ALANA KAY – Sustainable Aloha Magazine

Please LIKE, COMMENT, SHARE & SUBSCRIBE… It Really Helps Our Channel.

Jason Schwartz with ALANA KAY, — SUSTAINABLE ALOHA MAGAZINE Chief- Alana joins Jason to announce her third issue, featuring WATER of SUSTAINABLE ALOHA Magazine ; Alana shares her views about Water on Maui and her visions for Sustainability …7-22-1019

Summary & Transcript Below…

Interview with Alana Kay, Publisher of Sustainable Aloha Magazine

[00:00 → 02:36] Introduction and Background of Sustainable Aloha Magazine

• Jason Schwartz introduces the show The Neutral Zone and welcomes guest Alana Kay, publisher of Sustainable Aloha magazine.
• Alana explains that the magazine is a digital publication focused on sustainability issues relevant to Maui, with two issues published and a third imminent.
• The upcoming issue’s anchor theme is water, reflecting a critical environmental concern on Maui.
• The first issue focused on farming; the magazine is evolving with an “anchor story” and supportive “satellite stories.”
• Alana emphasizes the intentional choice to publish digitally to minimize paper waste and promote sustainability. The magazine is hosted on Issue.com, making it accessible on many devices.
• Despite being digital, she plans to use physical flyers to increase visibility and reach, though funding for this is currently limited.

1. 1. 1. 1. [02:36 → 07:12] Vision, Mission, and Community Engagement

• Alana discusses the challenge of marketing a digital magazine in a world where physical visibility often helps build credibility.
• She has distribution plans involving flyers and event tie-ins to increase awareness.
• 
• Alana stresses the importance of creating a communication hub for sustainability issues on Maui, as government efforts are fragmented and siloed.
• The magazine’s website, sustainablealoha.solutions, serves as a central platform linking the magazine with a mission statement aimed at uniting groups to share best practices and negotiate sustainability initiatives collectively.
• She critiques the fragmented approach of various environmental groups and government departments, advocating for broader collaboration to address Maui’s sustainability challenges.

1. 1. 1. 1. [07:12 → 13:19] Challenges in Government and Environmental Advocacy

• Alana reflects on her background in local politics, running for office to influence change.
• She highlights the difficulties in government understanding and managing sustainability, citing the lack of clear definitions and coordination in Maui County government.
• For example, although funding for sustainability initiatives was allocated, the county council often cut the budget due to unclear goals and lack of informed leadership.
• The newly created sustainability department within the county remains undefined and under-resourced, struggling to fulfill its mission effectively.

Alana’s goal is to educate and mobilize the wider public, including the “silent majority” who are not actively engaged in environmental activism or politics.

• She hopes the magazine can serve as a vehicle to reach a broader audience beyond the usual environmental groups and activists.

1. 1. 1. 1. [13:19 → 22:08] Education, Audience, and Outreach Strategy

• The magazine aims to provide accessible education on complex sustainability issues, such as integrated water resource management.
• Alana notes the importance of reaching tourists as well, educating them about Maui’s environmental challenges to foster awareness and respectful behavior.
• She discusses the difficulties in funding marketing efforts and the need for sponsors to help distribute printed materials like flyers in hotels and shops.
• The goal is to increase readership, generate meaningful engagement, and provide data-driven metrics to attract further support from advertisers.
• Alana’s outreach strategy includes leveraging social media (Facebook page), physical flyers, and local events to build a community of informed readers and supporters.

1. 1. 1. 1. [22:08 → 31:00] Water Crisis Focus: Understanding Maui’s Freshwater Challenges

• The third issue of Sustainable Aloha focuses on water supply sustainability, a pressing but under-addressed issue on Maui.
• Alana explains the complex hydrology of Maui’s aquifers, including the freshwater lens and the transition zone where saltwater and freshwater interact.
• This freshwater lens has been thinning over the past decade or more, posing a severe risk to Maui’s drinking water supply.
• Despite the urgency, government agencies like the Maui County Water Department and the State Commission on Water Resource Management lack capacity, expertise, and coordination to fully address these issues.
• The water department’s typical solution to brackish wells is simply to drill new ones, which does not solve the systemic problem of aquifer depletion and saltwater intrusion.

1. 1. 1. 1. [31:00 → 38:45] Integrated Water Resource Management and Political Obstacles

• Alana advocates for adopting Integrated Water Resource Management (IWRM), a holistic approach that considers the entire water system rather than isolated parts.
• She points out that no single agency is currently responsible for implementing IWRM on Maui, creating a governance gap described as “no man’s land.”
• The water crisis has been politicized and treated as a “political football,” delaying meaningful action while the aquifer continues to degrade.
• The problem is compounded by environmental degradation such as urban heat islands in Kahului, which reduce orographic rainfall, further diminishing water recharge.
• Alana stresses the urgency of the crisis, warning that if freshwater and saltwater mix significantly, it could threaten Maui’s long-term habitability.

1. 1. 1. 1. [38:45 → 47:59] Mobilizing Community and Political Will

• 
• Despite the severity of the water crisis, local government has been slow to respond due to lack of education, staffing, and political will.
• Alana describes efforts to engage council members, department heads, and community groups, but notes that more collective power and coordination are urgently needed.
• She criticizes the tendency of various groups to remain siloed and sometimes abrasive, which alienates potential supporters.
• Instead, she promotes a more inclusive, aloha-based approach focused on collaboration and mutual respect to mobilize a broader base of community members.
• Alana highlights related issues such as affordable housing, which also suffer from lack of coordinated solutions and political attention.
• She envisions the magazine as a catalyst for gradual paradigm shifts in public awareness and policy over several years.

