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Jason Schwartz, Executive Director of the DreamMakers Foundation, Maui Arts & Music Association (MAMA & PAPA) People Aligned in Positive Action speaks January 12, 2012 at Rotary Club of Kahului at University of Hawaii Maui Campus.
Summary & Transcript Below…
[00:13 → 02:24] Introduction and Background
The speaker begins by engaging the audience with a friendly greeting and a light-hearted question about how many people know him. He shares a brief personal history, highlighting his political involvement nearly 20 years ago as the Green Party candidate for mayor and council in Maui. Over two decades, he has maintained a public presence through television appearances and interviews, often with politicians. He reflects on the skepticism he once faced, including a comment suggesting politicians must compromise their integrity to be re-elected. The speaker then introduces the central theme of his talk: a blend of new and old ideas focused on community action and sustainability. In 1991, he founded the Maui Arts and Music Association (MAMA), also known as the Dream Makers Foundation. The foundation’s mission has been to promote arts, music, culture, environmental education, and renewable energy initiatives on Maui. He likens the last 20 years of effort to pulling back the string of a bow, preparing for a decisive shot, implying that the moment for action is imminent.
- [02:24 → 04:03] Building Momentum Toward Renewable Energy and Collective Action
The speaker recounts a recent conversation with a former political leader who now acknowledges the importance of renewable energy—a validation of his long-standing advocacy. He emphasizes the need for “2020 vision” in 2012, a metaphor for clear insight and focused action. Although many people are aware of solar panels, wind, and geothermal energy, there is a disconnect in active engagement. The speaker points out that when he first promoted these ideas, he was seen as radical or ahead of his time, but now these ideas are more mainstream. He advocates for collaboration across political lines, combining the best ideas from Democrats, Republicans, and Independents to foster community self-sustainability. The concept of shared responsibility is key: individual contributions, when combined, can create significant positive change. - [04:03 → 06:32] Dream Makers Foundation: Vision, Membership, and Impact
The speaker elaborates on the Dream Makers Foundation’s work in supporting visual and healing arts, music, culture, and environmental solutions. He admits that despite two decades of activity, they never actively sought members until now. Membership is now free via their website dreammaui.org, which also distributes a newsletter. He calls on the audience to join the movement, underscoring that their power lies in collective involvement. The foundation’s funding model relies on sponsors who want to reach engaged audiences. The speaker stresses the importance of a shared, inclusive vision and awareness that “there is enough”—enough resources, ideas, and potential to effect change. He references spiritual teacher Ram Dass’s philosophy of “Be Here Now,” emphasizing the present moment as the opportunity for transformation. The foundation is about empowering people to realize their agency and work together on positive initiatives. 
The Dream Makers Foundation consists of two main components: MAMA (Maui Arts and Music Association) and PAPA (People Aligned in Positive Action). The latter focuses on mobilizing people toward constructive endeavors. The speaker imagines leveraging profits from major concerts or cultural events to fund innovative sustainable technologies that are not yet cost-effective due to lack of scale. He gives examples, such as thermoacoustic cooling powered by solar heat, which could reduce utility costs and preserve agricultural products without building new power plants. The speaker stresses that many advanced technologies originated in space programs, where cost was no object, and suggests that similar investments on Maui could drive breakthroughs. The foundation aims to blend enjoyment of art and music with practical support for environmental innovation, making Maui a model for self-sustainability and global example.
The speaker calls for a renewed sense of empowerment among residents, reminding them that elected officials serve the people. While acknowledging that some leaders have original ideas and good intentions, he stresses the need for public engagement to guide policies and actions. He invites the audience to embrace the Dream Makers Foundation as a vehicle for collective positive action and community vision. The new logo and website symbolize a fresh start but the foundation’s strength lies in active membership and participation. The speaker highlights the importance of collaboration and legacy, encouraging individuals to contribute to a sustainable future that preserves Maui’s natural beauty and resources for their children and grandchildren.- [12:05 → 16:28] Call to Action and Legacy Building
The speaker encourages the audience to visit dreammaui.org, sign up for newsletters, and become members at no cost. He highlights the potential for widespread involvement, including sponsors and viewers who can support events and initiatives. The foundation’s approach combines old and new ideas, advocating not for wholesale rejection of past practices but for integrating wisdom with innovation to address current challenges. The speaker stresses the urgency of the moment, calling 2012 a pivotal year to respond and act. He reflects on his long career in solar energy since 1983, emphasizing the persistence needed to build momentum. Legacy building—preserving green spaces, resources, and quality of life—is a central motivation. The speaker closes this section by reaffirming the foundation’s role in aligning people, softening the ground for new ideas to flourish, and preparing to “let go” of the bowstring, symbolizing imminent action. -
Rotary Club presents community initiatives at the Maui Neutral Zone.
