RCUH Outstanding Employees
Twenty-one exemplary RCUH employees were recognized at the 2024 RCUH Awards Luncheon for their exceptional contributions to the advancement of research, training, and development in Hawai‘i and beyond.
Outstanding Researcher/Project Manager
1st Place: Kristen Harmon
UH College of Tropical Agriculture and Human Resources
As a Spatial and Conservation Wildlife Planner for the Hawaii Wildlife Ecology Lab, Kristen led a collaborative effort to address knowledge gaps in efforts to transform the Hawaiian Islands from the extinction capital of the world, to the recovery capital of the world. She brought together nearly 100 taxonomic experts and land managers from state, federal, and private entities to develop a playbook of fully costed out actions to prevent extinction for 266 species over the next 20 years.
2nd Place: Ray Kahaunaele
UH Pacific Cooperative Studies Unit
Under Ray’s leadership, the rapid response team of the Kaua’i Invasive Species Committee (KISC) controlled 86 coqui frogs at six sites in 2023. His team also performed ongoing surveys covering more than 19,000 acres, as well as controlling 3,318 individual plants. Ray brings creativity in working with partners to implement new techniques in the field, whether it’s innovative protocols with the Hawaii Ant Lab or experimental testing to reduce the spread of rapid ‘ōhi’a death.
Honorable Mentions:
- Stanford J. Fichtman, Kapi’olani Community College
- Christine Tallamy Glazer, UH College of Tropical Agriculture and Human Resources
Outstanding Project Support Staff
1st Place: Miku Lenentine
Kapi’olani Community College
Miku helps lead the Center for Resilient Neighborhoods (CERENE) at Kapi’olani Community College, promoting the concept of “resilience hubs.” As the Kaimuki Grid Resilience Facilitator, Miku wears many hats to fulfill CERENE’s mission of supporting neighborhood resilience planning for the impacts of climate change. Whether it’s hosting seminars, engaging community members, or teaching mindfulness, Miku embodies CERENE’s tagline of “resilience from the inside out.”
2nd Place: Kealakekua Meyer
Kapi’olani Community College
Keala successfully transitioned the Hoa Ho ‘o Nā’auao program from a tutoring program into an internship program, sparking interest in the KCC program that recruits college students to serve as tutors for middle and high school students. The program focuses on providing early intervention so that impoverished students experience academic achievement and success. Keala also supported the Kūlia ma Kapi’olani program as its sole support staff.
Honorable Mentions:
- Sydney Carey, UH Mānoa College of Education
- Russell Sumitomo, Kapi’olani Community College
Outstanding Team
1st Place: UH Sea Level Center
Jason Klem, Jerard “Ziggy” Jardin, Jon Avery, Nikolai Turetsky
The UH Sea Level Center operates and maintains more than 90 sea-level and GPS monitoring stations that provide real-time observations from remote and under-resourced locations, such as Haiti, Kiribati, and Tanzania, that would otherwise not be available. They also helped modernize Hawai’i’s tsunami water-level monitoring network.
2nd Place: Mauna Kea Watershed Alliance
Dylan Moniz, Marco Castro
As a project under the UH Pacific Cooperative Studies Unit, the Mauna Kea Watershed Alliance covers more than 416,000 acres across Hawai’i Island. Dylan and Marco work to protect and enhance the watershed ecosystems, primarily on the eastern slope of Mauna Kea. They’ve completed numerous projects in the last year including outplanting 2,400 trees at the Kanakaleonui Bird Corridor.
Honorable Mentions:
- Cooperative Institute for Marine and Atmospheric Research – Emily Contreras, Nan Himmelsbach, Andrea Lee Schmidt
- Maunakea Shared Services – Douglas Astrande, Tracy Miyashiro, Travis Perez, Aaron Zimmer
Congratulations to all of the 2024 honorees!