1. 1. 1. 1. [47:59 → 56:07] The Role of Journalism, Crisis Messaging, and Gradual Change

• Jason Schwartz and Alana discuss the tension between using “inflammatory” language to spark urgent action versus a more measured, heart-centered approach.
• Alana’s magazine aims to combine beautiful photography and storytelling to engage readers emotionally and intellectually, fostering a gradual shift in mindset.
• She emphasizes that the magazine is not about sensationalism but about visionary, positive journalism that can soften hardened hearts and build consensus.
• Alana acknowledges the difficulty in motivating people who are focused on daily survival to engage with complex environmental issues.
• She hopes that by building networks and word-of-mouth momentum, the magazine can slowly expand its influence and encourage more community participation.
• Alana invites writers and sponsors to contribute and support the magazine’s mission, emphasizing the need for resources to expand outreach efforts.

1. 1. 1. Key Insights and Takeaways

• Sustainability Communication Hub: Sustainable Aloha magazine serves a unique role as an integrative platform connecting diverse environmental issues and stakeholders on Maui, emphasizing collaboration beyond siloed groups.
• Water Crisis Awareness: The freshwater lens under Maui is critically threatened by saltwater intrusion, climate change, and poor resource management, yet remains insufficiently addressed by local authorities.
• Government Limitations: Maui’s county and state agencies lack the staffing, education, and mandate to implement integrated water resource management, necessitating new governance structures and expert involvement.
• Public Education and Mobilization: Engaging the “silent majority” and tourists through accessible, visually compelling media is central to building broader support for sustainability initiatives.
• Marketing and Funding Challenges: Limited financial resources hamper effective distribution and visibility of the magazine, though strategic use of flyers, events, and digital platforms may help grow readership.
• Vision for Gradual Change: The magazine promotes a gradual paradigm shift through visionary journalism, aiming for long-term cultural and political transformation rather than immediate crisis-driven reactions.
• 
• Call for Collaboration: Alana encourages diverse groups and individuals to join efforts, contribute content, and sponsor the magazine to strengthen community-wide environmental stewardship.

1. 1. 1. Conclusion

This interview highlights the critical environmental issues facing Maui, especially water sustainability, and the challenges of educating and mobilizing the community to address these problems. Through Sustainable Aloha magazine, Alana Kay offers an innovative approach combining art, education, and advocacy to inspire a collective response grounded in aloha spirit and collaboration. The conversation underscores the need for better government coordination, public engagement, and funding support to move from awareness to effective action before crises worsen.

00:00

hi I’m Jason Schwartz host of the neutral zone kak u is a listener-supported station this means that all the great programs you hear like mine is sponsored by you as well as our underwriters if you would like to help keep the voice of Maui looking loud and clear go to kak UF m dot org slash donate today and give and don’t miss the neutral zone Mondays at 11:00 a.m. on 88.5 FM voices [Music] [Music] good morning everyone it’s 11 o’clock on Monday and reason I know it is because it’s the neutral zone welcome to our

01:02

show Jason Schwartz and I had a guest or my kid with us in just a minute [Music] [Music] [Music] please meet you nature of God I have a wonderful guest today it’s July 22nd 2019 and I’m here with Elana Kay who is the publisher of a magazine called sustainable aloha now you may have seen issue number there have been two issues two or issue number one but we have another one coming here imminently don’t worry yeah at the end of this week the end of this week and does it have a subject theme yes water

02:36

• 

water on Maui is our water supply sustainable uh-huh yes number two about number two let me think I mean first one was kind of focused on farming the second one second one wasn’t really focused on anything I’ve been kind of developing the plan for this magazine as we go along and I finally decided that each one is gonna have an anchor story and then the rest of the stories will be what I call satellite stories okay although will always cover certain things like farming one for a magazine

03:06

um this magazine is intentionally digital because it’s about sustainability and I didn’t want to waste a lot of paper you have anything but what we’re gonna be what we’re doing is its published on issue comm which is spelled is suu dot-com and absolutely every publication is on there you have you know all of our local publications are on there as well and it can be downloaded to your device any device that you want to download it on you can read it on issue I’m asking is um I’ve

03:41

been I’ve been accused of having a magazine for years yeah because I was having it online but no one ever said hey Jason your magazine because right they don’t see it physically right people if you say Maui News right now you’re looking you say where that’s yeah that’s almost invisible now but yeah we’re gonna have a flier I actually did have small fliers that were in some condo lobbies know what I see it will be tied to any event it’s gonna be people know I know I you know I really could

04:21

use a marketing that’s why you’re here on the show I alright I’ll I don’t we yeah even here a copy when you see this on TV or on the internet you’re gonna see a copy of the cover of this and maybe some of the thank you think that’s probably where we should stop because people in this now digital world it used to be when we grew up and you had a school book you said oh there’s my textbook and then textbooks grew and now they went digital and online and kids kids have one of these stuck to their

04:56

hands all the time and you just say hey hey wake up hello are you live and you say well you know I’m on my thing with my friends there’s they’re in here so I’m bringing it up only because it is a major monster in this world to have a great thing and nobody can find lost in this pages right so there will be a flyer that’ll be distributed not this time because I don’t have the money for it yet but I’ve got all the pricing I’ve got my printer lined up there will be a four-page flyer

05:28

that has the the magazine is big on photography beautiful photography and graphics great not only do we have a Facebook page so that’s sustainable alone ah yeah I have a Facebook page you know I don’t go on Facebook just so you know audience did you know that there are people in the world of don’t use there are some I have a lot of friends and people send me things and then it says you have to log into your Facebook account I do that with some people and they say oh I never did see it I don’t I