[16:28 → 22:06] Website and Media Presence: Connecting Through Art and Information
The speaker describes the foundation’s developing website, which features interviews, videos, and cultural content aimed at educating and inspiring the community. He shares his excitement about the website’s design, including a new logo symbolizing the island’s environment—above and below the ocean—with a rainbow motif. He acknowledges local artist Chris Lassen, whose artwork forms part of the branding, emphasizing the integration of art and environmental consciousness. The website also hosts hundreds of interviews with a wide range of individuals, including politicians, offering transparency and a historical record of Maui’s political and environmental discourse. The speaker encourages attendees to explore these resources and stay informed, underscoring that politicians require public support to fulfill promises and address community needs. He humorously notes that everyday issues like potholes reflect larger life challenges, reinforcing the foundation’s focus on practical, local impact. - [22:06 → 23:28] Dream Makers’ Role: Facilitators of Positive Action
In response to a question, the speaker clarifies that the Dream Makers Foundation does not act as a direct implementer but as a facilitator and coordinator, aligning individuals and groups to take positive action. He cites his extensive experience producing hundreds of television shows that brought diverse ideas and people to public attention. The foundation’s mission is to create connections among those interested in arts, culture, environmental solutions, and sustainability. After 20 years of groundwork—likened again to pulling back the bowstring—it is time to release the arrow and move decisively toward collective goals. The speaker’s message concludes with an invitation to become involved and make a difference together. - [23:28 → 23:55] Closing Remarks
The speaker thanks the audience warmly and opens the floor for questions, signaling his readiness to engage further and deepen the conversation about the foundation’s work and vision.
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- Summary
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The speaker delivers a passionate, comprehensive presentation about the Dream Makers Foundation and its 20-year journey toward fostering art, music, culture, and sustainable environmental solutions on Maui. He reflects on his political and environmental activism, emphasizing persistence and the power of collective action. The foundation combines creative expression with technological innovation to promote self-sustainability and community empowerment. The call to action is clear: join the movement by becoming members through dreammaui.org, engage in positive civic participation, and help realize a shared vision that honors the past while embracing new ideas. The speaker’s message is one of hope, urgency, and inclusive collaboration, urging Maui residents to recognize their agency in shaping a sustainable and vibrant future.
00:13
Aloha! Thank you for having me here with you today. Can I ask just a quick question? This may sound like a funny question. How many of you know me? Let me have a raise of a few hands. Okay, a few of you know me. Well, just to give you a reference point, that’s why I carry my American Express card. Actually, it’s a Starbucks card, but point… 20 years ago,
00:44
Almost 20 years ago, 1994, I ran for mayor. I was the Green Party candidate for mayor of Maui. And I ran for council. And for the last 20 years, you’ve been seeing me on television speaking and interviewing all kinds of people, but including politicians. And you know…
01:04
I think when you said he’s an honest guy, he’s been interviewing politicians. Someone once told me, I’ll elect you once, but I’m not going to elect you twice. Because to get there a second time, you took money from somebody. It’s an interesting comment. Anyway, I just thought it’s interesting. I look around the room and I must tell you, I see a lot of faces that I’ve seen 20 years older.
01:27
and ten years older, and five years older, and thirty years older, but I’m here today to talk to you about something new and old at the same time. In 1991, I started an organization called MAMA, Maui Arts and Music Association. We also got known as the Dream Makers Foundation, and the whole idea is this.
01:56
A dream is just a dream unless you take action. Be a dream maker. And here on Maui, we promoted art and music. We did live shows and had bands and groups and have lots of visions for renewable energy and environmental solutions and raising money and all kinds of grand things. And over these 20 years, most of my work has been done in the… You know when you pull…
02:24
You pull the string back on a bow and arrow. Most of the work is pulling back that string, getting ready for that shot. Someone said to me the other day, this is 2012. You’ve been doing that 20 years. We’ve been pulling that string back to shoot our arrow for 20 years. And over that 20 years, more and more people, in fact,
02:49
someone who used to be the head of council, the head of the gang of five that seemed to have a rubber stamp on development and blah, blah, blah. He was never my enemy, but he came up to me, first he had to remember who I was, because just like all of us, he’s getting older. But he said to me, you know something, Jason, you were right about renewable energy. Now you look at renewable energy on HECO’s page, their executive vice president is talking about how renewable energy is the only way.
