Matthew Gonser was the inaugural Peter J. Rappa Fellow at the University of Hawai‘i Sea Grant College Program in 2011. Matthew received master’s degrees in Landscape Architecture and Regional Planning, respectively, from Cornell University. His studies focused on watershed management, green stormwater infrastructure, and civic and community engagement and co-design.

As a Rappa Fellow, Matthew worked with the Hawai‘i Sea Grant Center for Smart Building and Community Design and the UH Environmental Research and Design Lab at the School of Architecture on UH Manoa campus sustainability initiatives focused on campus access and mobility, campus energy monitoring and design, and the communication of this information. He also supported research and program development for the Center for Smart Building and Community Design.

Following his graduate studies, Matthew moved back to Hawai‘i and served as the Community Planning and Design Extension Agent with Hawai‘i Sea Grant for more than five and a half years, and supervised subsequent Rappa Fellows as an extension agent. In October 2017, Matthew joined the City and County of Honolulu Office of Climate Change, Sustainability and Resiliency as the Coastal and Water Program Manager. He continues to serve in a supervisor role with Hawai‘i Sea Grant Rappa Fellows.