Making an Impact

Join thousands of Hawaiʻi community members, businesses, and organizations as they bring to life a resilient economy through the core value of ʻāina aloha—a deep and abiding love for Hawaiʻi’s communities and natural environments.

In March 2020 at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Department of Business, Economic Development and Tourism, the Economic Development Alliance of Hawaii, and Transform Hawaii Government convened twenty participants to find immediate solutions to providing equitable access to broadband internet and improving digital literacy for all in Hawai‘i. 

Drive Electric Hawai‘i (DEH) is a network led consortium of 16 public, private, and nonprofit signatories committed to building a broad coalition in support of this vision for renewable transportation; incenting and accelerating the deployment of EVs and an EV charging infrastructure that will support 100% renewable energy; and developing and deploying transactional and regulatory mechanisms that will enable the full value of electrified transportation.

The Hawai‘i Green Fee offers a financing solution to close the state's conservation budget deficit and diversify our economy.

This initiative utilizes a multi-disciplinary approach by working on immediate acquisition and distribution of hardware directly to keiki, kūpuna, and communities in need, as well as partnering in a statewide network to provide broadband access to unserved communities.

This initiative engages and guides Hawai‘i public school seniors whose final year of high school was impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. It engages and guides seniors in transitioning to their post-high school plans and connects them to postsecondary education, training, and for eligible students, the opportunity to take free UHCC career exploration classes.