Hawai'i Whole Systems Project ∨
RSS MOVE News
- RMI Transportation Principal Hiroko Kawai to Follow Up on Trucking Charrette Projects at UMTRI International Conference on Future Truck Transportation Policy
- Bright Automotive Turns RMI's Lightweight, Hyper-efficient Vehicle Concept into Reality
- RMI Convenes Trucking Summit April 14-16
- RMI Launches Project Get Ready
- MOVE's Brylawski joins Bright Automotive
- view more MOVE News >
MOVE Features
Case Studies
Forum
Oil Imports Map
Design Philosophy
GOAL
Increase the market share of local foods
CHALLENGE
Understanding the system effects of the Hawaii food industry
METHOD
Strategic Consulting
OUTCOME
Food Sustainability Summit, School Garden programs, and the creation of small businesses and initiatives supporting locally grown foods
Overview
It was Pierre Omidyar, the founder and chairman of eBay, who asked RMI to explore actions that could make the Island of Hawai'i in the Hawaii group more sustainable and a better place to live.
After a few initial conversations, the RMI team and Mr. Omidyar honed in on food supply.
Hawai'i is one of the nation’s most fertile places. Yet only 15 percent of all food sold on the island is grown locally.
Increasing local food’s market share, the team believed, would have widespread benefits.
It would:
- Diversify the island’s economy, making it less dependent on tourism
- Increase the safety and security of residents should food imports be compromised
- Strengthen family and sense of community
- Decrease the island’s environmental impact
By interviewing stakeholders and analyzing agriculture statistics, ground water tables, tourism figures and other data, RMI created a “whole systems map” showing how key components of the local food system interact with other key systems, including housing, tourism and environmental protection.
Leverage points
This map allowed the team to identify leverage points -- places in the system that, if strengthened, would lead to more local food consumption.
The team then designed projects that could activate each leverage point.
The Omidyar family is implementing and supporting many of these ideas, including:
- Supporting vibrant school gardens and establishing a network throughout the island with two coordinators
- Helping wholesalers collect produce from small local farmers
- Recruiting a food systems director to help local farmers and businesses with analysis and planning
- Working with farmers to support developing a strategy to increase staple crop production
“RMI’s work and emphasis on whole systems thinking created a sophisticated understanding of how we could act within the system to realize the greatest impact for each dollar invested." -- Jeff Alvord, the Omidyar’s project coordinator.