03:17
What does 20 years do to make us get clearer vision? We need 2020 vision here in 2012. We have a lot of things that we’ve been watching and seeing, and we better get our scopes a little bit clearer. I think many of us have heard so many times about what’s been happening, but
03:38
Getting involved, we’re too busy with our businesses. We may be too busy with our families. In many ways, we’re busy. But you know what? Now, if I were to ask you about what’s a solar panel, does solar make sense, or you think we should be doing something with wind or geothermal, you probably think, well, why would he be asking that? Everybody thinks about it. That’s nothing new.
04:03
Well, when I was standing up and starting this idea of Dream Makers Foundation and Maui Arts and Music Association, I was considered a little ahead of my time. I was the Green Party, and I was thought of, I think, in many ways as a radical. People have come to understand that I actually was sort of
04:22
not really a radical, I was middle of the road. I just took a lot of good ideas and took the best of the Democrats and the Republicans and the Independents and I said, why don’t we try to do things together? And if we don’t create any divisions and we work together, we work our dreams together, I can’t do it all. But if you can do this and you can do that and you can do this,
04:47
We can do more. We can do better. We can be self-sustained as individuals and as a community. So I had a website. My website is Dream Maui. Those are words we know. Dream Maui was .com. Dream Maui .com. Well, we talked about
05:10
promoting visual art and healing art and music and culture and educating people about environmental solutions so we might be a self-sustainability model and blah, blah, blah. And then I ran for election and shared my ideas and a lot of people say to me now, when are you running again? The fact is, I’m not running again. I accept I’m running for one new thing and that is, after 20 years of being in existence, I’ve never looked or asked for any members. Well, now membership is…
05:38
Free. If you go to my website, you will see Dream Maui. Those are the two words we remember again. Dream and Maui.org. We’ve been a 501c3 for 20 years. And we want you to get a newsletter and be a member because the people and how we get our money and how we will be getting what we do is from sponsors who say…
06:04
We are the 99%, all of us, who want to change the world. We, the sponsors, want to see eyeballs. So I want all of you to remember dreammaui.org and go there and get a newsletter. And there will be other opportunities for you now and later to give. And there will be other sponsorship opportunities leveraged. But you know what we need first? We need to understand and have a common vision that we have all the answers.
06:32
that there is enough. It just so happens this last Sunday I spent a little time with a guy that in 1960 everyone would have thought, oh my God, Ram Dass. Ram Dass wrote a book called Be Here Now. We all know that. Maybe some of us. Some of us are old enough in this room. A few of you guys are old enough to remember that.
06:56
Some of you who are watching, whether on the camera, thank you for letting me sit up, or here in the room, Ram Dass wrote a book called Be Here Now, and his point was probably that this is the moment of power. This is when we can affect change. In times like we’re in, the most important thing we can do is be aware that we have the power to make a difference. We ask our leaders for help,
07:25
And they’re overwhelmed with what we have all done in our route to here. And, you know, cause and effect is a very funny thing. We’re here because of what we’ve done and how we’ve done it. So my organization, Dream Makers Foundation, Mama and Papa, those are components of the Dream Makers Foundation. Mama is Maui Arts and Music Association, promoting art, music, culture, educating people about environmental solutions. And Papa
07:57
Papa? People aligned in positive action. People aligned in positive action. So, for example, we can have a show and there could be, I’m just gonna use some names you know, Elton John, Stephen Perry and Aerosmith. For some of you younger viewers, let’s see, who do we wanna pick? Christina Aguilera or Beyonce? What if we took some of the money and the profit? That’s what we’re gonna be sharing with you and you’ll see.
08:26
And we put that money to supplement development and proving that technologies that we know would be great in creating self-sustainability, but they’re not cost-effective because we can’t prove they’re true. We don’t have enough orders en masse to make the per-unit cost lower, but what would happen if we used thermoacoustics and were able to use the sun and heat a gas through the sun and create cooling?
08:51
and avoid having to build a power plant because we just lowered utility bills. We could keep crops fresher in the fields so that the farmer had a solution so things wouldn’t die. These technologies need to be proven before we can bring them into our world. A lot of the things in our world were very un-cost effective. Where do we see them? In space.
09:15
Where did solar get its start? Where did photovoltaic get its start? How do we know about all these different technologies? Money was no object. We needed to get a monkey and a man out in space. And I say, yes. But what if we could have and enjoy our art, enjoy our music, and take some of those monies, improve these technology work, be in partner with people, and bring things to our marketplace to create self-sustainability and be an example to the world?
