Building Carbon Management Capacity: The Hawaiʻi Carbon Knowledge Exchange

A central goal of carbon (C) management and a critical outcome of sustainable land stewardship is reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from agriculture, forestry, and other land uses. Integrating GHG considerations into management can take many forms, but C credit markets are increasingly providing sources of private capital to offset the often high costs of stewardship. In Hawaiʻi, participation in voluntary C credit markets and the establishment of jurisdictional compliance C markets are constrained by a lack of institutional capacity, successful demonstrations, and high-quality data, making private capital for C market-based approaches in Hawaiʻi difficult to access. The State of Carbon in Hawaiʻi Hui (hui translates to partnership in ʻŌlelo Hawaiʻi, the Hawaiian language) convened landowners, researchers, federal and state government professionals, and for-profit and not-for-profit organization staff to better understand limitations to implementing C management in Hawaiʻi. This paper describes why the State of Carbon in Hawaiʻi Hui was formed, how we planned for, hosted, and assessed the success of a C-focused summit, and what outcomes resulted from this process. A Pathway Forward document, a decision support tool, and this article are outcomes. These products will serve as resources for those considering Hawaiʻi-based forest C projects, as well as contributing towards the legislated goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions in Hawaiʻi. Our knowledge exchange process is readily replicable and can support a variety of efforts in environmental conservation and beyond.