Kirsten Fujitani Joins the Chapter Team

With great pleasure and excitement we welcome Kirsten Fujitani to the Sierra Club of Hawai‘i. Kirsten will be focusing on communications in support of our effort to end climate change and secure a healthy, just future for Hawai‘i’s residents. Kirsten joins us from The Nature Conservancy of Hawaiʻi where she was part of the Marine Conservation Fellowship Program.  In addition to biological monitoring efforts, she focused on communications and outreach initiatives centered around community-based fisheries management and climate change adaptation with local partners.  Kirsten also worked to develop a collaborative communications plan for Hawaiʻi’s marine protected species with Hawaiʻi’s Department of Land and Natural Resources and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.Despite the hustle and bustle of Honolulu, Kirsten was drawn to the natural beauty and serenity of Hawaiʻi’s ocean as a young child.  A childhood family move landed her in the landlocked expanse of southern Illinois, but her love of the ocean and Hawaiʻi’s rich natural landscapes only grew.  Returning to Hawaiʻi to study marine biology at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa, she immersed herself in community work days and found interest in the integration of contemporary science and traditional knowledge through the Laulima A ʻIke Pono Internship at Paepae o Heʻeia and several Kupu Programs.  Kirsten has a passion for cultivating youth to be the next environmental leaders and empowering people of their place to manage their own resources and take local action to increase resiliency in light of climate change.  Kirsten is a graduate of Belleville West High School and the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa, (BS 2012) and is interested in pursuing a master’s in environmental education.