COURTESY PHOTO
James Carpio has been appointed to the Hawaii Board of Land and Natural Resources.
Gov. Josh Green has appointed James (Jay) John Kamealoha Carpio of Wailuku to the Board of Land and Natural Resources. The appointment runs through June 30, 2029.
Carpio, a Native Hawaiian born and raised in Wailuku, Maui, has worked as a hunter and guide, rancher, land manager, master fisherman and farmer, according to a news release, and is grounded in the day-to-day realities of conserving Hawaii’s land, water and marine resources.
“Jay Carpio has spent his life on the ground — and in the water — doing the real work of protecting Hawaii’s land and ocean,” said Green in a news release. “From co-founding community-managed makai areas to restoring reefs and building more resilient homes, Jay understands how stewardship, housing and sustainability all fit together and that conservation-guided experience will be invaluable on the Board of Land and Natural Resources.”
Carpio holds a Bachelor of Science in agriculture and horticulture from the University of Hawaii at Hilo. He is a co-founder of the Maui Nui Makai Network and The Limu Hui, two community-based conservation organizations focused on restoring nearshore ecosystems and traditional resource management.
He also helped revive the Maui Nui Marine Resource Council and, as chair of its Fish Committee, co-founded the Wailuku Coastal Managed Makai Area with his late mentor, kupuna Takeo Miyaguchi, which expanded community-driven marine conservation across Maui Nui.
The BLNR is made up of seven members, including one from each of the four land districts of Oahu, Hawaii island, Maui Nui, and Kauai, as well as two at-large members and the chair, who also serves as executive head of the Department of Land and Natural Resources.
Don’t miss out on what’s happening!
Stay in touch with breaking news, as it happens, conveniently in your email inbox. It’s FREE!
Members of the BLNR are nominated and appointed by the Governor with the consent of the Senate to serve four-year terms.
BLNR meetings are held on the second and fourth Fridays of each month, except for November and December, when only one is held on the second Friday.
The board reviews and takes action related the management of Hawaii’s public lands, waters, coastal areas, endangered species, and historical sites, including land leases and conservaton district use applications, among other issues.
Recently, Green also appointed Ryan Kanaka‘ole as BLNR’s acting chair while Chair Dawn Chang is on medical leave. BLNR’s first meeting this year is scheduled to begin at 9 a.m. on Friday.