OrganicHawaii is honored and excited to be selected as part of the FoodTank and James Beard Foundation 3rd annual GOOD FOOD Org Guide featuring organizations creating a better food system across the United States! You can download the guide for FREE here.

Food Tank is a leading organization focused on building a global community for safe, healthy, nourished eaters. FoodTank spotlights environmentally, socially, and economically sustainable ways of alleviating hunger, obesity, and poverty and creates networks of people, organizations, and content to push for food system change. (Source: FoodTank.com)

The James Beard Foundation’s mission is to celebrate, nurture, and honor America’s diverse culinary heritage through programs that educate and inspire. A cookbook author and teacher, James Beard was a champion of American cuisine who helped educate and mentor generations of professional chefs and food enthusiasts. (Source: jamesbeard.org)

Anointed the “Dean of American cookery” by the New York Times in 1954, James Beard laid the groundwork for the food revolution that has put America at the forefront of global gastronomy. He was a pioneer foodie, host of the first food program on TV in 1946! (Source: jamesbeard.org)

We at OrganicHawaii firmly believe that the best kind of food is local, organic, non-gmo, and wholesome.

MAHALO for your support!!!!

Recently Hawaii became the first state in the US to pass legislation providing tax breaks for local farmers to offset the cost of getting certified organic! This bill would allocate up to $50,000 to each qualifying farm operation to cover such expenses as organic certification costs and equipment, for example.

Hawaii governor David Ige hasn’t yet decided whether he will sign it into law. You can take action and tell governor David Ige why it’s a great idea to have more organic farms in Hawaii, so he can sign this bill into law!

Here are some good reasons to support this cause, which would create: #1. more availability of certified organic/healthy food! #2. cheaper/sustained prices on organic (more supply = price goes down) #3. better for the environment and health!! These 3 reasons alone are a huge incentive to sign this legislation into law!

TAKE ACTION! Submit your comments to Gov. David Ige by June 27 deadline IN SUPPORT of “HB1689” HERE!

Mahalo to Hawaii representative Chris Lee, Hawaii Center for Food Safety and all those who support these positive changes!

Updates on this measure are published here

Aloha Aina Unity March took place in Waikiki, Honolulu, Hawaii on August 9, 2015. It was a Sunday morning event, with lots of people and groups gathering on Saratoga Avenue. The march started at about 10:30am and went through the entire Waikiki strip. Around 10,000 participated. Crowd turn out was so large that even though Kalakaua Avenue is nearly straight it was impossible to see the beginning or the end of the Aloha Aina Unity March.

It was also interesting to witness an event of this social magnitude and size against the backdrop of the worlds top luxury brands’ flagship retail stores such as Prada, Chanel, Gucci, Tiffany & Co, Louis Vuitton, Swarovski, etc. situated on the world’s third most expensive real estate leases – on Kalakaua Avenue ($300/sf/mo).

Some of the main reasons for the 2015 Aloha Aina Unity March event were: protecting Mauna Kea (the most sacred place in Hawaii and Polynesia) from the largest telescope in the world, social and civil justice (policy brutality sweeping the U.S., U.S. federal government overturning local laws), sustainability, protection against GMO pollution and pesticide drift, as well as upholding local laws against GMOs, TMT development, sovereignty, environmental preservation, and against over-militarization in Hawaii, Japan, and elsewhere.

Lots of people brought their families including little kids, newborns, and the elderly. Kids were helping out and passing out information flyers about the event. Many children made their own signs in the form of original artwork and writing. They marched alongside their parents many in the front lines of the parade sections, while others were inside the group with their families. Most kids walked while others were carried by their parents, were in a stroller or a cart.

The whole of Waikiki strip alongside Kalakaua Avenue was teeming with Honolulu police who were riding bicycles up and down the street and regulating the one lane of traffic that was open. Traffic was a nightmare for those unfortunate travelers who didn’t get to be on foot during, before, and after the parade.

