A popular workforce training opportunity designed to prepare Maui residents for potential careers in the energy sector is being expanded to another island. For the first time, the University of �鶹��ý Maui College, in partnership with Hawaiian Electric, will offer the 10-week Maui Power Pathways Training Program on both Maui and Molokaʻi, significantly increasing access to hands-on, high-demand training.

The program, which runs from April 13 through June 19, 2026, provides participants with real-world experience across Hawaiian Electric’s generation operations. Training areas include electrical systems, combustion turbine operations, instrumentation and control technology, diesel mechanics and power plant operations.

Those who successfully complete the training will receive up to $3,000. Space is limited, and applications will be accepted through February 20, 2026.

“The immediate and total success of the Maui Power Pathways Training Program in its first year inspired us to expand the upcoming 2026 cohort to include Molokaʻi,” said UH Maui College Chancellor Lui Hokoana. “And that initial success was a result of the innovative and forward-looking partnership between our college and Hawaiian Electric. With the program’s expansion, we renew our commitment to training Maui Nui’s future workforce.”

Building a workforce pipeline

Applicants must be:

• Residents of Maui or Molokaʻi, depending on the training location
• Available for the duration of the program
• At least 18 years old
• Driver license-eligible, and
• Able to pass a criminal background check, drug screening and pre-employment physical

Participants from the previous cohort were successfully hired into positions at Hawaiian Electric’s generating facilities, demonstrating the program’s effectiveness in building a sustainable, local workforce pipeline within Maui County.

“Through our partnership with UH Maui College, the Maui Power Pathways training program exceeded our expectations,” said Kazu Hayashida, manager of workforce planning at Hawaiian Electric. “Our goal was to develop a pipeline of qualified candidates for future opportunities at our generating stations, and we were already able to successfully hire a number of trainees. We’re excited to again offer a direct pathway from training into careers with Hawaiian Electric.”

For questions, contact Hawaiian Electric Workforce Planning at HRWorkforcePlanning@hawaiianelectric.com.

Members of the University of �鶹��ý at ����ԴDz� recently visited Normal Robotics Lab, an innovative technology startup based in Kailua.

For UH ����ԴDz� students engaged in energy and sustainability research, the visit provided a firsthand look at how local startups are addressing global challenges through innovation rooted in �鶹��ý. Normal Robotics Lab offers internship and job opportunities to students, with the goal of keeping talented graduates in the islands while contributing to renewable energy and sustainable design.

“Tours like this are so valuable because they connect students with innovative local companies and job opportunities, highlighting �鶹��ý’s potential to be self-sustaining,” said Miles Topping, director of sustainability at the UH Office of Sustainability.

Normal Robotics Lab develops energy-efficient, modular heat pump .

During the visit, students and faculty heard directly from co-founder Ashten Akemoto, who shared the lab’s journey from passion project to growing startup. What began as a side project when its founders converted a 1968 Volkswagen bus into an electric vehicle sparked a larger mission: to create sustainable technology that blends hardware innovation with climate-conscious design.

“The tour was very interesting and informative,” said student Kiet Nguyen, “The thing that stood out to me the most about the heat pumps was how simple they were to have working but also how complex they could get.”

The University of �鶹��ý Better Tomorrow Speaker Series is hosting a public conversation to examine the future of clean energy in �鶹��ý and California. The free event, “Pacific Rising: How California and �鶹��ý Can Lead the Clean Energy Revolution,” will feature David Hochschild, chair of the California Energy Commission and is set for Thursday, August 7, at 6:30 p.m., in the Bishop Ballroom at AC Hotel Honolulu.

“We are so pleased to welcome David Hochschild to Oʻahu. UH is deeply involved in climate and energy research, from alternative fuels to grid integration to storage, and we look forward to strengthening our partnerships with institutions in California,” said Chip Fletcher, dean of UH ����ԴDz�’s .

Two states, one goal

As federal support for clean energy initiatives faces uncertainty under the current administration, state leadership has become increasingly vital. �鶹��ý made history as the first state to set a 100% renewable energy target, while California is now making unprecedented investments toward achieving the same goal.

“We look forward to discussing with Chair Hochschild how our states can work together to sustain the clean energy revolution, even as the feds shift into reverse,” said Chris Benjamin, chair and co-founder of Climate �鶹��ý, a co-sponsor of the event.

Energy expertise

Hochschild leads the California Energy Commission, an $8.5 billion agency responsible for energy planning and policy in the world’s fourth-largest economy. With more than 20 years of experience in energy transformation, he brings extensive expertise to the clean energy transition.

