The National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) has awarded $1.9 million in federal funding to programs at the University of Hawaii at Manoa and the University of Hawaii Maui College, U.S. Sen. Mazie K. Hirono (D-HI) recently said in a release on her website.
Spearheaded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the funding “aims to promote and strengthen Alaska Native-Serving and Native Hawaiian-Serving Institutions,” the release said. The funding also helps the institutions to carry out education, applied research and community development programs in food and agricultural sciences-related disciplines.
“This funding is an important investment in the future of Hawaii’s food and agriculture system, and the Native Hawaiian communities that have been stewards of the land for centuries,” Hirono said. “UH’s programs, like GoFarm, play an important role in teaching and training the next generation of individuals who will care for the land and be responsible for strengthening Hawaii’s sustainability practices. I am glad that this funding will be used to support our local economy, develop our workforce, and engage members of the Native Hawaiian community as we work to protect the land and feed our communities for years to come.”
Two programs at UH Manoa and one at UH Maui College will receive the bulk of the funding, the release said. The projects at UH Manoa include GoFarm Hawaii and Hawaii-One-Ag. GoFarm Hawaii is a statewide beginning farmer training program looking to “enhance Hawaii’s food security and local economy by reducing dependence on imported food and increasing the number of sustainable, local agricultural producers.”
Hawaii-One-Ag provides a number of diverse educational opportunities for high school and college students, as well as agricultural workers who want to develop their professional and technical skills.
The UH Maui College program, Ike Kupuna: Integrating Traditional Knowledge into Natural Resource Sciences, combines modern and traditional methods to manage Maui’s natural resources and increase participation amongst the Native Hawaiian community.
The University of Hawaii received $1.5 million from NIFA in 2020 so that the school could promote educational equity for underrepresented students, expand education programs and provide job training in the fields of food, agriculture and natural resources.