05:58

don’t do Facebook I know I use the Facebook but there’s now 190 million people on Facebook and so I don’t use Facebook so only bringing it up so I’m trying to build up the Facebook something you’re on issue number three if I said how many viewers do you have you’d say well I I get the stats on issue calm Oh so myself point do you people out in the audience there’s lots of stuff in the world and we’re up to issue number three with a lady who I’m gonna give your

06:31

background because more important and a paper in the middle of billions of papers you ran for mayor once twice once 2014 but I ran for council in 2012 you are someone who has ideas that you want to share with people absolutely and your vehicle is now this sustainable Aloha magazine but your ideas to me always we’re really important and really thank you seriously you know people ask me how do you choose people for your show well I try to keep it fresh and I also listen to what others say but

07:12

I don’t like to sort of book things so far in advance that I’m not current and I can’t help but see our world shall I say Shan satsui but Maui what’s the name of our new company here mahi pono yeah you know all these names are great a large purchase of Ag land mm-hmm with title to water I imagine some of that’s going to be in your yeah there’s gonna be some of that’s going to tie in there right and farming and sustainability that seems to be your word and has been right right yeah I’m

07:52

sorry and about so yeah I felt like we needed a communication hub and if you go to the website which is sustainable Aloha dot solutions it’s not calm it’s sustainable Aloha dot some guys you see that it’s gonna be sustainable Aloha dot solutions that’s the website not only is there a link to the magazine on there the online magazine but it it also has the mission statement and I think a lot of people can get on board with that and it has to do with that we need a place where we can centralize more or less our

08:35

negotiations and and best practices because right now everything is so silo managed in the government not our our Maui’s are the people of Mali so instead of the government including the government in this I would say environmental because we need to make some changes in the government but I believe we’re gonna have to get together first and we can talk about the changes I think we need and the magazine talks about them as I’ve been studying these issues through the years these stories I

09:09

write entail many months and years of me researching talking to people reading articles you know on Environment Hawaii isn’t a really nice publication and looking at websites for the different watershed partnerships and all these kind of things you know earth justice and what I do is I try to draw out all the things that I think are important that work together and then I try to educate people as to where we’re at and then we look at how government works and how the departments are set up and

09:40

defined and staffed and then we say well how do we take what we know as environmentalists and get our government to properly care out carry out these initiatives and so far what we’ve been doing is we’ve been litigating and that’s a very slow process and it’s combative we could be using mediation more we could be using leave slowing you down for a second cuz who’s we we the people so when you say we I mean all of us I mean all of us so you’ve been writing articles about subject

10:13

water this issue so this is basically different facets of your position water right it’s definitely going to be my viewpoint but it’s it’s derived on facts that I’m pulling from places and this body of facts that now is out there in as a magazine has pictures and sponsors it’s putting out this idea does it have on intention yes meaning now that that would tie into my mission statement so once it’s out there do you have a body of say environmentalists or planned environment

11:00

who will be speaking through this you spoke about a voice of what we could do right and I always wonder I created this neutral zone because I want people who are Bluegreen that’s what I’m saying my I would say I’d call it me I’m doing something but like we say who is the doing piece I mean I don’t believe in these teams that’s what I mean by silo management our government is set up that way where they’re all well that’s not our job that’s not our job and then with the teams you have

11:32

like Mali tomorrow and you have Nevada ha and you have all these different groups and they’re like think tanks where they say well this is what we believe this is how we feel and just if I could take a if I could just I mean people may not agree with this but my observation has been it says though certain groups want to just be the Savior’s whereas I feel that all the work we need to do to bring our island back into sustainable integrity we need a lot of people we need a lot of groups we need a lot of expertise we almost

12:06

need everybody to be on this together in order to do it how do you which is how they used to do it how do we how do you even propose that well first by I’m looking for people because they all have their groups let’s say you know Maui tomorrow has their people Sierra Club has their people they all have their people but that is not everybody and then you have what’s the other one the no the ones that were the old on and coalition okay but if you look at how many people come out to vote that’s

12:45

still a very small percentage of the people on the island what I’m trying to do is educate and what you call motivate mobilize the silent majority because I’d like to see one of them I’m trying to do that with that’s what I’m hoping this magazine magazine thing yeah to say people who hate me for years all right so I’m doing my talked about yeah it’s not easy it’s not new it’s and then the internet started yeah I thought oh an online thing and we have the right words

13:19

in our name art music and violin yeah I know you’re I’ve looked at your so I’ve watched just as like you say people form a group or have a group and they pick their pet issues right and they work on them with their team but you’re saying as I’m trying to understand that that it needs to somehow get more ears and eyes on all these issues and tie them all together in something called a whole environment plan but right the problem is our government is not talking about Maui County government sure our state

14:00

has done a lot of really good things and that articles educate people on this we can hardly kind of cram it into an hour but I’ll just try to try to get the general concept to for people to understand is the Maui County government is not equipped educated staffed designed to solve these environmental problems that we have and what we need to do and attempts have been made and if people aren’t aware of this is Alan Arakawa who I should know I don’t really care for sorry Alan but he he’s done a

14:32

couple of things that were really powerful and it was ignored and one of them was that for the last several years in the budget he put in seven million dollars for a sustainability initiative I don’t remember what the exact wording was but was undefined as to what it was for the council regularly reduced the amount because they didn’t know what to do with it and when I’ve had interviews with the water department with council members with all of this they don’t understand sustainability