His leadership has earned numerous accolades, including the Sierra Club’s Trailblazer Award, the American Lung Association’s Clean Air Hero Award, and the U.S. Department of Energy’s Million Solar Roof True Champion Award. In 2024, he was named the American Energy Society’s Person of the Year.

Climate �鶹��ý serves as the lead event sponsor, with co-sponsorship from the �鶹��ý State Energy Office, Scholars Strategy Network and AC Hotel Honolulu.

The Better Tomorrow Speaker Series is a collaborative initiative of UH ����ԴDz�, the Learning Coalition, and the �鶹��ý Community Foundation, bringing together thought leaders to address pressing issues facing our communities.

A significant change to electricity pricing for large commercial customers in �鶹��ý is being recommended by the (UHERO).

A study, released August 27, recommends implementing a real-time pricing (RTP) tariff system. This approach would charge customers based on the hourly marginal cost of electricity production, a model known as locational marginal pricing (LMP). UHERO researchers say that this system could better manage grid demands, promote energy efficiency and fairly distribute costs among consumers.

According to the report authors Michael J. Roberts and Ethan Hartley, the system aims to reflect the true cost of energy production, including environmental and transmission expenses. The proposed tariff would combine variable pricing with a fixed charge to help cover infrastructure costs.

The new tariff would also let large customers build off-site solar and receive credit for generation at the locational marginal price. Because such facilities would likely be very profitable, the net benefits would be shared between energy-producing customer, other customers and Hawaiian Electric.

The report suggests piloting the program with UH, before potentially expanding to other large commercial customers.

“As Oʻahu’s electric grid transitions to clean energy, characterized by variable wind, solar, and storage resources, the marginal cost of electricity will become increasingly variable across time and location,” according to the report. “Consequently, the value of using LMP for customer billing and compensating distributed generation will increase significantly.”

The proposal draws inspiration from Georgia Power’s long standing RTP model, but includes modifications for �鶹��ý’s unique energy landscape.

As �鶹��ý pursues its goal of 100% renewable energy by 2045, UHERO believes this pricing strategy could play a crucial role in managing the state’s evolving power grid and supporting the integration of variable wind and solar resources.

.

UHERO is housed in UH ����ԴDz�’s .

A team led by University of �鶹��ý at Mānoa researchers aims to use a grant from the National Science Foundation to tackle clean energy needs on multiple fronts from sustainable solutions and integrating Native Hawaiian knowledge to engaging with high school students.

Led by UH Mānoa researcher Godwin Severa, the , in partnership with the National Science Foundation (NSF) Materials Research Science and Engineering Center at the University of Washington, will focus on challenges facing �鶹��ý, including reliance on imported fuels for electricity and transportation, resource and waste management, soil erosion and ocean contamination exacerbated by climate change.

“I am excited about increasing the number of diverse students trained in materials research,” said Severa, who is a faculty member in the (HIGP) at the UH Mānoa (SOEST). “The students trained on this project will increase �鶹��ý’s materials science workforce in the future, helping develop critical materials towards reducing our dependence on costly imported fuels for electricity and transportation and mitigating the effects of soil erosion and ocean contamination.”

Scientific breakthroughs, real-world solutions

“Our focus on novel materials within the project is all about turning scientific breakthroughs into real-world environmental solutions,” added Przemyslaw Dera, project co-investigator and HIGP researcher. “We are committed to developing materials that will contribute to sustainable technologies and help protect our planet.”

This project builds on the success of the team’s previous material science at UH Mānoa, which engaged Oʻahu middle/high school students, more than 20 UH Mānoa students, and six faculty through materials science research, education and outreach activities.

“This NSF funding will help grow our course offerings and support development of certificate and concentration programs in materials science through supporting training for students at all levels,” said Department of Mechanical Engineering Associate Professor and Department Chair Joseph Brown, also a project co-investigator. “I am excited to see our students gain experience in building cutting-edge automation and AI tools to address challenges in materials processing R&D experiments.”

“We are especially excited to give Consortium students the opportunity to expand their horizons,” said Hope Ishii, project co-investigator and astromaterials research scientist and affiliate faculty in SOEST. “We will create opportunities for them to use cutting-edge transmission electron microscopy on their own samples in a national laboratory, take tours at three national laboratories in California, and meet materials science experts.”

In continuing to work with �鶹��ý middle and high schools, Kamehameha Schools, UH community colleges and U.S. national facilities, the team will broaden materials science education in �鶹��ý. To increase the place-based value of curriculum, they will develop K-12 workshops and new UH Mānoa courses that incorporate Hawaiian cultural perspectives.

.

