REPORT FROM THE TI LEAF GROUP – For the second consecutive year, organizers are coordinating the Pacific Island Philanthropy Forum to share innovative projects in the Pacific with national foundation representatives. Hosted for the first time in 2011, in partnership with Irene Hirano Inouye, wife of Senator Daniel Inouye, and Chair of the Ford Foundation, the forum brings program officers from major foundations dedicated to education, economic development, culture and art, and capacity building in communities.
“We are truly excited to be coordinating the Pacific Island Philanthropy Forum again,” said Robin Puanani Danner, President of the nonprofit organizer; the Council for Native Hawaiian Advancement (CNHA). “Mrs. Inouye has been an inspiration in helping to connect people and putting out the call for national foundations to come to the Pacific, home to an entire world of island life that is producing extraordinary results.”
In addition, President Obama’s White House Initiative on Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders is sending its Executive Director, Kiran Ahuja to support the forum and its goal of building stronger relationships and understanding of Pacific Island communities. The Pacific is home to the 50th state, but also the U.S. Territories of Guam and American Samoa. In addition, the U.S. has compacts with the Federated States of Micronesia.
“The Pacific continues to hold global significance culturally, economically, environmentally and in strategic defense,” Danner continued. “The types of challenges are often unique to isolated island communities, but the solutions and ingenuity in addressing them are so relevant to other parts of our country and the world.”
The Philanthropy Forum will be held for a full day of the three-day Native Hawaiian Convention scheduled October 2 – 4, 2012 in Honolulu at the Hawaii Convention Center. Participants include Hawaiians from across the state, and the country, and will also include representatives from Guam, and other areas in the Pacific.
This forum is free to attend for any nonprofit affiliated individual, whether staff, volunteer or board member. “We welcome everyone to the philanthropy forum – the opportunity to visit with folks from Ford, Gates, Kellogg and others, is truly extraordinary,” Danner remarked.
For more information please visit the official website at https://www.cvent.com/d/5cqqpl. Online registration for Convention is available at: https://www.cvent.com/d/5cqqpl/4W.
The 11th Annual Native Hawaiian Convention, themed “Moving Forward – Our People, Our Land, Our Spirit”, is set for October 1-5, 2012, at the Hawai’i Convention Center. The Annual Native Hawaiian Convention is the largest gathering of community members, organizations, policy makers, legislative representatives, and Federal agencies interested in Native Hawaiian community development.
CNHA is a national network of Native Hawaiian Organizations, providing assistance in accessing capital and technical resources, and is a policy voice on issues important to Native Hawaiian communities. Its mission is to enhance the well-being of Hawaii through the cultural, economic, and community development of Native Hawaiians. For more information about CNHA please contact us at 808.596.8155, toll-free at 1.800.709.2642, by e-mail at info@hawaiiancouncil.org, or visit our website at www.hawaiiancouncil.org.
Report from the TiLeaf Group, A Native Advocacy Firm