if they had the right key.”

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Nonstop Kakaako
Environment Events Featured Food Publicity 

Kakaako Street Festival Coming Oct. 22

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Fusing all the things we love– food, shopping, music, art, cocktails and fun– Eat the Street (ETS) presents ‘Nonstop Kaka’ako’ street festival, an urban multi-interactive total pop-up retail, food and entertainment experience.

Brought to you by StreetGrindz.com, in partnership with Kamehameha Schools and Nonstop Honolulu, the event is set for Saturday, October 22, from 4:00 – 10:00 p.m in Kaka’ako.

“Attendees will be able to satisfy all their senses at this street festival,” said event organizer Poni Askew. “Plus, we are excited to have this event designed by TLC’s Trading Spaces very own host and designer Lauren Makk.”

Food vendors nominated on the ‘Best of Nonstop Honolulu’s Best of’ list will be featured, along with many of ETS’ most ono food trucks and street food vendors.

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KIUC Currents
Environment Featured Publicity Technology 

Kauai utility smart grid project approved

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The state Public Utilities Commission last week approved Kauai Island Utility Cooperative’s request to commit funds to participate in a national smart grid demonstration project, which will bring advanced meter technology to every household on Kauai.

The National Rural Electric Cooperative Association’s national demonstration project is designed to assist rural utilities like KIUC, implement technologies that make the electricity grid more efficient and reliable. The total cost of the project is approximately $11.9 million, half of which will be funded by the American Reinvestment and Recovery Act (ARRA).

In the application, filed late in October of 2010, KIUC requested commission approval to commit approximately $6 million in funds to participate in The Smart Grid Project which the utility explained was part of a demonstration project “involving 27 electric cooperatives throughout the nation,” but the project also represents a key component of KIUC’s own longterm strategic plan.

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MomsInHawaii
Family Featured Publicity Technology 

Local mom site unveils pregnancy calendar

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Starting September 30, MomsInHawaii.com, in partnership with The Queen’s Medical Center, will offer a unique, locally written online calendar of information that will take expectant mothers month by month through all the stages of pregnancy.

The calendar, located at MomsInHawaii.com, includes valuable tips and insights developed by experts at The Queen’s Medical Center and vetted by local moms. Tips include visiting a Chinatown crack seed store for ginger candy to relieve morning sickness and using kukui nut oil, a distinctive emollient unique to Hawaii, to help with pregnancy stretch marks.

“Expectant moms count on MomsInHawaii.com and The Queen’s Medical Center for support and authoritative information,” said Esme Infante Nii, editor/host and “chief executive mom” of Moms in Hawaii.

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Kimi Morton Chun
Family Island Life Publicity Technology 

Online community for moms gets new marketing chief

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MomsInHawaii.com, a local social-media community, has named Kimi Morton Chun its “Marketing Mom.” She will help to plan and execute marketing strategies for the online and “real life” community for Hawaii’s mothers.

“Kimi brings to our team years of experience in marketing, entrepreneurship and social media,” said Esme Infante Nii, MomsInHawaii.com Editor/Host and Chief Executive Mom. “I’m thrilled to have her on board to boost our marketing efforts. She is innovative and creative, and very experienced in community building.”

Morton Chun joins MomsInHawaii.com with more than 12 years of experience as an entrepreneur in technology and the arts.

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Hallowbaloo | Photo by Michelle Tricca
Art Events Featured Music Publicity 

Hallowbaloo 2011 to light up Honolulu

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The 4th Annual Hallowbaloo Music + Arts Festival presents a kaleidoscope of stimulation as diverse as the 20+ clubs, restaurants, galleries and boutiques that comprise its host neighborhood, the Honolulu Arts District. Entering its fourth year, the festival has already become one of the most anticipated and celebrated events in Hawaii with over 16,000 residents and visitors participating…and that’s just the beginning.

At the heart of Hallowbaloo is an incredibly propulsive jet fuel that burns hotter than anything NASA ever created: Hawaii Halloween passion. For as long as most can remember, Hawaii has celebrated Halloween with as much or more fervor than anywhere in the world, and now, Hawaii residents direct their fantasies, dastardly digressions and zany illusions to Hallowbaloo.

When their creative escapades come to fruition in the form of other worldly costumes, and they walk the festival grounds, they’re greeted by the most popular and alluring entertainment district in all of Hawaii, the Honolulu Arts District. The neighborhood has nearly single-handedly turned Hawaii’s cosmopolitan culture into something as alluring as the island’s most pristine beaches.

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Roosevelt High School
Education Featured Publicity 

Public schools eligible for $5,000 beautification awards

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Three $5,000 awards from the Cooke Foundation are currently available to Hawaii public schools with completed beautification projects.

The Cooke Foundation will present three $5,000 awards — one elementary school, one middle school and one high school — that have completed projects that beautify their school environment and significantly enhance the school’s overall appearance and ambiance. All public schools, including charter schools, in the state are eligible to apply.

“A beautiful environment at school is conducive to learning and encourages respect for one’s school, respect for others and respect for oneself,” said Lynne Johnson, Cooke Foundation trustee.

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Touche' by Eli Baxter | Cedar Street Galleries
Business Featured Publicity 

Fendi partners with local artists

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Fendi, an Italian high fashion house with locations in Hawaii, is partnering with local artists as part of the global launch of a “handmade for the future” initiative.

The company has announced two separate and unique design projects with local artists Eli Baxter and Aaron Padilla to kick off its design-focused “Fatto a Mano for the Future” platform in Hawaii.

“Fatto a Mano for the Future” combines old world artisanship and modern day techniques through the collaboration, support and perpetuation of emerging contemporary artists.

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