Loving tribute to a dear friend
by Debbie Ward, Hawaiʻi Island Group member | Reading time: 4 minutes
Photo: Tom Leek
Nelson Ho, a beloved and pivotal environmental and political activist on Hawaiʻi Island, passed away on January 2, 2024, at Hilo Medical Center after a two-year illness. He was 73. Described by his friends as kind, gentle, warm, funny, and passionate, Nelson Ho has cast a very broad net of influence on people from all walks of life in Hawaiʻi.
Ho was a former chapter chair of the Sierra Club, past chair of the Hawaiʻi Island Group, and also served as the Pacific Regional Conservation Chair. In addition, he served on the boards of the Conservation Council of Hawaiʻi and Pono Hawaiʻi Initiative.
Born in Philadelphia, the son of a medical doctor, Ho and his family moved to Honolulu during his infancy, and he grew up in the Nuʻuanu neighborhood. A graduate of Roosevelt High School and the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa, he relocated to the Big Island in 1979.
Photo: Ron Terry
An avid hiker and kayaker, Ho’s lifelong interests included photography, nature, science, ecology, and astronomy. Kayaker Betsy Morrigan said, “Nelson introduced me to the real Hawaiʻi when I moved here from Alaska in 1991. Memorable was kayak camping in Okoe Bay when we were visited up close by a mama whale and baby while paddling in the bay.” Paddling with Lani Stemmermann and Kathy Valier on the North Shore of Kauaʻi, Nelson railed against the intrusive hovering presence of tour helicopters just above us.
In the 1980s, he was active with the Sierra Club and Pele Defense Fund in an effort to prevent environmental damage from geothermal development. He ran for a seat on the County Council, and legislator Russell Ruderman reminded us that “his campaign buttons read ‘Ho, Ho, Ho!’ He also lobbied against the Hawaiʻi Superferry in the 2000s, and the company declared bankruptcy after a judge ruled it couldn’t operate without an environmental assessment.
He worked for Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park in Resource Management, identifying and controlling fountain grass and other invasive species in remote regions of the park. He also joined the Big Island Invasive Species Committee in their efforts to control invasive species, including Miconia.
Reflecting on the work with Mae Mull in the late 1970s, Ho was a vocal critic of the management of Mauna Kea by the University of Hawaiʻi and the Department of Land and Natural Resources. Numerous letters to the Department of Land and Natural Resources attest to his diligent efforts to improve the management of the environmentally sensitive alpine region. He publicized the tremendously damaging trash buildup on the mauna and called for a state audit of the management, resulting in Marion Higa’s scathing report. Ho joined Clarence Ku Ching on annual huakaʻi hikes across the summit and trails on the mountain, publishing some of his finest photographs of these historic excursions.
When his efforts to build a better relationship with the university failed during the development of the 2000 UH Management Plan, Ho represented the Sierra Club in a contested case hearing regarding the construction of several new telescope segments for the W.M. Keck Outrigger Telescope. The case resulted in the development of a Comprehensive Management Plan for Mauna Kea. He and thousands of other kiaʻi protested the initiation of construction of the Thirty Meter Telescope in 2015 and 2019.
Ho wrote numerous opinion pieces for Hawaiʻi newspapers, including the Hawaiʻi Tribune-Herald. His last piece, published a year ago in the Honolulu Star-Advertiser, was critical of Gov. Josh Green’s appointment of Dawn Chang as chairwoman of the Board of Land and Natural Resources and Department of Land and Natural Resources.
Ho taught environmental studies courses at Hawaiʻi Community College, encouraging students in many ways to reach beyond their comfort zone and take on the challenges of activism.
Photo: Jim Albertini
Former Mayor of Hawaiʻi County Harry Kim chose Ho to be deputy director of the Department of Environmental Management. Kim said, “Nelson made it his business to make the world a better place than how he found it.”
Facebook friends recalled Nelson this way… Peter Serfin, former editor of Hawaiʻi Island Journal, said of Nelson: “You were a Wisdom Whisperer--who gave me a depth of background and context, especially on environmental issues, that I wouldn't have had without your guidance.” Avnas Marsh described Nelson as “a brilliant strategist and a warm soul!” Roosevelt classmate Claire Shimabukuro said, “I’ll remember you most clearly on the first-shift Kalama struggle picket line at Bishop Estate trustee Hung Wo Ching’s house… 53 years ago, when we were all teenagers full of hope, determination, and celebratory enthusiasm to change the world. I love that we still have that hope.”
In addition to his wife Jennifer, with whom he hiked, camped, and kayaked, Ho is survived by a stepdaughter, Hiʻiaka Kahalewai. A celebration of life is planned in March.