Alumni News

Congrats to Debbie Wong of the Dean’s office and Teri Sunada of HR, who were recently recognized as UHM-azing for a job well done! Both received a Staff Shaka from the UHM Staff Senate, with accompanying words of appreciation and gratitude for their contributions.

Health education has reached new levels of accessibility. Former PhD student in Human Nutrition, Chloe Lozano, was recently awarded a two-year, $225K USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) Postdoctoral Fellowship. Chloe is working toward personalizing the health app PortionSize Ed, originally created in Louisiana, for youth in Hawai’i. The app tracks food and calorie intake specific to individuals and includes educational videos.

Koa Haole, or “foreign Koa,” is an invasive shrub that is overrunning Hawaiʻi’s vulnerable native ecosystems. Deemed one of the top 100 worst invasive species in the world, Koa Haole poses a major threat to Hawaiʻi’s indigenous plants and environment. According to Dan Rubinoff of the Dept. of Plant and Environmental Protection Sciences, Koa Haole is especially problematic for Hawaiʻi because it can grow anywhere – even in rocky soil. Its seeds spread far and fast, and they are extremely difficult to get rid of.

The Insectary for Scientific Training and Advances in Research (InSTAR) is a new core facility located inside the Life Sciences Building at UHM. It is designed to serve the UH community as well as outside users. “InSTAR aims to create the necessary infrastructure needed for proper insect-rearing conditions,” says Nicole Yoneishi of InSTAR. “Its goal is to promote research on insect microbiotas and advance research in medical entomology by providing core services and training.”

Don’t throw away your trash just yet. On April 22, at Hale Tuahine in Mānoa Valley, College of Tropical Agriculture and Human Resources (CTAHR) groups HGN and FETCH held various activities and learning opportunities for the community in honor of Earth Day.