Photo use terms: OK to use for personal and non-commercial purposes. News, blogs, and website use is OK with proper image credit in the title or image description: Photo: Pasha Yushin | OrganicHawaii.org

Photo Gallery 1: “BEST OF!”

Photo Gallery 2: “Rest of..(ALL 523 photos!)

On September 5, 2014 concerned Honolulu community leaders met with Kapiolani park officials for the second time to try to persuade them to stop spraying highly toxic glyphosate containing herbicide chemicals such as Monsanto’s RoundUp and Honcho in Kapiolani park, Hawaii’s largest and oldest public park.

The meeting started at 3pm and took place at the beautiful Paki Hale where Honolulu community leaders spoke out against the use of harmful herbicides in Kapiolani Park. Some of their valuable and informative testimonies were recorded and are available in the videos throughout this article.

Paki Hale at Kapiolani Park | Organic Hawaii

Among them were doctors, journalists, farmers, gardeners, concerned park users, environmentalists, artists, musicians, and even the director of the Diamond Head Community Garden Association.

She correctly pointed out the fact that it’s illegal to use these and any other harmful non-organic chemicals in all Honolulu Community Garden locations and that Kapiolani park should be no exception. Especially due to the fact that Kapiolani Park is right next to the Diamond Head Community Garden and both the park and the garden are under the management of the City and County of Honolulu Department of Parks and Recreation.

Supporting the ban on harmful chemicals in Kapiolani Park is a no-brainer decision to a health conscious, moral person. Ultimately, we must pass ordinances and laws that would ban the use of toxic chemicals in all Hawaii public parks across all islands. 

 ACTION ALERT: “STOP POISONING KAPIOLANI PARK!” 

Similar actions, ordinances, and laws have already been passed in other U.S. mainland states such as California, Oregon, and Washington where the use of these toxic herbicide chemicals is prohibited in public parks to protect public health as early as 2001 in Seattle, Washington!

Doesn’t Hawaii and it’s people deserve at least the same kind of protection from controversial and infamous chemicals that have been linked to birth defects, autism, cancer, DNA and cell damage, neurodegenerative conditions like Parkinson’s, etc.?

We hope that Kapiolani park officials, the heads of City and County of Honolulu Department of Parks and Recreation and the Department of Urban Forestry, as well as Hawaii’s political leaders agree that the people of Hawaii deserve to enjoy chemical-free public parks today!

Save Kapiolani Park

Kapiolani Park is the oldest and the largest public park in Hawaii. It’s enjoyed by hundreds of thousands of people each year both locals and tourists alike for family recreation, sports, picnics, community events, and much more. The 300-acre (1.2 km²) Kapiolani park is a gorgeous public park right next to the busy touristy Waikiki district on the island of Oahu. It’s home to the Honolulu Zoo, the Waikiki Shell performance arena, and it’s adjacent to some of the most popular beaches in Hawaii.

Kapiolani Park sign posted: “Field Closed, No Practice, No Games” Honolulu, Oahu, Hawaii. September 2014

Recently it was discovered that highly toxic broad-spectrum Glyphosate containing herbicides such as RoundUp and Honcho are being sprayed in Kapiolani park on a regular basis. Glyphosate was originally developed by Monsanto. After many independent studies Glyphosate has been been linked to a multitude of severe health conditions, such as: cancer, autism, DNA damage, cell damage, liver damage, and more. It’s highly toxic even in small doses when diluted to 450 times lower than what is used in agricultural applications.

These chemicals are not only toxic to humans and plants, but everything else living including: soil micro organisms, insects including pollinators such as bees and butterflies, earthworms, birds, pets, and aquatic sea life.

During application glyphosate spreads by air and wind, lurks on top of surfaces such as grass, soil, picnic tables, etc. and leaches down through the soil eventually reaching the nearby ocean. It creates invisible (to the human eye) pollution of the soil that we walk on, the air that our children breathe, and the ocean that so many enjoy.