15:03

they’re not educated in it’s like a doctor isn’t educated in in nutritional health he’s only educated another thing it’s the same thing with our government so I asked the head of the sustainability department at the college to talk to one of the Commission’s that Don Guzman was heading and it took me about two years to get them together but they finally got together to coordinate between the county government and the college where the education existed at this time and defined sustainability for

15:35

the county of Maui it is not defined for the county of Maui on the Charter or anywhere else get it defined and then start to work around that and start to and create a department now as of 2018 they created a department under the Department of Environmental Management that’s a sustainability department but I’ve talked to them and they are still they still don’t know what they’re doing and I don’t mean that in a negative way they say our we don’t we still are not defined what we’re lacking in government

16:06

is the definition and the staffing for these sustainability initiatives we don’t have it I am not exactly sure I’m trying to come to understand what your goal is here in other words educate people I don’t know but I mean you said we got this hour and we don’t have enough room in yourself explain so okay but in this hour what we do have is time to figure out what is a weaned zone yeah you have a magazine so there’s all the information zine out the magazine is online oh I just said I’ve had a

16:47

magazine online for 25 years with the same subjects talking about sustainability and all these things and I was talking to Suzy out here Suzy was our guest here remember Suzy gets trained about the fact that all the pieces aren’t seen and just not seen yeah what are you hoping to accomplish okay is to educate people on all of this let them know about this magazine that’s all accomplished today right now or even was a magazine we I brought you on as a guest to my show because I thought you had a magazine coming out

17:24

about water and I thought that was important and I thought it’s the third issue so besides I haven’t seen it around anywhere except where someone gave me a copy and that was you so I’m always going I’m trying to figure out myself how do I get to an audience there’s only a hundred Watts here that means if you’re over the horizon you can’t pick up this station unless you’re clever enough to get it on Facebook live Maui neutral zone calm afterwards YouTube afterwards kak you page

18:02

afterwards but and then maybe even we put them on TV here maybe you’re lucky to catch it but what I say is all that I’ve been putting out 25 years I used to be like nickel and onda and run for office and then I said wait a minute I just want to talk with people because I think we are 25 years later if you would I would think many of you know that Jason Schwartz has had his face on this Ark aku for 25 years trying to get people to understand that this all needs to be put together just like you’ve

18:41

described but you’re describing it like it’s a fresh idea it’s the thing that needs to be as I see is how do we get this message out I used to think it was the Mallee I mean the message of the mountains is this thin now so somehow they’re they’re trying to figure out how to get seen also to be honest I just go the spirit of Maui I mean I get all my guidance as to what my coo Liana is by asking Maui what it wants me to do you mean Maui the spirit of Maui there’s there’s I mean and a lot of people are

19:16

gonna have a problem with that but nobody there’s I think yeah right I know you’re I mean some people are gonna misunderstand that what I’m saying is I I wake up every morning I ask what my my cool eon is what what what am I here for what would you like me to do and I’m guided and through the years I’ve been guided to tell this knowledge and insight so when I want a person writes whether I wrote five books that are on Amazon I’m a writer so I had all this information about the way our government

19:49

operates about the politics of it about the laws about the environment and I needed a vehicle to write about it so that I could take what I’ve learned and educate people with it that’s why I write my books people buy my books believe it or not I get royalties everyone I mean so I have confidence that once people find out about the magazine the only thing I have lacked I definitely know how to market but what I have lacked is money I don’t have money to do the marketing I need to do I know

20:20

that as soon as I can print beautiful flyers to put in condo lobbies but the one thing we’re missing is I’m also doing us to educate tourists and when Lucien had me on her show crossroads she says wow that never crossed my mind to educate the tourists what does that mean educate the tourists yeah I mean how could this see it and say that I don’t know that’s why I go back to my thing I’m telling you again and I started a non-profit 25 years ago to promote visual art healing art music

20:55

culture educate people environmental solutions and in you is awful tourism 25 29 years ago yeah and the message is still considered a fresh idea right because that means to me how do we what you said it’s the money so what does the money want because if the moneyed interests wanted to share what you and you’d have the money no I only need $1,200 to print 7500 fires beautiful four-page Flyers that’s all I need it’s not much money I’m not talking about big money corporate money I’m talking about I will

21:34

print the Flyers and I already Molly circulation can get them out so you’re saying that in other words to be given out at the hotels or through the concierge desks to people right that are tourists yeah and what’s the in Aqaba shops what are those tourists gonna then do so far every tourists I’ve run into or talked to loves the idea and what are they going to do what’s their part to get educated so that people can get more to send a dollar I’m not looking for money from the tourists ever tighter

22:08

since passe well I’m just going back to that an advertiser or a sponsor either they believe in a cause and they have unlimited money or they have a reason they’re sponsoring right mm-hm so so far on this kind of thing I’ve had sponsors who wanted to help the cause of me doing it but that next step the next step to get it out to enough furnace to be able to make a difference in the way that Maui is treated environmentally and who impacts that decision the economic engine what’s the biggest economic

22:45

engine here right now tourism and so that’s why I said so what’s that tourist part if you’re reaching out to them so I’m what I’m trying to basically do is I’m trying to to say that we need to take your idea get this message out but have a request of those people for example I had people that came here from a television show that was staying at the Westin Mahana gun pit and when they went out to restaurants they were treated with less Aloha and I know now where do I put that message out who

