In the end of June Pālehua Conservation Initiative welcomed its first ever Executive Director, Liz Fujii! We are thrilled for her to collaboratively steward PCI and provide leadership at Pālehua for what we hope is many years to come.
The board members of PCI were very intentional about what they looked for in an executive director: someone who leads with humility, with internal drive, with a hunger to learn, and with a spirit and embodiment of aloha and sense of place and community. We see all of that in Liz and more.
So, who is this Liz Fujii?
Liz formed her commitment to intergenerational abundance and health in the ʻEwa moku and Waiʻanae mountain range in her youth. Born in Wāhiawa and raised in Kalauao ʻAiea, she attended preschool in Makakilo and spent several high school and college breaks with Hawaiʻi DLNR and Sierra Club at restoration sites on Oʻahu including Kaʻala and Kuaokalā as well as on Molokai, Maui, Kahoʻolawe, and the Appalachian Trail/Tsalagi Ayehii.
Liz has worked for the public interest in Hawaiʻi and the continent, and has grown in her kuleana in Hawaiʻi through a unique range of leadership experiences. As Chief Operating Officer of Kōkua Hawaiʻi Foundation, she guided transformative growth to launch and build a seven-acre farm and two mission-aligned businesses while planning and modeling for perpetual financial sustainability. As Executive Director of Molokai Child Abuse Prevention Pathways, she led a community-driven violence prevention organization directly serving 90 percent of Molokai children to nurture family wellbeing. As Program Manager at Kupu, she administered environmental career development programs for young adults and teens serving their communities at 55 sites on five islands.
Already, Liz is getting her boots dirty and putting her grantwriting skills to use in support of the kuahiwi, all while learning the ins and outs of the ʻāina and mauka environment. A whip-smart leader, she brings her years of nonprofit and social enterprise management and community development experience to Pālehua, and we’re excited to see it. Please join us in welcoming her!
