Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 39, Number 8, 1 August 2022 — Z. Kaapana Aki [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

Z. Kaapana Aki

1 1 For the greater part of my life, I have dedicated service to the lāhui in many countless different ways, from grassroots organizing around key Hawaiian issues to advocating on behalf of Native Hawaiian interests before executive/administrative and legislative bodies at the loeal, state, and federal levels. I have served the lāhui in an ofScial capacity within the puhlie sector as a puhlie policy advocate at the Office of Hawaiian Affairs as well as an OHA trustee aide. I have also served the lāhui in the private sector as a puhlie policy manager for the Oouneil for Native Hawaiian Advancement. I am the founder and current board chair for Apoakea Native Hawaiian Innovation Institute, a nonprofit organization dedicated to advancing the lāhui, while

at the same time addressing so many of the systemic problems that we continue to face. To date, Apoakea has been funded to advance projects dedicated to workforce development and hnaneial empowerment of wāhine, Native Hawaiian-led food systems eeonomie development, and uplifting and elevating the socio-economic status of individuals on the autism spectrum. 2 1 As an OHA puhlie policy advocate, I took the initiative to address the deficit in Native Hawaiian-owned land by drafting a bill that would require a set-aside from every major real estate development project for the purpose of developing uses benefiting Native Hawaiians. Ihese set-asides were intended to be used to bolster Native Hawaiian cultural practices, develop Native Hawaiianbusiness/entrepreneurship/economy, space for education, and of course, housing. Ihe bill was submitted to the legislature as part of OHAs package, but was effectively killed in the House by the Hawaiian Affairs and Water and Land committees and in the Senate by the Commerce, Consumer Protection, and Heahh committee. 3 | Ihe essential function of a puhlie policy advocate is to advocate for or against issues concerning puhlie interest. Successfully navigating this theater to advance puhlie policy into rules/laws often requires convincing lawmakers, and more often than not for Native Hawaiian interests, whieh are not always held in favor by the general puhlie (or are not well-known), it may require galvanizing community and stakeholder support to evidence the need. Advocating for puhlie policy is all about working collaboratively with other professionals to establish policies. 4 | When it comes to the eeonomie stability of the lāhui, OHA ean and should eollahorate with anyone who will help the organization to achieve that endeavor. Imagine what OHA could achieve if it convened an annual summit with the purpose of developing an eeonomie strat-plan for Native Hawaiians - use some of the most brilliant minds in business, finance, and economics, guided by community aspirations and interests, working together to develop something the world has never seen before. Invite Amazon and Space-X to participate, have the USDA and FAO sit in, rally social media influencers to hype up the event, make it a big thing - the sky is the limit. Imagine what could be done for Native Hawaiians. Imagine what could be done for all the people of Hawai'i. 5 | OHA ean and should collaborate with anyone who will help Native Hawaiians afford housing and anyone who will help to reduce Native Hawaiian houselessness. More often than not, what's typically labeled as 'affordable housing,' here in Hawai'i, isn't actually affordable to the average young family, working single, kūpuna, etc. It is entirely possible to construct a livable, safe, and secure home for less than the price most pay for an average brand new vehicle. So, why isn't this happening? Because we exist in plaee where insane amounts of money ean be made from the sale of something - and someone will buy it - so, the market reflects that. OHA has the capacity to break free from that. ■