RESEARCH PROJECTS
PI-CASC supports research that generates actionable climate science within several key focus areas defined by regional stakeholder needs.
Development of new technologies and techniques to advance wildlife monitoring and improve management of endangered Hawaiian bird species in a changing climate
PI: Patrick Hart, Professor of Biology, UH Hilo
Co-Is: Amanda Navine, TCBES, UH Hilo; Ann Tanimoto-Johnson, TCBES, UH Hilo; Bret Mossman, Hawaiʻi Island Avian Technician, DOFAW
Funded: FY2023
Co-Is: Amanda Navine, TCBES, UH Hilo; Ann Tanimoto-Johnson, TCBES, UH Hilo; Bret Mossman, Hawaiʻi Island Avian Technician, DOFAW
Funded: FY2023
Impacts of climate change on water quality and fish recruitment in Native Hawaiian fishponds
PI: Cherie Kauahi, Aquaculture Specialist, Hawaiʻi Sea Grant
Co-Is: Kamala Anthony, Co-founder, Hui Hoʻoleimaluō; Bradley Fox, Aquaculture Extension Specialist, Hawaiʻi Sea Grant; Darren Okimoto, Associate Director, Hawaiʻi Sea Grant; Anne Rosa, Marine Education Specialist, Hawaiʻi Sea Grant
Funded: FY2023
Co-Is: Kamala Anthony, Co-founder, Hui Hoʻoleimaluō; Bradley Fox, Aquaculture Extension Specialist, Hawaiʻi Sea Grant; Darren Okimoto, Associate Director, Hawaiʻi Sea Grant; Anne Rosa, Marine Education Specialist, Hawaiʻi Sea Grant
Funded: FY2023
Predicting and managing the future of Ongeim’l Tketau (Jellyfish Lake), Palau in a changing climate
PI: Romina King, Associate Professor of Geography, University of Guam
Co-PI: Sharon Patris, Research Biologist, Coral Reef research Foundation
Funded: FY2023
Co-PI: Sharon Patris, Research Biologist, Coral Reef research Foundation
Funded: FY2023
Lauhala: Weaving knowledge and practices with a climate resilient and culturally significant plant on Hawaiʻi Island
PI: Noa Kekuawa Lincoln, Associate Researcher, CTAHR, UH Mānoa
Co-Is: Udi Mandel Butler, Climate Action Program Manager, Hawaiʻi Climate Change Commission; Kū Kahakalau, Executive Director, Kū-A-Kanaka
Funded: FY2023
Co-Is: Udi Mandel Butler, Climate Action Program Manager, Hawaiʻi Climate Change Commission; Kū Kahakalau, Executive Director, Kū-A-Kanaka
Funded: FY2023
Climate smart restoration: Establishing baselines and developing adaptive management approaches
PI: Michala Phillips, Research Ecologist, USGS Pacific Island Ecosystem Research Center
Co-Is: Corie Yanger, Botanical Research Technician, USGS PIERC; Aurora Kagawa-Viviani, Asst. Professor of Geography, WRRC, UH Mānoa
Funded: FY2023
Co-Is: Corie Yanger, Botanical Research Technician, USGS PIERC; Aurora Kagawa-Viviani, Asst. Professor of Geography, WRRC, UH Mānoa
Funded: FY2023
2023 SURF Projects
Four students completed projects in climate adaptation science for the 2023 SURF program, investigating how forests vegetation shifts in response to climate change, the connection between climate and humpback whale health, whether added nutrients can improve coral thermal resilience, and sea-level rise impacts to community infrastructure.
Assessing the success and vulnerability of Hawaiian rare plant introductions to inform future stabilization efforts
PI: Tamara Ticktin, Professor of Botany, UH Mānoa
Co-Is: Clay Trauernicht, Associate Specialist, UH Mānoa; Tim Chambers, Center for Plant Conservation Officer, ANRPO; Lucas Fortini, Research Ecologist, PIERC, USGS; Julia Douglas, School of Life Sciences, UH Mānoa
Funded: FY2023
Co-Is: Clay Trauernicht, Associate Specialist, UH Mānoa; Tim Chambers, Center for Plant Conservation Officer, ANRPO; Lucas Fortini, Research Ecologist, PIERC, USGS; Julia Douglas, School of Life Sciences, UH Mānoa
Funded: FY2023
Enhancing social-ecological resilience through restoration of coastal agroforestry systems
PI: Leah Bremer, Assistant Specialist and Conservation Scientist, UH Mānoa
Co-PI: Tressa Hoppe, Botany Department, UH Mānoa
Funded: FY2022
Co-PI: Tressa Hoppe, Botany Department, UH Mānoa
Funded: FY2022
Unlocking reef resilience drivers to inform Pacific coral reef management
PI: Megan Donahue, Marine Researcher, HIMB, UH Mānoa
Co-PIs: Jessica Glazner, Dept of Marine Biology, UH Mānoa; Chad Wiggins, Palmyra Program Director, The Nature Conservancy
Funded: FY2022
Co-PIs: Jessica Glazner, Dept of Marine Biology, UH Mānoa; Chad Wiggins, Palmyra Program Director, The Nature Conservancy
Funded: FY2022
Applying a novel spatial prioritization technique to support climate-resilient conservation planning in Maui Nui
PI: Lucas Fortini, Research Ecologist, USGS Pacific Islands Ecosystem Research Center
Co-Is: Christina Leopold, Conservation Ecologist, Hawaiʻi Cooperative Studies Unit, UH Hilo; Scott Fretz, DOFAW Maui Branch Manager, Hawaiʻi DLNR
Funded: FY2022
Co-Is: Christina Leopold, Conservation Ecologist, Hawaiʻi Cooperative Studies Unit, UH Hilo; Scott Fretz, DOFAW Maui Branch Manager, Hawaiʻi DLNR
Funded: FY2022
Improving tools to monitor bird abundance and detect mosquito invasion in Hakalau Forest
PI: Patrick Hart, Professor of Biology, UH Hilo
Co-PIs: Josephine Tupu, TCBES, UH Hilo; Donna Ball, Deputy Refuge Manager, Hakalau Forest NWR
Funded: FY2022
Co-PIs: Josephine Tupu, TCBES, UH Hilo; Donna Ball, Deputy Refuge Manager, Hakalau Forest NWR
Funded: FY2022
Developing a climate-resilient restoration approach combining functional, climate, and geographic data
PI: Rebecca Ostertag, Professor of Biology, UH Hilo
Co-PIs: Konapiliahi Dancil, TCBES, UH Hilo; Jonathan Price Professor of Geography, UH Hilo
Funded: FY2022
Co-PIs: Konapiliahi Dancil, TCBES, UH Hilo; Jonathan Price Professor of Geography, UH Hilo
Funded: FY2022
Resource habitat mapping and diet characterization of native and non-native mullet species in Heʻeia Fishpond
PI: Shimi Rii, Research Coordinator, Heʻeia NERR/HIMB, UH Mānoa
Co-PI: Sheldon Rosa, Dept of Oceanography, UH Mānoa
Funded: FY2022
Co-PI: Sheldon Rosa, Dept of Oceanography, UH Mānoa
Funded: FY2022