Agricultural Leadership Foundation of Hawaii

Our Mission: Providing Leadership Development Opportunities For Hawai‘i's Agricultural Community

As an organization, the Agricultural Leadership Foundation of Hawai‘i recognizes that a healthy, thriving, sustainable agricultural sector is an important component of Hawai‘i’s future. As such, we focus on those in agriculture, natural resource management and rural communities who will help to lead us there.

Because food and energy security, working ag lands, open green space, healthy watersheds and a diverse economy are key elements in the economic, social and environmental fabric of our community, an investment in the Agricultural Leadership Foundation of Hawai‘i is an investment in Hawai‘i and its sustainable future.

History

The Agricultural Leadership Foundation of Hawai‘i (ALFH) was founded in 1982 in response to the major shift in Hawai‘i away from plantation agriculture. This shift critically affected nearly every sector and in particular the small agribusinesses which formed the emerging foundation of the industry. Through the foresight of several key leaders in the agricultural industry, ALFH, the only leadership organization in the state focused on agriculture, was created. These leaders, led by Monty Richards, Yoshi Watanabe, Dr. Tadashi Higaki Slim Takayama and Jane Yamashiro acted on their vision of building a cadre of leaders to help support businesspeople and their businesses during the important transition from plantation to diversified agriculture.

With initial support from the Kellogg Foundation and the University of Hawai‘i-Hilo the program was launched in 1982. In 1986 the Foundation partnered with UH-CTAHR and Dr. Donna R. Ching coordinated and delivered the training activities. For the next 20 years, Donna developed the program into a multidisciplinary, well-networked program. Acting on a strategic plan developed by the board in 2005 a full time Executive Director, Kim Coffee-Isaak, was hired in 2006 and a strategic fundraising plan was put into place. In 2007 the Foundation celebrated is 25th Anniversary on the island of Hawai‘i with workshops, story telling and fellowship. In 2009 ALFH contracted with Pauline Sato as Program Director in order to begin a succession plan pending Dr. Ching’s retirement. Donna and Pauline will co-direct Class XIII through the end of 2011.

In 2009 Class XII graduated and currently the Agriculture Leadership Program has trained more than 135 alumni from across the state. These alumni have formed a strong network and many individuals are actively serving in leadership roles for their industry and community organizations as well as the overall agricultural sector.

Organizational Assets

The Agricultural Leadership Foundation of Hawai‘i’s assets include:

A 28-year commitment of serving the community

A reputation for its excellent Leadership Training Program

A leadership role in the planning and implementation of the Statewide Agriculture Conference

Over 135 alumni who are active and successful leaders across the state

Relationships with many others both in and out of the agricultural industry

A qualified and dedicated board of directors

Professional and enthusiastic Executive and Program Directors

A reserve fund that allows stability and flexibility as we launch our efforts to increase our program offerings and diversify our revenue stream