The UH Mānoa Campus Center was recently transformed into a hub for innovation and fresh thinking as the College of Tropical Agriculture and Human Resilience (CTAHR) hosted its annual Showcase & Research Symposium (SRS). The air buzzed with fresh ideas and discussions of student research on sustainability and resilience in Hawaiʻi and beyond.

The showcase spotlighted projects through a Poster Session, reflecting CTAHR's commitment to addressing real-world challenges. Students displayed their work on 3-foot by 4-foot posters. Lauren Braley, a Ph.D. student in tropical plant pathology, shared her research on utilizing papaya seed waste to combat worms that attack the roots of tomato plants.

“My poster here today is about using papaya seed waste to essentially induce resistance in tomato plants...as a way to prevent infection by root non-nematodes, which are microscopic ground worms present in the soil that cause damage on the root systems of a lot of really important problems,” Braley said.

Malay Rai, a master’s student in Molecular Biosciences and Bioengineering, presented research about making plastics with a seaweed base, instead of petroleum. “Hawaiʻi is an epicenter of tourism, and there's a lot of waste that is coming from everywhere...so we wanted a sustainable alternative to the regular petroleum-based plastic, which can be degraded easily and does not harm the environment in any way,” Rai said. His work studied using invasive species of seaweed, addressing both the issue of waste management and controlling an invasive plant.

In a notable first, the showcase also included presentations from intermediate school students. Seventh-grader Alexis Haley Capin from Pearl Highlands Intermediate presented her research on the potentially devastating effects of sea-level rise on Oʻahu. “A one-foot increase in sea level will wipe out the habitat for native birds at Pouhala Marsh Wildlife Sanctuary in Waipahu,” she said.  

Travis Idol, lead SRS judge and CTAHR professor of tropical forestry in the Dept. of Natural Resources and Environmental Management, highlighted the importance of the showcase for students at all levels. "A lot of our students, because we're in the islands, may not have an opportunity to present their work at national, international conferences...So this gives them the opportunity to present among their peers and also with the faculty and the college and others on the university campus,” he noted.