Across our community, Fellows are doing the hard, hopeful work of helping people build lives and careers right here in Hawaiʻi. In our latest issue of Taking on Tomorrow, we asked several of them to share what workforce development looks like and this is what they had to share.

From: Quinn Vittum and Re-use Hawai‘i

What is your organization doing to help create meaningful career pathways that allow people to build a life in Hawaiʻi?

At Re-use Hawaiʻi, we create opportunities for people who may have faced past challenges or who are currently in unstable circumstances that can make traditional employment difficult. We believe that past mistakes or current circumstances do not define who someone is or who they can become. Our role is to give individuals a real opportunity to show up, put in the time, build experience, and develop the skills and confidence they need to succeed. We want employment to be more than just a paycheck — it should be a pathway toward stability, growth, and a future here in Hawaiʻi.

What is your organization doing to ensure workforce development honors community and ʻāina rather than simply filling jobs?

Re-use Hawaiʻi is committed to building a circular economy that eliminates waste and keeps products, materials, and resources in use for as long as possible. We also affirm that a circular economy must work for everyone, including people whose past or present circumstances create barriers to employment. Our work to reduce waste and address climate change recognizes that the people most affected by the harmful consequences of a linear, extractive economy—including landfills, extreme heat and wildfires, severe weather, and sea-level rise—are too often excluded from meaningful participation in the economy and its benefits. We don’t just provide the opportunity for a job, but the chance for them to help lead the way to repair the harms their communities have too often borne. Simply put, we’re building a circular economy through second chances—for people, and materials.