23:21

do I tell about that that there needs to be somehow a rekindling of an Aloha spirit and delivered and those tourists maybe their job is who do they send that message to so that the next time they have a restaurant experience people there are realizing preciously that they’re holding the future of Meli’s revisit errs right in their hands yeah same with someone that sees your message for environmental things that now that they’ve seen it in their educated you just said earlier education if they

23:56

don’t vote it’s like what where’s the tie and I’m always looking to say great thinkers who are progressive and recessionary environment get older yeah and not necessarily accomplish their goals if I don’t tap into well here’s this yeah okay I got I do have I do have the I have it in my mind entirely okay okay so the first thing I need to do because I can’t show circulation until I have that money to create the circulation I have to initiate the effort to do the printed flyers get them

24:34

out there because it leads you to a digital magazine the digital website that has all these it keeps the statistics it says how many pages they read how long they were on there how many people and it also shows how many impressions impressions are where somebody’s reading somebody else’s magazine they say here you might want to look at this okay so it an advertiser or sponsor is gonna want to see those stats have those Facebook advertiser Google advertisers and I can do Facebook advertising all of them do exactly what

25:10

you just said issued but I need stats first I I don’t have the tell you is you know the other thing of how do you get this seen by more people right sometimes it’s something spectacular I don’t have a launched idea does anybody have a marketing idea contact me on my website or contact me on my Facebook page that’s my plan for marketing this is to get the Flyers out 7500 at least if not 15,000 and then get people looking at it because for the effort I put out I have a lot of views and I have five thousand

25:45

impressions on issue which is impressive so then you probably confess from the minor efforts I’ve done saying we’re gonna take a break Ferraro’s our sponsors see they have someone has to come forward and say they think it’s good so I think you can find sponsors what you need we’re gonna be right back with Alana Kay excuse Mike off to zone with me Jason Schwartz would like to sincerely thank David Bryan for his support David was founder and head of school at new Road School in Santa

26:19

Monica California as the board chair at the Ojai foundation and on the board for brave new films the neutral zone is heard live Mondays at 11:00 a.m. here on Kak you 88.5 FM the voice of maui and again on saturdays at 7 a.m. as well as on TV and on Maui neutral zone dot-com get a jump on protecting Maui’s coral reefs no need to wait for Hawaii’s new sunscreen water go in effect this is Archie kelapa asking you to make the switch today to sunscreens that do not contain reforming oxybenzone or octant

26:53

oxy find out about better choices at maui reef shark / sunscreen sponsored with aloha by maui nui marine resource council maui visitor’s bureau and the county of mali office of economic development [Music] what a Maui I’m Suzanne KN your host of the malazan show here on ka k you 88.5 FM the voice of maui please join me in my incredible guests every Wednesday at GPM for fun and informative conversation sexuality family pop culture music social causes we talk about it all with a fresh and

27:31

forward-thinking twist the Maui Sam show 88.5 FM the voice of Maui trying to evolve hi I’m Suzanne Keun host of the Maui Sam show kak u is a listener-supported station this means that all of the great programs you hear like mine are sponsored by you as well as our underwriters if you would like to help keep the voice of Maui talking loud and clear go to kak UF m dot org slash donate go today and please give and don’t miss the Maui sansho Wednesday’s live at 2 p.m. on 88.5 FM the voice of

28:09

Maui it’s important to buckle up your kids I know sometimes car seats can be complicated I know and if your child’s in the wrong seat and you get into a crash I know it could lead to a serious injury I know so you’re 100% sure you have the right car seat for your child’s age and size I don’t know don’t think you know no you know car crashes are a leading killer of children 1 to 13 make sure you have the right car seat visit safercar.gov/therightseat a message from the National Highway Traffic Safety

28:38

Administration and the Ad Council well we are coming back I don’t know if we call it early I’m gonna think about playing some more later if I haven’t played enough spots now like I said earlier I need someone with eyes because I can hardly see the board and I can wear my glasses I don’t see Elton John wearing more than blue these days we have to get more colors going on in this age of prescription glasses for eight dollars online the world has gone online and somehow you can get lost and even

29:18

online you can get lost and that’s what I was talking to our guests about Alana Kay is the publisher of a sustainable Aloha magazine which you can find at sustainable aloha dot solutions you find the link there yeah and you’ll find the link there to the magazine aisle or if you’re lucky enough to find one physically that would be also another good way so yeah when I get a magazine like whoever it is on the newsstand I pick it up and I don’t even often go to their website because online everyone is

29:57

equal and it’s fake news there’s no difference between real news and fake news unless you know its source and you check it all so it’s now gone I don’t like to say president Trump is right but let’s say President Trump is right it’s hard to tell what’s real and what’s fake these days except if you know the information behind it and this young lady a lot of Kay who’s the publisher of sustainable Aloha magazine does that research so that that’s one thing that’s

30:31

very important about the stuff that can be seen with your writing any important subjects you want to highlight when they’re going to look at the issue water [Music] what is the big I’ve had a lot of people ask me when I run for office I get my cue kind of like what the people need education on when I ran for office and you know when you’re out there talking to people they’re going to bring up the subjects and I got to tell you the number one subject is I don’t vote because I don’t know how to vote just so

31:00

you know that’s why I thought education is important maybe maybe if they know they don’t know who to pick or why or what they don’t know the issues and I’ve tried to tell people I’m going to ask you right now in the audience did you know that the al al aquifer the transition zone there’s salt water underneath and there’s brackish buffers and salt water and then there’s a freshwater lens there’s a buffer zone between the freshwater and the saltwater did you know it’s been consistently