–By Marcie Grabowski

A blessing ceremony for a solar-plus-storage project located on approximately 66 acres of land was held in April 2024, but the work that made it a reality began nearly a decade earlier. That’s when a group of UH administrators started laying the foundation for the project that would help the 10-campus system meet its January 1, 2035 net-zero energy goal (producing as much as energy as consumed).

“I donʻt think people fully realize what it took to get to this point,” said UH Vice President for Administration (VPA) Jan Gouveia. “The moral of the story is that if you don’t start something now, you are not going to get something by 2035.”

The facility, built and operated by , is generating 12.5 megawatts of clean energy and is supported by a 50 megawatt hour battery energy storage system. It is operating under a 25-year power purchase agreement with Hawaiian Electric Co. (HECO) and is reducing fossil fuel use on Oʻahu by 750,000 barrels of oil.

Once upon a time, in 2015

HECO issued a Request For Information (RFI) for the project in 2015, a few months after Miles Topping was hired as the Director of Sustainability. Thatʻs when Topping brought the idea of using UH West Oʻahu lands for the project to Gouveia.

“Without Miles initially approaching us about this project, it never would have happened,” said Gouveia. “It then takes the staying power of key people over nine years to make something like this finally happen in 2024.”

The key people were Topping, Gouveia, VPA special assistant Carol Takahashi and UH attorney Bruce Matsui, who started meeting biweekly. Their early milestones included submitting UH lands to non binding HECO Land Request For Information, Board of Regent approval for Letter Of Intent (LOI) and Use and Occupancy (U&O) real estate agreement, and issuing the LOI and U&O to potential developers.

“The regents in 2018 really deserve a lot of credit for their willingness to venture a little outside of their comfort zone by approving a long-term agreement with an entity that was unknown at the time,” said Gouveia. “When you are trying to do something that has never been done before, you have to have the fortitude to do what it takes to make it happen.”

After AES �鶹��ý was awarded the bid in 2018, Nick Molinari from the energy company was added to the UH team. They navigated through several legal and regulatory issues with multiple agencies and private landowners including the Board of Water Supply, Grace Pacific Quarry and local farmers.

Topping says negotiating this complex landscape was meticulous and required extensive collaboration with stakeholders, adding the UH team’s dedication and expertise was essential.

“Jan is responsible for so many things and for her to have the bandwidth to pay attention to this and breathe life into it was, I mean, it’s just remarkable,” said Topping.

Project embraces UH West Oʻahu values

At the April 2024 blessing ceremony for the new facility, UH West Oʻahu Chancellor Maenette Benham said the project is a perfect fit for the campus.

“The solar project embraces all of our institutional values of Poʻokela (educational excellence), Waiwai (philanthropy, scholarships and partnerships), Hana Lawelawe (service to the larger community), Kaiāulu (our campus community), and Mālama Honua (care of land, sea and sky),” said Benham. “We look forward to the continued benefits that it brings for our students, faculty, staff and their ʻohana (family).”

Along with generating and storing clean energy, the land is being used for sheep grazing. AES �鶹��ý President Sandra Larsen said the solar-plus-storage project is focused on supporting Oʻahu’s economy and environment over the long term.

“It’s especially gratifying because the overall priority of this innovative clean energy project is to help make Oʻahu a better, healthier and more affordable place for future generations to make a life here for their families,” said Larsen.

A sentiment that everyone involved can take great pride in, especially the regents and the team of UH administrators who made it possible.

Nearly 20 University of �鶹��ý at ����ԴDz� graduate students across several disciplines participated in a one-week intensive training program on computational modeling to solve complex problems related to Earth and energy. The workshop, hosted at UH ����ԴDz�, is supported by a $5 million grant through the to advance clean energy technologies within the next decade.

The participants learned theoretical and computational skills to model and understand geothermal energy and how partial differential equations are used to model complex physical processes and solved numerically. One of the codes the students learned about is , which was developed by UH researchers in collaboration with the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) labs and other universities.

“Key to this workshop was the breadth of research interests represented by the students, from atmospheric sciences to engineering, physics, computer sciences and mathematics,” said UH ����ԴDz� Professor Monique Chyba. “Each discipline comes with its own particular challenges and opportunities, but the extent to which the software described in this workshop can adapt to each situation is remarkable. Training the next generation of scientists that will go on working on the world climate issue as well as the health crisis is a primary mission of each university. These graduate students are our future.”

Chyba organized and led the workshop, and was assisted by computational scientists from two of the DOE labs, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL) and Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory. Due to its geographic location, students at UH are often isolated from opportunities like this compared with students in the continental U.S.