So far there have been two community meetings with the purpose of having park officials stop spraying toxic poison in Kapiolani Park. As of now the City and County of Honolulu Department of Parks and Recreation and Urban Forestry Division is reluctant to stop spraying these highly toxic products in public places despite multiple expert and community testimonies.

Honolulu Park officials are saying that since the government has no legal restriction (laws) against the use of glyphosate and other highly toxic chemicals in Kapiolani park and other public places of Hawaii, therefore, it’s ok for them to keep on using them, despite the abundance of independent studies showing high toxicity of these infamous products and despite other Public Parks in mainland U.S. states having banned their use and passed laws to protect their communities.

Right now we need to create a social mass awareness about the poisoning of Kapiolani Park that’s going on since most Hawaii residents and tourists alike are completely unaware of glyphosate use in Hawaii public parks. We need to tell our families, our neighbors, coworkers, and friends about this situation to create mass awareness, which would create social change.

Take Action! If you’re NOT OK with Honolulu park officials spraying toxic chemicals in Kapiolani park and other Hawaii public parks you need to email, call, send fax, or write a letter to:

Department of Parks and Recreation
Michele K. Nekota, Director
Jeanne C. Ishikawa, Deputy Director

1000 Uluohia Street, Suite 309
Kapolei, Hawaii 96707
Phone:(808) 768-3003
Fax: (808) 768-3053
Email: parks@honolulu.gov

You can also contact your local political and community leaders and ask them to support banning the use of toxic chemicals in Hawaii public places including public parks such as Kapiolani. Also, come to the 3rd Meeting (to be announced) to voice your support for chemical free parks in Hawaii.

You don’t have to write or say a lot if you don’t want to. For example (you can even copy/paste/adapt the text below):

Sample letter A

Aloha (name of person you’re contacting),

I’m not OK with Honolulu Public Park officials using toxic chemicals in Kapiolani Park and other public places. Please stop immediately. These chemicals are toxic to the Hawaiian ecosystem and have been scientifically linked to many severe health problems in humans.

Mahalo,

(your name)

Sample letter B

Aloha Dear Michele K. Nekota and Jeanne C. Ishikawa,

Please, take necessary steps ASAP to stop using glyphosate and any other harmful highly toxic products such as Monsanto’s RoundUp and Honcho in public parks. These chemicals put the people of Hawaii health at risk and pollute the environment. These are very toxic chemicals and we the people of Hawaii demand ban on their use. There have already been two meetings on this issue at Kapiolani Park. There’s overwhelming evidence that these chemicals damage DNA, reproductive damage, cause cancer, autism, and the list goes on. They are highly toxic. If you really care about people’s health and the Aina, then please take action immediately to address this major issue.

Sincerely,

(optional: who you are: examaple: Waikiki resident, Hawaii parks user, community gardener, attorney, doctor, police officer, engineer, etc.)

(your name)

Mahatma Gandhi and International Day of Nonviolence

GIIP invites you to celebrate the 145th birthday and Hawaii’s 9th Annual Celebration, of one of the world’s great leaders, Mahatma Gandhi. As a pioneer of Satyagraha, or resistance through vast non-violent civil disobedience, he became one of the most important political and spiritual leaders of his time. The event includes an interfaith discussion for world peace, multicultural dances, and music by the Royal Hawaiian Band.

WHEN: Wednesday, October 2nd, 2014 ~ 5:00 PM – 6:30 PM

WHERE: Outside the Honolulu Zoo in front of the Gandhi Statue

(Located between Diamond Head and Waikiki at the corner of Kapahulu Ave and Kalakaua Ave. The Zoo parking lot entrance is on Kapahulu Ave and is metered parking. The Waikiki Shell parking lot across the screet on Monsarrat Ave has free parking.)

For any questions, contact Raj Kumar, Ph.D., President at: cosmicyoga@yahoo.com

Note:

We suggest participants wear white comfortable attire during this event. Also, please bring sitting mats or chairs.

Volunteers and donations appreciated.

source: http://www.gandhianpeace.com/