31:27

thinning over the last oh that but I want to say a decade well you know that more than that mm-hmm that it was brought up as my oh three and Alan Arakawa who you remember mm-hmm they were hesitating about buying and controlling the watershed all because look what I mean coming up right and the fresh water that that’s critical and if it it mixes and we don’t we’re screwed for life list a hundred thousand years so it’s not going to come back that issue is one that is really so the story

32:01

is leading to getting people to understand that and understand why it’s not being addressed this is what the story is going to talk about I will explain to you through all my investigations I’ve been investigating this for at least four years why it’s not being addressed and what we need to do to address it and who’s addressing it nobody yeah nobody pressing it right do you and I’ll tell you why you address it we need a we need to do something called water integrated water resource

32:32

management and it’s getting big in an integrated water resource management which means which means that we look at the whole picture right we look at the whole picture and if you talk to the water department I’ve interviewed Dave Taylor our old Department of Water Supply head and then the current one Jeffrey I can’t his last name eludes me right now the water department is not defined equipped educated staffed to address the issues but at the same time they’re in charge of the water supply as

33:10

they give it to the public but they are not they’re not scientists are not water engineers or civil engineers and to them solving a problem where a well is getting brackish is to find a new place to drill that’s their solution I’m hearing you tell me you’re looking at this for four years like I said it was a decade ago this issue and I am sure I am several times it not just one time it’s coming over the last many numbers of years that our freshwater supply is limited but a lot of people don’t some

33:46

people know that there is a large in fact so large it’s larger than a while freshwater lens under Maui and that would be not wanting to to Pierce and use because it will encourage people to do development great with no stopping it alright so it’s been staying hidden meanwhile I know about it for I almost bought a property no kidding when I say this issue you’re talking about is yes I heard about it when I bought was buying a property above this huge vast sea of freshwater in a pocket under Maui and it was

34:31

brought up at that time about the incredible closeness between the saline and the fresh in the eaeu and that all the water going for example to Kihei my land yeah it shouldn’t be coming from you know and also Oh crazy also to the North Shore where the one well is contaminated so we’re also feeding yeah I was feeding also why don’t we deal with this okay because we don’t have the means this is what I’m trying to say we don’t have the means of staffing in the education to do it so we

35:03

don’t have time for example net to take a long time right so is that would you say that it’s an emergency yet I think it is I got to tell you that the Commission on water resource management also I’ve been in close communication with Charlie I sat at I called him sea worm the Water Commission we can call him the Water Commission he has fed me documents information answered questions I’ve interviewed all these people worm Commission on water resource management CWR my people say sea worm but you can

35:36

call it the water commission but that’s the State Water Commission see what complicates it is there’s all these departments all these different laws there’s all these different roles but I got to tell you know Robin Knox her and I see her and I see this exactly the same way and every time I run into her but I love some of her terminology she said yes integrated water resource management is no man’s land there is nobody doing it so they’re saying oh sure go for example I wish she’s a scientist see we need

36:06

scientists right here now in that year where I guess why I’m saying it in the way I met saying yeah yeah where are we how do we get all those people out there who are trying to get this read the magazine and you’ll understand and then what and then what we need to do is we need to put our power together cuz I’ve tried it I really have tried I’ve talked to council members I have talked to department heads I’ve talked I’m one person we need more people we need to put we need to understand what we’re

36:37

doing and why put our power together I need to stop for a second I feel like we’ve been wasting our efforts somewhere else and I think this is our most important thing I think it’s oh let’s back up even further you said I brought up Commission on water resource management they don’t think it’s a crisis nor does the department of water but if you look at what I’m going to tell you about in this story that’s coming up this coming weekend I’m hoping enough people are gonna think it’s at

37:03

least urgent that we need to deal with this and I was number one priority and who do they go to what we’re gonna do is we will find out who we go to but I do but I believe what we’re going to have to start is we need to start with the mayor’s office and get them to create the the administration you have your legislation the council is legislation right I’m listening to you you have to know what the function of the different bodies are what I’m hearing is that we have all these different agencies we

37:40

have county level we have state level and we have an imposing crisis that’s been it’s been double in size well bye well mesas a crisis it’s like little person holding back yeah damn yeah because once the water that salty and the water that’s fresh get together we are now going to be enable everybody has to leave here we’ll have to leave most of the people on Maui will have to leave I can talk to you about people you have take water from the air these guys coming over right right but see what the

38:18

problem with people that’s once again putting a bandaid on the hole in the dike yes what we are doing that people don’t realize we’re doing and its scientific for one thing first of all you need to understand most of this is just as Charlie ice from sea worm puts it this is a political football yo aquifer has been a political football my story will explain that why people are politicizing it that’s a big waste of time and energy while the clock is ticking but the other thing is that on

38:45

the supply side of our water we are destroying our ability to replenish that aquifer so not only our use is important but also replenishing that aquifer and all of these diversions all of the heat islands you know what heat island is yeah you know how Kahului has been having record-breaking heat well that’s from all of the construction all the roads all the cars that’s an artificially elevated heat and what’s happening is that affects our orographic rain our RS is artificially that means we created it doesn’t mean

39:17

it’s artificial so we can fix it because we did that we like you know what they’ve arid ice and put up a parking lot and that is heat and it’s creating heat creating heat and it’s creating an imbalance that’s what everything’s awesome banelings are in crisis so what I hear this I I was bringing up there’s a state there’s a county but what is it what it’s almost as if the way to get people to see a problem is when there’s a crisis Joe Souki pointed out to me