09:44
And what if we lived on Maui to do it? You guys were already there. You live on Maui. You got the first part down. What I want to do is I want to reawaken you to the fact that we are in charge. The mayor, the governor, the who, the what. They serve us. And the only way that they can know what we need, some of them have original ideas. I don’t want to discount that possibility.
10:14
But a lot of them are there that want to serve, whether they’re Democrat, Republican, whether they agree with me when I sit down with them and do an interview or talk to them or not. If they’re open and available to be able to change and do, that’s who I want to see working and running this country and place for me. And what I want to see in this room is people that say, yes, I want to go to Dream.
10:44
Maui.org. I was going to show you on this big screen, I’ll show you on a little computer, our new logo. You may remember our old logo, but our new logo is really snazzy. But you know what? This whole thing is about all of us. Papa, people aligned in positive action, because I can’t be Lila Berg. I’d like to be, but you know what? Through Lila Berg,
11:14
through Shireen Sakota, through people that are here that are vital. Some of you have working businesses, some of you aren’t, but you’re all breathing and alive, and you remember when the grass was green from here to there, and when there were open spaces. You remember when there seemed to be an abundance of everything. Jobs, I could go on.
11:36
Well, when you’ll go to our website, you’re going to see a developing website. It is pretty snazzy looking. I think you’ll say, wow, it looks like it’s done. But the thing that is really clear, and I want you to get, it’s only done as it includes you, every one of you as members, because nothing can happen unless we all wake up to the fact that we are empowered by what we do.
12:05
And when you have a moment and you can help somebody, consider it. Right now, you can make a difference in whatever that we’re doing. That’s my big message for the day. Go to dreammaui.org, get a newsletter. Now you’re a member. Not going to cost you anything. No one’s going to ask you for anything. But if I get more and more people, there’s someone here representing Ted. Do you know what Ted is?
12:31
You guys will go looking on the web and you’ll know where Ted is. We have a conference coming up that’s going to be bringing really important and powerful speakers to share with you ideas. And they all expect you to be dream makers. Be involved with them to make dreams come true. I’m talking after a while, I think, boy, you sound like a politician. Nah, I don’t think I want the job. What I want to do is not have to have someone elect me. Where I speak my mind…
13:01
Free and clear and open. And you know what? It’s really funny when people ask me when I’m next running. But it isn’t running that I want. I’m running to get your vote to become members of Dream Makers Foundation. Mama and Papa. People aligned in positive action. People like you. People with the vision through experience. To see what happens when you go left instead of right.
13:31
People that realize that I’m still breathing. Hey, I can still make a difference. I want to leave something of this world to my children and grandchildren. Now, I don’t know what the little blurb, someone said to me yesterday, hey, I saw your blurb in the paper. It says you’re going to be talking about the development of a television and music production facility on Maui. That’s right. They tell you you’re going to be doing all kinds of things. You know what?
14:02
That’s why I want you to plug into dreammaui.org because I want you to realize I’ve been seasoning these ideas and moving them forward for more than 20 years. I came to Maui having been in the solar business since 1983. Probably most of you weren’t born. A few of you weren’t born. 1983. 1983 in the solar business?
14:31
Here we are, umpteen years later. I didn’t have any silver. Nowhere. I had all my hair. I was probably 30 pounds less. I can still do some bench pressing, so don’t challenge. Um, but you know, the thing that I think we all feel and know is we want to leave a legacy. And that means, see if we can leave some green grass. Some open space. Whether we can not
15:00
run through our resources because we all together can find solutions for everything. We can cure hunger right now. We can do so many things right now. And that’s why I’m here. And I can talk about specifics and I’ll be happy to take questions. I was going to show you my big logo and I’m going to open up my computer in a minute and leave it up, but it’s a pretty snazzy logo.
15:30
And you know what? The people that were putting together the website said to me, we want to be involved. And then when I put the little video on the front page, I thought I’d just put a little something up and see. And my associate, Fawn, said to me, it’s like it re-motivated me again. I really feel like I want to get involved. You are involved, dear. But I say that to you. I want all of you to realize
16:00
that I come here for you, as you. It’s really a pleasure to speak to a group of Rotarians. I know many of you have seasoned businesses and some of you are in retirement. And without doing anything except going to dreammaui.org, I know I’m redundant. If you don’t have a computer, tell someone to get you there and put you on the mailing list. Because what would happen if millions and millions of people
16:28
create sponsors that will let us do shows. And these shows can happen and people can now go to shows and contribute in different ways and enjoy the things they enjoy now. But resources create solutions. We didn’t need to create more money or printing. I don’t need to be political. I just need to use, I like to say, let’s not throw the baby out with the bathwater.
