CENTER FOR PACIFIC ISLANDS COASTAL AND COMMUNITY HEALTH
FISHERIES
This suite of projects examines questions that directly relate to fisheries management or monitoring and the health concerns that can arise from reef-to-plate relationships.
Life Histories
Life history research reveals behavioral, morphological, ecological, and biogeographical information about a particular species. In partnership with DAR and NOAA fisheries, our research helps inform the sustainable management of these select species that are critical to Pacific Island food security and fisheries.
Pacific Ciguatera Network Home
Ciguatera poisoning, caused by consuming seafood that has accumulated ciguatoxins, is of concern across the world. By fostering collaboration and promoting research with a network spanning across the Pacific, the Pacific Ciguatera Network aims to empower communities with the knowledge and resources needed to mitigate the threats posed by ciguatera.
Reef Fish Contaminants
This work seeks to understand how contaminants are transported through coral reef food webs, characterize their accumulation in reef fish, and examine the potential impacts to human consumers.
ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH
This suite of projects identifies pollutant origins and mitigation strategies, water quality improvement standards, and a wider, interdisciplinary perspective on land-to-sea contamination pathways.
Ke Awa Lau o Puʻuloa
In this project, we synthesized maps spanning 200 years (1825-2023) to trace land use changes in Pu‘uloa (Pearl Harbor) on Oʻahu in Hawai‘i. We combined these with associated contamination profiles and socioeconomic vulnerability to assist in developing containment risk profiles to support environmental justice and food security efforts.
Impacts of Militarization across USAPI
We conducted a systematic review of reported military-associated contamination studies in the region to understand potential impacts on human health and options to mitigate future risks.
Contaminants of Emerging Concern
This work has engaged multi-sector partners to develop a comprehensive Needs Assessment for monitoring CECs in Hawai'i, with recommendations for next steps.
Reef Health in Lāhainā
Widescale collaborative efforts from academic, county, and state-level teams investigated the effects of the devastating 2023 Lāhainā fires on coral reef health and the long-term impacts to coastal water quality to aid in community resilience, climate change adaptation, and emergency response planning.
Marine Debris
Through conversations with more than 30 partner organizations, we have created a comprehensive synthesis of the primary issues, challenges, solutions, and opportunities related to marine debris throughout the Pacific.
BUILDING PILINA
Supporting and strengthening personal and professional pilina (relationships/connections) is the foundation of all of our work. This can range from collaborative projects, partnerships, mentorship, or education.
Building Regional Partnerships
Many of the issues we face are shared throughout the region, so we try to support partnerships, community workshops, and collaborative approaches to questions whenever possible.
Developing Student Opportunities
Training and engaging students, recent graduates, and early career researchers is a foundational component of our work, and we are always looking for ways to expand this aspect of our program.
SECTIONS
Learn more about the Center for Pacific Islands Coastal and Community Health
CONTACT
Center for Pacific Islands Coastal and Community Health
2525 Correa Road, HIG 214
Honolulu, HI 96822
Phone: (808) 956-7031
Director
Eileen Nalley, Ph.D.
enalley@hawaii.edu
(808) 956-3349
OUR PATTERNS
Each pattern represents a Center of Excellence. Learn more about the cultural connections and meanings behind them.