39:47

years ago about transportation mass transportation will kick in when the cost of fuel is so high that it causes Isis water issue will kick in when water is gonna cost you a bloody fortune and your Rhea fortune it would be John that’s where we’re at and that’s what we’re trying so that is the goal the goal is to say water and then explode that issue in your face so you take action mm-hmm I mean I show the transition zone we people beat around the bush yeah it’s time to burn the bush

40:28

it’s time to say I am God we are God we see this vision of this crisis before it’s explode that’s a good point yeah it needs to be handled before it’s a crisis before it explodes so they’re saying like this they say oh well we got the water department said well as long as I see twenty to forty years of water based on current population growth that is so short-sighted we not only need to reverse the damage we’ve created do you have anyone that has enough nobody we don’t have it no no a trained one person

41:07

we need we border we might need to bring in actually I made some phone calls I worked for a company when I was really young they’re called ch2m and they’re based in Oregon and I know that takes me back 40 years when I worked for them they’re amazing but I contacted them and they said yes indeed we do water resource management and I figured they would they’re a really really strong important company and they’re there worldwide we are probably my feeling is my opinion my observation after doing all the

41:39

investigating you see all that all in the story is that we need a integrated water resource management department we don’t have one so nobody’s doing it like I said they’re all doing these little things okay we need we need we need a department and we also need we’re probably going to have to bring in experts from the outside because I don’t think we have other than the fact that Lucien told me she said when I was on her show just like about a month ago that there’s that the USGS actually had

42:09

a computer program I can do this where you plug in the stream flows the you know and all that stuff go there’s no there’s a computer program we’re just wait behind the time go well it’s really very interesting because I remember in planning they had something that also built out these same models I imagine maybe it’s integrated with what Lucia is talking about that computer models can project changes and different things in the future both are based on what happened before and

42:43

man-made intrusion each other they’d be building or what can happen with systems its systems thinking it is that’s where I get down to this thing of where are we going with this because maybe it’s not clear but I am looking for people to take and look at all this together and take it’s called systems thinking but we need to break it we need people who are thinking that way keep looking at it yeah they’ve been looking and everyone wants to see who’s but they don’t know

43:15

right and that’s why we don’t hang on the same thing with housing oh don’t get me started it takes the doing this so when I raise it is a crisis it is it is I feel it is I my heart’s been telling me that every morning I wake up I look at yo across the bay I live in North Ishqiya and I can CEO and that’s where I eat my breakfast and that place just speaks to me it’s saying please help please speak for me and yeah the next issue of the magazine is going to be about a sustainable economy and I’m going to

43:51

address the issue of housing which I know you and I are very pet I’m very passionate my most passionate issues are housing for affordable rentals not affordable housing for people can afford 700,000 that’s not what I’m talking about coming up with realistic figures really coming in out a solution getting the developers to when they get an entitlement they’re leaving without building the affordable rentals and housing these are not new stories what we see is that that’s the right the Renaissance

44:19

time so how is it I know they’re not new is be cool what ideas need the implementation that’s why I keep saying hey dude but so that’s why I want to mobilize people but I’m trying to mobilize a different group you have to realize that most people find they feel like everybody supports some like the Ohana coalition and all that most people find including me I’m not the only person that they’re too abrasive they’re too in-your-face and then people say oh I don’t wanna thing to do with that most

44:48

people say oh I don’t want I want people all these other people who don’t come out and speak I want I’m trying to get them to come out and say look there’s a different way that we can do this this is why it’s sustainable Aloha I don’t attack I don’t bring down I don’t say let’s tear down that company let’s attack them let’s take them to court let’s soar it’s all about being Aloha to each other and working together so I’m trying to draw out and create a new just

45:16

Herod died earlier you’re creating yet another silo that’s why I’m saying what the expression of emergent people would that want solved shouldn’t be a silo because you understand spirituality and you just understand the power like I’m just saying what you do when people want to get along it’s a stronger energy I’ve heard this yeah pressed by me I know I know that I know so so what I’m saying is I know right now I think the thing that will do it is a reality that we are

45:48

in crisis enough those people that aren’t coming out how do you get those people you can get them educated and you should I I’m sorry but you have to take a look at the magazine no good it’s it’s so magazine isn’t no action step who takes when there’s an emergency when the fire happens Michael why don’t you stop and the people that are hand when we have a problem with water if we identify it as a crisis as an emergency that’s called inflammatory journalism I’m not going to participate looking at

46:27

the journalism although I am gonna be saying that we have a problem I will be showing a charts but I’m saying the way to get those sleepers the people that don’t come out and vote the people that don’t express themselves because Ohana Coalition is saying hey excuse my french I said it earlier I don’t beat around the bush I burn the bush so there’s what Ohana coalition does and that’s what we do you only get so many people there’s this huge amount of people I just said

46:52

the only thing I see you say it’s journalism I say we have to recognize the crisis there is a housing crisis that means emergency that means there is I believe there is there’s gonna be a meeting with Tasha comma here in a couple of days out on the west side talking about affordable housing the Westside Alvarez from Maui tomorrow and out there and expressed why are you putting affordable housing out in the middle of nowhere there’s only one Road in and out that doesn’t have adequate

47:24

water why don’t you put it in central where there are facilities and things that’ll be because of the NIMBY factor because not in my backyard right I know it is things that are happening we have to get to the the only way you can change the people around is create an awareness of an emergency that we all will now come together to solve otherwise everyone forms silos it’s just what it’s the natural occurrence people they say birds of a feather flock together people on this issue or here

47:59

people on this issue or here and that that repulses people like you said who Oh that’s being a little too severe very difficult there’s two different points we’re having a little trouble differentiating inflammatory language or inflammatory writing is where you want a spark and I get it there’s a purpose for that I know what you’re saying just I mean I do understand what you’re saying and that’s a method that’s been used and I’m taking a more if the magazine is beautiful photography and if