Hands-on problem solving, visualization, computational experience

The scientists conducted hands-on problem solving sessions where the students ran software on specific problems using Koa, UH’s , as well as Amazon Web Services and the Perlmutter supercomputer, run by DOE’s .

“We were excited to be able to share our knowledge with these students,” said Ann Almgren, a senior scientist at LBNL. “Having these in-person interactions where we are able to talk about the types of projects we work on and how we solve these problems is really satisfying. It’s also wonderful for us to hear from the students about what they’re working on and how enthusiastic they are to tackle the next generation of challenges.”

Exposing the students to Earthshot applications was a priority. The workshop focused on geothermal energy (heat, water and permeability can support cost-competitive rates of energy extraction), and wind energy. Experts from Nā Pua Makani, a wind energy project in Kahuku, presented on the wind farm, followed by an open discussion on the use and capabilities of wind turbines. The students also visited UH’s and .

“I am now eager to learn about the particles, geothermal, these terms are really new,” said Azibun Nuder, a master’s student in . “I will think about the opportunities to collaborate because now I have the idea how to collaborate, how to do computational theories and everything. That was a new perspective for my research.”

Paving the way for future energy solutions

The summer program is supported by a UH ����ԴDz� project, “,” that will address fundamental applied mathematics and computer science issues relevant to advanced high-performance computational modeling for Energy Earthshots.

The principal investigator of this project is Alice Koniges, graduate faculty in the UH ����ԴDz� . The project is one of 29 across the country that received a total of $264 million from the Department of Energy. All projects will help to develop solutions for the scientific challenges outlined by the DOE’s Energy Earthshots Initiative to advance clean energy technologies within the decade.

“The workshop, as part of our important Science Foundations for Energy Earthshot award, is fundamental to educating the UH community and students, while also serving as a conduit for �鶹��ý to understand and participate in clean energy options,” Koniges said. “The workshop format is particularly conducive to providing educational opportunities locally and for mainland participants to understand Hawaiian values.”

—By Marc Arakaki

Daisy Green’s career has truly come full circle. Several years after graduating from the University of �鶹��ý at ����ԴDz� with a degree in , the Waikōloa, �鶹��ý Island local has returned to the as a new faculty member.

“I’m very grateful for this opportunity to return back home,” Green said. “Everyone here has been really nice and helped me get settled in and I’ve had the chance to talk with people about possible research collaborations.”

The 2012 Kealakehe High School graduate was a UH ����ԴDz� regent scholar and graduated in three and a half years. While at UH ����ԴDz�, Green cultivated her passion for being “green” and sustainable. She participated in an x96 project, working in the smart campus energy lab under the guidance of Professor Anthony Kuh.

After graduating from UH ����ԴDz�, she was accepted to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology where she earned a master’s and PhD degree in electrical engineering and computer science, and worked as a postdoctoral associate. Green’s research focused on creating more energy efficient systems and better thermal control in buildings. She hopes her experiences and research interests in sustainability will help to create a clean energy future in �鶹��ý.

“I want to do research that helps establish a more sustainable electric grid,” Green said. “While we’re transitioning to more clean energy, there’s going to be more monitoring and control that’s required to ensure the stability and resilience of the grid.”

“Daisy has so much to offer the University as well as the State of �鶹��ý,” said UH ����ԴDz� College of Engineering Dean Brennon Morioka. “Not only is her expertise something that will help the State in achieving one of its very ambitious goals, being that of clean energy, but she will be also able to serve as a role model for many of our local students to help them envision what students in �鶹��ý can achieve while also encouraging them to consider careers right here at home.”

Serving up aces, on and off the court

During her time as a UH ����ԴDz� student, Green was also a member of the , competing for three seasons from 2012–15. She said juggling both academics and athletics helped to refine her time-management skills and hopes to support her students, not just in academics and research, but also about life.

“I definitely hope to be able to mentor students and help students find what path they want to take—especially in electrical engineering or other engineering fields,” Green said. “I want to give back to the many communities here which have also helped me along the way.”

Family support

Green is grateful for the support from her parents, Stephen and Yuko. Stephen, who is a UH mechanical engineering alumnus, annually contributes to UH to support students, and in 2018, he wrote a letter to President David Lassner expressing their appreciation of Daisy’s UH Regents scholarship, which—along with the UH Presidential scholarship—supports �鶹��ý students with a record of outstanding academic achievement.

A father thanks UH for daughter’s continued success, January 16, 2018

“My parents are great,” Green said. “They’re very supportive of anything that I wanted to pursue—both in terms of school and tennis. Since my dad graduated with a mechanical engineering degree from UH, it’s definitely a full circle moment. They’re very happy that I’m back here.”

