MEDIA RELEASE

Marine biologist Kaipo Perez III discusses the coral reef at Kahaluu Bay and its connectivity to freshwater resources, culture, and the effects of global climate change in a Puana Ka Ike (Imparting Knowledge) lecture from 5:30-7 p.m. Friday, Sept. 24, at the Keauhou Beach Resort Ballroom.

“Kahaluu Bay is a dynamic and unique area within the Hawaiian Islands and therefore has been selected as the site of scientific investigation,” Perez said. “I, along with others from the University of Hawaii at Manoa, have been conducting field research to evaluate the coral resources found within the Kahaluu area. We are the marine component and part of a larger grant with the National Science Foundation’s Office of Experimental Program to Stimulate Competitive Research (EPSCoR), concerning climate change impacts on water resources across Alaska and the Hawaiian Islands.

“I grew up in Kaimuki, Oahu, in an ohana lawaia, or fishing family, who are great stewards of the terrestrial and marine environment. Their passion to conserve and protect the land and sea is their gift to me,” said Perez, who strives to understand the relationship/connectivity between land and sea and apply this knowledge to identify key problems in the marine environment that need to be corrected.

He is a doctoral candidate within the Zoology Department and a research assistant in the Coral Reef Ecology Laboratory at the Hawaii Institute of Marine Biology.

For more information on Perez’s presentation, contact Joy Cunefare at 808-534-8528 or e-mail info@kohalacenter.org.

For lecture schedules and webcasts of previous lectures, visit http://kohalacenter.org/puanakaike/about.html and www.keauhouresort.com/learn-puanakaike.html.

The Puana Ka Ike and Eia Hawaii lecture series are presented in partnership with Keauhou-Kahaluu Education Group, Kamehameha Schools; The Kohala Center; University of Hawaii at Hilo, Kipuka Native Hawaiian Student Center; and Keauhou Beach Resort.