Celebrating student engagement in STEM

Dec 10

On November 17, HONUA Scholars hosted its third annual Laulima Symposium, bringing together students, parents, educators, and community leaders for a day of thoughtful discussion on the state of Hawaiʻi’s STEM community and the future that our youth are interested in designing to protect our special relationship with people and place. The day started off with an engaging Pitch Competition by students who entered our annual Proposal Competition and received an invitation to present their ideas to attendees. Personally, I think the pitches were the highlight of this year’s event. The audience listened and learned from current students, who spoke about local, national, and global obstacles facing Indigenous communities today, including concerns over mental health, climate change, and Artificial Intelligence. I especially appreciated hearing student perspectives on environmental racism and historical injustices against Communities of Color and Indigenous Peoples because of the multidimensional lens and critical consciousness that our youth are developing earlier in life.

Additionally, due to my role as one of the co-organizers and facilitators of the Proposal Competition, I announced this year’s winners across three age groups (middle, high, college) and three categories (policy, technology/invention, science/experiment). This reflected the culmination of a year of co-construction with team members, designing prompts and policies, and disseminating information to schools and communities, and I’m proud to say that as a result of our organization’s outreach efforts, we managed to connect with nearly 30 schools, three states outside of Hawaiʻi, and over 100 students.

Other highlights from the event include a critical and thought-provoking panel from leading intellectuals and physicians in Hawaiʻi about sovereignty and caring for Indigenous Peoples on a global scale and mini lectures from professors and graduate students in STEM fields.

Since this celebration, members of HONUA Scholars are already reflecting on internal and external feedback and planning for the next iteration of programming to serve Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander students and Hawaiʻi’s STEM community. Despite the challenges that 2025 may bring for non-profit organizations dedicated to advancing diversity and equity visions, we remain focused and motivated to advocate for representation and a sense of belonging among underserved groups. I feel very fortunate that I get to continue learning from students and educators through HONUA Scholars, and I look forward to sharing how our organization improves and grows in the coming months and years.