While she may be one of the newest additions to the engineering faculty roster, Green’s experiences and accomplishments prove that she really is a seasoned professional and not “green.”

—By Marc Arakaki

Using artificial intelligence (AI) to improve energy efficiency, and transforming waste into pre-refined biomass are a pair of projects that won pitch events in �鶹��ý and are headed to nationals to compete for more than $400,000 in cash prizes.

Quang Loc Lam, a University of �鶹��ý at ����ԴDz� PhD student in in the , created a company called “Energy AId” that uses AI to identify the pattern of energy usage in buildings and find opportunities to improve energy efficiency.

“It’s our responsibility to come up with sustainable solutions now to alleviate the burden for the next generation,” Lam said. “Using AI and other technologies, we can significantly improve energy efficiency and reduce energy costs for buildings. It’s exciting to think about the possibilities.”

Kunlan Yang, a senior undergraduate student, launched “ABLE,” a �鶹��ý-based biowaste company that transforms waste from businesses such as restaurants, hotels, and farms into pre-refined biomass, which is then sold to biofuel refineries. Yang’s mission is to revolutionize the perception of food waste, serving as a comprehensive solution and driving �鶹��ý toward its 2045 sustainability goals.

“The inspiration for this idea struck me after backpacking through Europe, where I realized there is significant value in leftover food,” Yang said. “Fueled by a passion for food and the environment, this idea uses biofuel technology to extract value from food waste and turn it into a source of renewable energy.”

National showcase

Lam and Yang are headed to nationals called the . They are among 225 teams from 117 schools that will compete in the competition hosted by the U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Technology Transitions (OTT).

Over the next several weeks, the competitors will develop actionable and scalable plans for business and commercialization opportunities around high-potential energy technologies. The three-phase competition is supporting the next generation of clean energy leaders in the U.S., who have the potential for global impact on the cleantech industry. Competitors are provided with free resources, including exclusive access to OTT’s Energy I-Corps curriculum, and mentorship from industry leaders to help them hone their proposals.

Cultivating new innovators

The (PACE) at the Shidler College of Business serves as a collaborative hub for innovation, entrepreneurship, and knowledge exchange. Recognizing the need for innovation in the energy sector, PACE encouraged its students to participate in the Department of Energy’s national challenge. Lam and Yang, who both serve as , stepped up to the challenge, put their application in and advanced to the regional pitch event. PACE Entrepreneur-in-Residence Jeff Hui is coaching the teams for the regional event, and the teams are also tapping into the network of resources offered by PACE.

“PACE is proud of these students for advancing to the regional pitch event and representing the university in this national competition,” said PACE Executive Director Sandra Fujiyama. “Activities like this provide students with valuable practical learning experiences, and showcase the innovative ideas of our students to address energy challenges locally and globally, which aligns with the Shidler College of Business’ and the university’s strategic plans.”

has received $125,000 to bolster the resilience of neighborhoods around Lēʻahi (Diamond Head) to natural disasters as part of a larger $500,000 grant from the (FEMA) Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities (BRIC) Program.

A Kapiʻolani CC’s grant funded initiative called the (CERENE) will oversee the funding to support the development of partnerships between community organizations and government agencies to improve disaster preparedness. Kapiʻolani CC‘s student Resilience Corps Leaders, funded by the Hawaiian Electric Company and under the supervision of CERENE Program Coordinator Miku Lenentine, will convene engagement workshops with partners, conduct qualitative assessments of workshop findings, and assist in final reporting. They will also mentor other students interested in the climate resilience of their neighborhoods.

“This project is a great example of how sectors and communities can come together to build resilience to climate change,” said Robert Franco, professor of social sciences at Kapiʻolani CC and head faculty member for CERENE. “By working together, we can create a more sustainable and resilient future for our neighborhoods and islands.”

Solar-powered backup system

The will use $375,000 of the FEMA–BRIC grant to implement a solar-powered microgrid energy backup system at Kaimukī Middle School. This system will increase the school’s ability to operate independently off the grid during a power outage, supporting activities such as food preparation, refrigeration, device charging and medical equipment usage. It will also make it an ideal logistics and communication center for first responders in the Lēʻahi area during emergencies.

Lenentine added, “CERENE will work with the City and County of Honolulu to develop a plan for replicating the Kaimukī Middle School project at other schools and community centers on the island. We believe that by empowering our communities, we can create a more sustainable and resilient future for all. The Kaimukī Microgrid Solar Energy Project is just one step in that direction.”