Research Projects

PI-CASC supports research that generates actionable climate science within several key focus areas defined by regional stakeholder needs.

A large pond is surrounded by lush greenery

Science needs assessment to support management of loko i‘a resources

PI: Rosie Alegado, Assistant Professor, Hawai‘i Sea Grant College Program, UH Mānoa
Co-Is: Brenda Asuncion , Kuaʻaina Ulu ʻAuamo (KUA); Scott Laursen, UH Hilo; Katy Hintzen, Hawaiʻi Sea Grant College Program; Miwa Tamanaha, Kuaʻaina Ulu ʻAuamo (KUA)
Funded: FY2018

Man lays a small fish along a ruler, with more fish in a tray nearby.

E Hui Pū: a collaborative approach to understand climate change impacts on traditional Hawaiian ‘ōpelu…

PI: John Burns, Assistant Professor of Marine Science, UH Hilo
Co-Is: Tim Grabowski, Research Fish Biologist, Hawai‘i Cooperative Fishery Research Unit, USGS/Adjunct Professor of Marine Science, UH Hilo; Courtney Hurt, Consultant, Conservation International
Funded: FY2018

A student, grinning at the camera, sits in a small boat beached on a sandbar while she takes water samples from a bag

Coral reef CO2 variations at the Coastal Ocean Hawai‘i Acidification Network (COHAMN): Impact of basin scale oceanographic forcing

PI: Eric DeCarlo, Professor of Oceanography, UH Mānoa
Graduate Scholar: Lucie Knor, Department of Oceanography, UH Mānoa
Funded: FY2018

Aerial view of one section of beach and near offshore, with numbers superimposed showing depths along traverses perpendicular to the coastline

A next generation beach observing system for Hawai‘i

PI: Charles Fletcher, Professor of Earth Sciences, UH Mānoa
Graduate Scholar: Anna Mikkelson, Department of Earth Sciences, UH Mānoa
Funded: FY2018

A scrubby landscape in the foreground is backed by mist and a low, ground-hugging rainbow.

Identifying the risk of runoff and erosion in Hawaiʻi’s National Parks

PI: Lucas Fortini, Research Ecologist, USGS Pacific Islands Ecosystem Research Center
Co-I: Victoria Keener, Research Fellow, PacRISA, East-West Center, UH Mānoa
Funded: FY2018

A brown landscape is dotted with dead tree trunks.

Working with natural resource managers to co-produce drought analyses in Hawaiʻi

PI: Christian Giardina, Research Ecologist, Inst. of Pacific Islands Forestry, US Forest Service
Co-I: Abby Frazier, Research Fellow, East-West Center, UH Mānoa
Funded: FY2018

Green bushes dot a brown, scrubby landscape looking toward distant coastal clouds.

Effectiveness of high-elevation habitat restoration for increasing resiliency of the palila honeycreeper

PI: Pat Hart, Professor of Biology, UH Hilo
Undergraduate Scholar: Kahua Julian, Department of Agriculture, UH Hilo & Technician, Mauna Kea Forest Restoration Project
Funded: FY2018

Large horned mammals run across the field of view, backed by Hawaiian forest plants.

Managing non-native game mammals to reduce future conflicts with native plant conservation in Hawaiʻi

PI: Steve Hess, Research Wildlife Biologist, USGS Pacific Islands Ecosystem Research Center
Funded: FY2018

Close-up of many fresh green sprouts against dark soil

Impacts of climate changes on a native and an invasive Hawaiian plant using a newly developed Intelligent Plant growing System (IPS)

PI: Camilo Mora, Assoc. Professor of Geography, UH Mānoa
Graduate Scholar: Devon DeBevoise, Department of Botany, UH Mānoa
Funded: FY2018

Student controls a drone that has lifted off from an orange landing spot in a scrubby landscape.

Developing geospatial models in Hawaiian watersheds to mitigate erosion and climate change

PI: Ryan Perroy, Assistant Professor of Geography and Environmental Studies (TCBES), UH Hilo
Graduate Scholar: Kimo Melcher, Tropical Conservation Biology & Environmental Science, UH Hilo
Co-I: Rebecca Ostertag, Professor of Biology (TCBES), UH Hilo
Funded: FY2018

Map of Waimea area with superimposed color illustrating flooded areas at 3.2 feet of sea level rise

Integrating climate science with local knowledge through community vulnerability assessment on Kaua‘i

PI: Daniele Spirandelli, Asst. Professor of Urban Design and Planning, UH Mānoa
Graduate Scholar: Alisha Summers, Department of Urban and Regional Planning, UH Mānoa
Funded: FY2018

A small historical hut backed by palms sits on a rocky headland with waves in the foreground.

Supporting sea-level rise preparedness in Hawaiian National Parks

PI: Philip Thompson, Assoc. Director of UH Sea Level center, UH Mānoa
Funded: FY2018

Narrow strips and circles of land rise barely above sea level.

Characterizing inundation risk for Majuro Atoll

PI: Dean Gesch, Research Scientist, USGS Earth Resources Observation and Science (EROS) Center
Co-I: Jeff Danielson , Physical Geographer, USGS Earth Resources Observation and Science (EROS) Center
Funded: FY2017

Wind-swept waves tumble towards a rocky shoreline.

Near-term climate projections to inform adaptation in the Hawaiian Islands

PI: Thomas Giambelluca, Professor of Geography, UH Mānoa
Graduate Scholar: Han Tseng, Department of Geography, UH Mānoa
Funded: FY2017

Kilo Lani: Reconstructing historical climate patterns in Hawai‘i using traditional knowledge and dendrology

PI: Rosie Alegado, Assistant Researcher, Oceanography/Sea Grant Program, UH Mānoa
Collaborators: Axel Timmermann, Professor of Oceanography, UH Mānoa/IPRC; Puakea Nogelmeier, Professor, Kawaihu‘elani Center for Hawaiian Language
Funded: FY2016