Landmark state climate resolution sparked by UH Mānoa undergrad students

In a historic move led by University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa undergraduate students, the Hawaiʻi State Legislature has adopted a resolution declaring climate change a public health emergency—the first U.S. state to do so.

The resolution—formally introduced as concurrent measures in both the House and Senate by State Rep. Nicole Lowen and State Sen. Mike Gabbard—was drafted by students Elijah Warren, Mehana Kapoi and Emily Werner, alongside their mentors James McCallen and Elizabeth Kiefer, as part of their capstone project through the UH Mānoa interdisciplinary studies–sustainability program. McCallen is from the Hawaiʻi Public Health Institute and Kiefer is from the John A. Burns School of Medicine, and both are co-founders of the Climate Change and Health Working Group.

Werner testifying at the House Committee on Energy and Environmental Protection hearing on April 10.

After months of research and collaboration with faculty advisors and lawmakers, the students helped guide the concurrent resolutions to adoption.

“We were mostly inspired by the growing amount of evidence that has come about from climate change,” Werner said. “We’re already seeing this, especially here in Hawaiʻi. It’s not something just in the future or happening in other places, it’s happening here, and it’s happening now. We’ve already seen it here in things such as heat waves, water contamination and natural disasters that have been exacerbated by climate change, and then the mental health impacts that have been occurring from those events.”

“My hope is that this resolution will create a sense of urgency to understand and prepare for the health impacts of climate change, and to encourage the cross-sector collaboration that will be needed to deal with this effectively,” Lowen said.

“Hawaiʻi continues to lead the charge when it comes to climate change—first with SCR 44, making us the first state in the nation to declare a climate emergency, and now with SCR 111, recognizing the serious health impacts too,” Gabbard said. “The climate crisis isn’t just about sea-level rise—it’s about wildfire risks, air quality, disease and community resilience. Mahalo to Hawaiʻi Public Health Institute, Climate Change and Health, James McCallen and Dr. Elizabeth Kiefer for their leadership in expanding our approach to climate action. Together, we’re building a safer, healthier future for us all.”

‘Staying persistent’

The effort was not without resistance. During hearings, students received criticism from some lawmakers and community members.

“We got quite a bit of pushback from some of the representatives within that hearing after we had given our testimony,” Werner said. “We were told that we were stretching the definition of a public health emergency to include climate change, and it waters down the urgency of actual public health emergencies, such as fentanyl or crime. However, climate change will only make these problems worse.

“How we overcame that was just staying persistent—showing up for hearings, continuing to give testimony and staying true to our mission—because all of our research was all based on complete facts.”

McCallen and Kiefer said, “Watching Emily, Mehana and Eli grow into powerful climate-health advocates was the highlight of this session. Their leadership, from pitching the climate health emergency resolution to testifying at the Capitol, played a key role in amplifying this message across Hawaiʻi, and we’re incredibly proud of the impact they’ve made.”

Helping Hawaiʻi’s people

Students hope the resolution shifts how Hawaiʻi discusses and addresses climate issues—both as environmental and public health challenges.

“Hawaiʻi’s people are the heart of Hawaiʻi,” Kapoi said. “Promoting initiatives within the legislature that emphasize our people and their health was really important to us, and that was an overall inspiration for our resolution.”

All three students will graduate within the year and hope to carry this policy win into their post-graduate plans.

“I totally understand that it can be very intimidating to get involved in this stuff, but I feel like for me, at least throughout the whole process, if you care about something, and something matters to you, then do something about it,” Werner said.