16:54
There’s not the old ideas and the new ideas. There’s the old and wise ideas that incorporate with new ideas to create new solutions that are right now. Right now. This is not a time to not respond. This is not a time to not act. We’re in 2012. I remember in 1984 when I said,
17:23
I remember before 1984, there was this book called 1984. And I thought, my goodness, that’s so far on the future. You guys remember that book? And then we’ve seen all kinds of other books and all kinds of other people. You know, the 20 years ago, I was on the Integrated Resource Planning Advisory Board as the only person that wasn’t one of the utility companies or government people planning the 20-year energy future of our island. And I’m like, what was I talking about?
17:52
Same things I talk about now. Except now, now I have a lot of people just like you, and just like you, who say, you were right. But there’s hope, because we have now. Be here now. Be part of helping create a foundation for the future. Dream makers. Dreams plus action. A dream maker.
18:22
Thank you for having me. I can go on. I just realized no matter how much time I have, I’ll probably fill it. So let me thank you and let’s look for some questions and answers. Thank you. What kind of questions might anyone have? Well, um…
18:45
Believe it or not, I called yesterday, and I was told there was a very big screen TV, and I just plugged my computer right in. But you know what? They were talking about that room downstairs. I guess they expected I was going to be talking to 300 people, and they didn’t realize. So I have on my computer, and I’ll show you that here in a second. Okay, here we go.
19:12
Oh, that wasn’t good. Now, I’m going to put it here. Everything I’m going to show you here quickly is all at dreammaui.org. Can anyone see that? Maybe we’ll put it up here. Can everyone see that logo? What you see there is above the ocean, below the ocean, a rainbow.
19:41
There’s actually a Maui tiger. I saw it recently and I thought, boy, this guy didn’t really get it. We’re in Maui, we don’t have tigers in Maui. But there’s a tiger. I need my glasses. There’s the logo, rounded now it says Maui Arts and Music Association.
20:11
And I’ll show you another one. You go up to the website, you’ll see. People aligned in positive action. That’s what you’ll see. And for years, there’s an artist that many of us know here. Everyone know who Chris Lassen is? Probably do. Chris Lassen had galleries on Front Street and sold millions of dollars of art. And he let us use one of his pieces behind our logo.
20:40
And it showed the world above and the world below our oceans. We talked about promoting art, music, and culture, and educating people about environmental solutions so we might create a self-sustainability model and be people aligned in positive action using art and music, an association of art and music. Mama! I may go round and round, but I guess you can hear. When you go to the website, you’re going to get an introduction. I had a video to show you, and
21:10
I am sorry that I don’t get a chance to share it with you, but it’s really right there on the front page, and I hope that, at the very least, you’ll become dream makers, and the more people that we get here, the more we’re going to find that our sponsors will understand they’ve got viewers. And the more, we’ve got hundreds of our TV shows up there too, so you can check out what Alan Arakawa told you in 2002.
21:36
and see if he’s doing what he said he was. I say that in a nice way because, hi Alan, politicians are only as good as you support them to help you. And part of it is they need to know what you need. They need to understand what holes need to be filled. Is that a pothole? That’s called your life. Okay, I get it. But there are lots of things that I hear myself going on and on.
22:06
Any other questions? Shireen? Shireen just asked, what kind of dreams am I doing with my dream maker? Well, half of you, if you live on Maui and you live on the wet side, for a while you didn’t get cable television. So you might not have seen I did hundreds of television shows.
22:31
And I was bringing ideas and people of all kinds of walks of life to your attention. I want to say like Ted does now, but let’s say that there was no Ted. Let’s say there was no American Idol. I’ve been talking about this stuff long enough that my beard started to grow. We’ve been doing interviews. We’ve got five, six hundred interviews with all kinds of people about all kinds of subjects. And we explore many things.
22:59
My role as Dream Makers Foundation isn’t to be the doer. I’m there to align. People aligned in positive action. Showing someone we can promote art and music and culture and do this and this and this and work together. That is my work. So for 20 years my work has been softening the ground so we could plant some seeds so they could grow.
23:28
That’s what I’ve been doing. And that’s why I say it’s like pulling back the string on a bow, getting ready to let go. Here in 2012, our 2020 vision says it’s time to let go. Be involved. Thank you. Thank you.
