{"id":154124,"date":"2022-01-11T12:32:54","date_gmt":"2022-01-11T22:32:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/?p=154124"},"modified":"2024-03-15T22:12:53","modified_gmt":"2024-03-16T08:12:53","slug":"ewc-president-inaugural-address","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/2022\/01\/11\/ewc-president-inaugural-address\/","title":{"rendered":"New president shares vision for East-West Center\u2019s global role"},"content":{"rendered":"Reading time: <\/span> 2<\/span> minutes<\/span><\/span>
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President Suzanne \u201cSuzy\u201d Puanani Vares-Lum<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The East-West Center\u2019s (EWC<\/abbr>) President Suzanne “Suzy” Puanani Vares-Lum<\/strong>, the first woman and Native Hawaiian to lead the center, gave an inaugural address online<\/a> on January 10 as part of a change-of-responsibility ceremony broadcast from the center\u2019s renowned campus.<\/p>\n

The theme of the event, during which the University of Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span> at Mānoa alumna received a ceremonial lauhala mat symbolizing transfer of the center\u2019s stewardship, was Ka ulana ʻana<\/span> i ka piko—in weaving, you begin at the center.<\/p>\n

“I am keenly aware that I am standing on the shoulders of past and present giants as I inherit stewardship of an institution that has had an unparalleled impact in so many ways,” said Vares-Lum. “The Indo-Pacific, where East meets West, matters now as never before. We face unprecedented challenges—environmental damage and climate change, authoritarian influence and strained alliances, corruption, disease and pandemics—with enormous consequences that will reverberate around the globe. At the East-West Center, we realize these challenges can be met if our solutions are rooted in authentic, people-to-people understanding and culturally informed expertise. This is why our mission—using the tools of cooperative study, research and dialogue to promote understanding in our region—has never been more important.”<\/p>\n

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Presenting the president with a lauhala mat.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

In a ceremony led by Kahu Kordell Kekoa, EWC<\/abbr> Board of Governors Chair James Scott and outgoing President Richard Vuylsteke presented Vares-Lum with a lauhala mat that Kekoa said symbolizes responsibility for a community woven together from many strands, as well as a place where people can sit together to build a better world. Members of Vares-Lum\u2019s ʻohana<\/span> also participated in the ceremony, representing the support of many hands that is required for leadership.<\/p>\n