Photography by David Croxford In April, the state Public Utilities Commission ordered Hawaiian Electric’s utilities on Oahu, Maui and Hawaii Island to take action in four ways: “aggressively pursue energy-cost reductions, proactively respond to emerging renewable-energy-integration challenges, improve the…
Hawaiian and English are both official languages of Hawaii, but most government services are available just in English. We tried to find out what it would cost for the state to provide most of its services in both languages. Hawaiian…
GMO has been a divisive issue on the Neighbor Islands. Is there a further role for GMO agriculture on Oahu? I want to preserve as much of our agricultural land as possible outside the urban growth boundary, and I want…
As Abercrombie heads into an election year, Hawaii Business met with him and Young to ask how their policies affected local businesses and about their plans for the future. In our December 2013 BOSS Survey, we asked business leaders if your policies helped…
A lot of changes are happening at the Chamber of Commerce of Hawaii, but the most important is probably the chamber’s proactive approach to its legislative agenda. This year, for the first time, the Chamber is drafting its own package of…
Imagine a retail business in which one key measure of sales growth was up 42.2 percent last year, with similar growth this year. You’d be on Easy Street, right? Except this same business is plagued by a perennial problem: Customers…
The sun and wind create clean, local energy for Hawaii, but they’re intermittent. They come and go on a schedule that doesn’t follow the Islands’ demand for…
Are sweeping changes in Department of Education’s leadership enough to fix Hawaii’s schools? New three-part strategy emphasizes student achievement first, followed by improved support and IT systems, and better training/accountability/HR. Don Horner, chair of the two-year-old, appointed Board of Education,…
For decades, "too difficult" has been the refrain in the development community. Developers believe Hawaii’s land-use laws are too complicated, environmental regulations too onerous, and deference to Native Hawaiian gathering and access…
You are reading this magazine because you think my staff and I have worthwhile things to report. Thank you for your support and trust. The main way we do our job is simple: We listen to lots of people, read…
Sonny Bhagowalia has a plan to fix the state’s archaic IT system in June 2011, Bhagowalia became the state of Hawaii’s first chief information officer and the point man in Gov. Neil Abercrombie’s ambitious plan to “reinvent government.” Bhagowalia and…
The Pentagon is investing billions in alternative energy and conservation, and that’s good news for local companies it’s good news for hawaii’s economy and local aspirations when the state’s goals align with the American military’s goals. That’s because the U.S.…
During his first term, Barack Obama invited historians to the White House so he could learn about Abraham Lincoln, Teddy Roosevelt and other American presidents. History teaches us valuable lessons and Obama looked for guidance from some of America’s greatest…
Hawaii shoppers and businesses have long taken advantage of “tax-free” purchases from online retailers such as Amazon and eBay, but many legislators are trying to put an end to that free ride. As cash-strapped governments hunt for more revenue, and…
This Sept. 11 marks the 11th anniversary of the 2001 terrorist attacks and the 20th anniversary of the day Hurricane Iniki struck Kauai and Oahu’s Waianae Coast. The solemn occasion is a fitting opportunity to publish this photo essay on the men…
Patrick Novak, CEO of The French Gourmet, a Hawaii company that specialized in artisan frozen pastry dough, reflected on the issues that killed his once-thriving business and kept coming back to the Jones Act. The company was featured in the…
Ten years after retiring as governor, Cayetano has been drawn back to the campaign trail by his opposition to Honolulu’s rail project. He talks about rail, why it’s a bad idea and what he would do instead to help commuters.…
The former secretary of transportation of Massachusetts and general manager of the Massachusetts Bay Transit Authority talks about the prospects for Honolulu’s rail project. Coming from a well-established rail system like the one in Boston, did you have any surprises…
At first glance, Hawaii Fish Co. in Mokuleia doesn’t look like a hotbed of innovation. For more than 20 years, owner Ron Weidenbach has run a simple operation, raising tilapia in floating cages in the deep waters of an old…
“Past is prologue.” – William Shakespeare Darrell Hamamura punches his code into a keypad, pulls open the door to the vault and steps back into the past. As the land information systems manager for Kamehameha Schools, he tracks the endowment’s…
The annual session of the Hawaii state Legislature is when issues are debated, compromises are forged, new laws are created – and legislators ask for your money. An analysis by Hawaii Business magazineshows that during the 2011 state Legislature, 14 of the 25…
Problem: “Where did those shots come from?” Even on today’s high-tech battlefield, it’s often hard to tell. That’s why Honolulu-based Oceanit developed FLASH – Fast as Light Assessment of Snipers and Hostile Fire – which uses infrared sensors and high-speed processors.…
When political leaders and multinational CEOs arrive for the APEC Conference in November, Hawaii will have its big chance to show half of the world that we are more than just a pretty face. It's our best shot at proving Hawaii is…
10:38 A.M. Tuesday Peter Carlisle’s private office, Honolulu Hale Photography by Twain Newhart >> Honolulu Mayor Peter Carlisle gets most of his work done in his inner office, not the ceremonial office that you often see on TV. He…