Everyone remembers the toll albizia trees took on Puna during last summer’s Hurricane Iselle, when they knocked down power lines, blocked roads, and crushed roofs and cars. Homeowners, natural resource managers, and others are now eyeing the albizias still standing, with an eye to bringing them down…less catastrophically. The college’s research and extension faculty have been    ... more >>

Little fire ants (LFA) are well named. They are minute, about as long as a penny is thick (1/16"). And they not only are orange-red like flame, but their bite burns like fire and then causes welts and intense itching far disproportionate to the insects’ size. Domestic and wild animals and birds are also at risk from the pest: Multiple stings in their eyes can cause blindness, or even the death of    ... more >>

“Egrets, I’ve had a few, but then again, too few to mention…” This might have been Hawai‘i’s theme song in 1959, when a mere 105 cattle egrets were imported to prey on insects plaguing cattle, but no longer: There are now far more than a few egrets bobbing cockily around. Dr. Christopher Lepczyk, a specialist in natural resources management, notes that the 2013 Audubon    ... more >>

They’re breaking open their pots. “We didn’t realize they’d grow so well,” says agrosecurity researcher Mike Melzer. “We can’t keep up with them!” But buying new pots for the ti plants he’s growing from “clean” germplasm is a small thing, compared with the way the plants are flourishing. Not only are their corms bursting out of their    ... more >>

There’s more than one way to get to Hollywood, as CTAHR alumni and supporters show—including veterinary skills and fashion design. While many aspiring fashionistas see New York as the place to make their mark, there’s nothing to compare with seeing one’s designs gracing a Hollywood star. Fighting Eel founder and Apparel Product Design and Merchandising (now Fashion Design and    ... more >>

Agriculture is an ancient global practice, and international exposure can provide a broader perspective as students enter this venerable profession. Two groups of students recently visited China for the wide variety of experiences that only ag in its many forms can offer. Tropical Plant and Soil Sciences (TPSS) students David Shepard, Aleta Corpuz, and Flora Chen and their professor Hye-Ji Kim    ... more >>

Plant and Environmental Protection Sciences BS alumnus Matthew Alan Sylva is descended from farmers and plant lovers on both sides of his family. He has been interested in plants “since before I could talk,” which led eventually to one of his concurrent bachelor’s degrees. And though plants came before speech, his interest in communication soon caught up, manifesting first in his BA in    ... more >>

Which came first, the egg-fortifying project or the clinical rotation? For Human Nutrition, Food and Animal Science (HNFAS) alumnus Nobuhisa Morimoto, there’s no question. As he explains, his studies and research at CTAHR—including the aforementioned project to boost the omega-3 fatty acid content of chicken eggs—were integral in preparing him for his next step, medical training at the Tokyo Medical    ... more >>

If a tempest can be found in a teacup, then H.C. “Skip” Bittenbender is looking for the opposite in an ‘apu, or ‘awa cup. ‘Awa, or kava, is a medicinal plant that has been used for hundreds of years throughout the Pacific to create a drink that can soothe nerves, combat anxiety, and relieve pain, all while keeping the mind clear. ‘Awa’s unique properties    ... more >>

Everyone’s heard of organic, but what about Natural? Natural Farming is a constellation of simple, sustainable techniques that’s sweeping the Islands, thanks in large part to Mike DuPonte, an Extension agent based at the Big Island’s Komohana Station. Using methods that are less chemically intensive and more biologically based than conventional agricultural production, it aims to build    ... more >>

Leina‘ala Bright has spent much of her life cultivating her ability to communicate with her ancestors through prayer, dreams, meditation, and connecting to her na‘au (instinctual learning). Through their inspiration she began her work with CTAHR aquaponics expert Clyde Tamaru on her unique conjunction of aquaponics and lā‘au lapa‘au, traditional Hawaiian herbal medicine. Bright    ... more >>

Teenagers today face a multitude of challenges in an increasingly complex world, but Thao Le has a powerful tool for them: awareness and insight into their own minds. Dr. Le, a Family and Consumer Sciences investigator, is researching how mindfulness, a traditional technique with roots in Buddhist meditation and other contemplative practices, can assist vulnerable adolescents through their development int    ... more >>

Listen to Clay Trauernicht discuss his passion, and you’ll realize you haven’t been paying enough attention to wildfires in Hawai‘i. Fortunately, with the help of Tomoaki Miura’s GIS data-mapping project, he’s created a website and interactive map to help address this issue. Many may not realize wildland fires are a serious and growing problem in the Islands. But dat    ... more >>

Forget putting up paper flyers for lost valuables—entomologists William Haines and Daniel Rubinoff are using Facebook and smartphone apps to search for and recover an even more prized quarry. Their Pulelehua Project, funded by the Hawaii Department of Land and Natural Resources, is a citizen science initiative that encourages the public—especially hikers with smartphones—to report and hopefully photograp    ... more >>

What’s great about Extension work is it extends both ways. One recent example of this synergy was the discovery and mapping of a new coffee pest, an emaravirus that potentially makes coffee cherries unmarketable. The coffee disease, not known to exist elsewhere, was first reported in January 2014 by a coffee farmer in Kona, using the Plant Doctor app developed by plant pathologist Scot    ... more >>

Sometimes it’s the next generation of thinkers and learners that is best equipped to deploy the next generation of technology. Everyone has seen youths navigating the often bewildering technological landscape with ease, so it’s only fitting that a pair of students has created a fun, useful, and user-friendly app to bridge the increasing divide between the natural and the digital world.    ... more >>