48:33

you read like my farming story from the first one it’s all it’s you know I got to tell you it’s mostly heart it’s mostly creative beautiful and that’s to draw people in there’s enough publications such as the magazine Green it’s like an industry to industry publication you got your environment Hawaii has a lot of facts you got I’m bringing something that when you look at it it’s like watching the the show planet Earth have you ever watched that the series planet Earth what they do is

49:06

they use beauty and beautiful music and beautiful photography to teach you things and I guess that’s what’s different about my magazine is it’s the only magazine that’s like that it’s all beauty if you open up it’s just beauty and then there’s stories that educate you so it’s kind of like trying to get people in a different position to be a little more heart centered about their decision making and I really feel like I can soften a lot of hardened hearts with this

49:34

it’s a visionary magazine I mean it’s not like anything else and different hearts about what what are they hardened about oh my gosh I mean you’re talking about these people who aren’t responding people well I don’t know that thought just crossed my mind I hadn’t thought of that ahead of time I mean I’m just trying to put my vision into words my work and I’m trying to tell you mostly let me see mostly because your work well okay you’re looking for a quick abrupt

50:05

action is that what you’re looking for I’m looking at mine is a gradual action lift that’s what you’re saying you have my magazine is a gradual paradigm change okay it’s very gradual it may take I would probably say based on and I’m not going to go into my life and where I’ve watched trends I would say that it might take like five years for people to really get on board and I’m and I’m letting it like like I said I know I have to get the Flyers I would so matter

50:35

of there are five years before this no I don’t think that it’s gonna be no alien issue for example I’m gonna be running for office again okay I’ll probably be running for office again in 2018 I mean 2020 and 2022 so I’ll be able to give more lip service to this as time goes on but I’m thinking that crisis deserves attention see I use words I know what you’re saying inflammatory because I’ve been talking about it for 25 years I ran for these so well we’re trying to decide as if we need to try to

51:11

wake up this same crowd and what’s waking them up when they can’t get from Kihei to somewhere else because the road is blocked when they have fire causes the two main it’s almost like you need to have an emergency or a crisis for people to wake up I hear what you’re saying Jason I entirely hear what you’re saying not fun this is why this is one reason it’s hard to get through because I think what you’re saying perhaps or you’re maybe phrasing it a little differently than what is people are very

51:44

busy with just survival in the workaday world and getting around getting through the day it’s very hard for them to get on board with something to take action steps to solve one of these problems unless it affects them I know right so I just found a workaround that I hope eventually it’ll just start I just really think eventually it will I just know it will I know well I’ve never been I’m hoping that you are open to it so it’s worth it’s networking it’s telling people and then they tell somebody and

52:23

they tell somebody that’s the only that’s there but then what happens with that is in my experience and then everyone says pass that message down the street to those people that are doing it well housing go go to the housing agency there are answers for people that are homeless go to there no there aren’t answers these are crises what the water problem I think it is well I think but what am I gonna do righteously look what am I gonna do what I’m gonna what was I guy – ed you asking me why don’t

52:54

you tell me what I should do why don’t you tell me tell me what I should I was saying earlier that your magazine what is the point once you have it out there you want to get it into the hands of tourists and and educate them and I’m saying now that they’re educated what do you want them to do I want them to say something to those that are gonna change now who’s here I’m not make a difference in the it’s multi-purpose okay okay I hadn’t I don’t know what the tourists are gonna

53:27

do with the information that wasn’t a thought that crossed my mind I just would like them to know I work with them I clean vacation rentals I live in Kihei I live in a condo a big condo complex I did I go everywhere I go in my life as tourists and I just feel like they need to know this stuff what they do with that I don’t know but I do want to educate Maui people and I think people people will be more inclined to look at my magazine than they are to go pull up environment Hawaii have you seen environment Hawaii you

53:56

know I’m talking about no but again I’m going back they’re more likely to look at mine because of the beautiful photography well they have to find it I know and that they will find it because there will be flyers and coffee shops and wherever I can get them again I’m just sad that that was a crisis they’d see it quicker so should we create a crazy horrible crisis so how so what are you saying what are you saying is what do you want me so your point of view magazines to educate people but to educate those

54:29

people I asked you to do what create a crisis no I tell people to see the crisis so how do I get them to see the water crisis and I said I thought we had to wait until we ran out of water no your say we’re trying to do this before the crisis so how do we you said you have to have a crisis in order to get our people to add but you’re saying so how do we do it before it’s a crisis that’s exactly what I’m asking by educating them what else can I do I can’t force it on them that’s why I asked you to play again I’m

55:01

asking been going back to the same issue what is your point you have have a magazine out to educate people that in five years there will be action taking because you think it’s a five year cycle no no I said I think it’s five years before my magazine is very prolific okay I’m an environmentalist every my life give you the complete Florida put out the most important thank you want to put out I just really need anybody who would like to write for sustainable Aloha who would like to be a sponsor who would

55:34

like to talk to me about it further to get in touch with me and I would like you to like my Facebook page because that’s how I can get ahold of them the greatest number of people at this point in time we’re trying to compile an email list and so if you go on the website and look at the magazine like the Facebook page send me an email the more contacts I have the more likely I am able to get information out to people and I’m working on developing my you know my contact list thank you all for joining

56:07

us I’m here with Alana Kay you can find her at sustainable aloha dot solutions.com and you can see us next week thank you for joining us here today we are happy to have you although hi everyone [Music]