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Leadership Program
Scope of Training & Curriculum
Program Co-Directors
Need for Leadership
Impact of Program
Current Class
Current Class Schedule
Alumni
Success Stories
Secure Alumni Site
Recruitment Information for Next Class
"Being in the program has made me feel more confident in everything
that I do. . . . I find myself wanting to be more aware of everything and
everyone around me . . . wanting to engage in conversations with people.
This is something I never liked doing in the past."
Mike Shimatsu, Class XII |
Impact to the Community:
Working Together & Growing the Economy
The Foundation’s programs and activities develop and strengthen the
leadership abilities of its participants and alumni. These leaders are
trained in collaborative leadership and are fully equipped to continue the
process of bringing people together to address key agricultural issues
facing our state.
Our participants and alumni include leaders from agriculture companies
and the related industries of environmental preservation and conservation,
tourism, urban development and renewal, Hawaiian cultural and heritage
groups and those concerned with food security and public health such as
school and community gardens and farmers markets.
The Ag Leadership alumni are currently working in major statewide
positions of leadership including:
- The President of Hawai‘i Cattlemen’s Council – an umbrella
organization comprised of the five county level Cattlemen’s Associations.
110+ member ranchers represent over 60,000 head of beef cows; more than
75% of all the beef cows in the State.
- Members of Hawai‘i’s Board of Agriculture working to
establish broad operating polices for the Hawai‘i Department of
Agriculture.
- State Executive Director of the USDA Farm Services
Association Hawai‘i and Pacific Basin, which is dedicated to achieving an
economically and environmentally sound future for American Agriculture.
- The President of the Hawai‘i Florists and Shippers
Association – a statewide association of growers, shippers, corporations
and individual proprietors, the Hawai’i Tropical Flower Council directs
promotion and supports research of Hawai‘i's $70 million floral and
nursery industry with 690 growers on 1,910 acres in more than 27.6
million square feet of greenhouses and artificial shade.
Several of our alumni have gone onto elected positions in the County
Councils, State Senate and State House of Representatives. As well, many of
our alumni work for some of the most successful, innovative and sustainable
agriculture companies and organizations in Hawai‘i, including:
- Parker Ranch – is among the nation’s largest and most
historic ranches with 150,000 acres and 30-35,000 head of cattle
producing USDA choice beef marketed in the U.S. and Canada
- Kaua‘i Coffee Company – Hawai‘i's (and US) largest coffee
grower, with 3,400 acres under cultivation on the southwest side of the
Island of Kaua‘i
- Kona Pacific Farmers Cooperative - located in the rural area
of Napo‘opo‘o on the Big Island of Hawai‘i; 300 hard working farmer
members who grow and hand pick their Kona Coffee and Macadamia nuts
- Hawai‘i Commercial and Sugar Co. - Hawai‘i's largest producer
of raw sugar, accounting for over 60% of all of the State's sugar; burns
bagasse to provide 215 million kilowatt hours per year serving their own
power needs and sending excess to Maui Electric Company
- Green Point Nurseries – grower / shipper / wholesaler
providing services with Hawaiian tropical floral products in Hawai‘i, and
for export
- Hawaiian Host - the largest exporter of chocolate covered
Macadamia nuts in the world, and the fourth largest U.S. exporter of
chocolate candies
- Pioneer Hi-Bred International - world's leading developer and
supplier of advanced plant genetics to farmers worldwide
- Hawaiian Earth Products - the largest producer of compost (Menehune
Magic) in the State of Hawai‘i; locally composts only recycled yard/tree
trimmings and other organic recyclables keeping 20% of the waste out of
Hawai‘i landfills
- Wailea Ag Group - Hawai‘i Island farmers experimenting,
researching and working together to provide exotic tropical flowers and
foliage, tropical fruits and Hawaiian Heart of Palm for Hawai‘i and
exported internationally.
| "It is a life
changing experience that gives you tools to mature professionally
and personally. . . . You learn to look at things with a broader
perspective and it gives you the tools to be more confident in
everything that you do and makes you want to be engaged and be more
aware of what is happening around you." Ron Weidenbach, Class
XII- |
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". . .
the Ag Leadership Program is an outstanding, rewarding program that
I am extremely proud to be a part of. It will open your eyes and
broaden your knowledge of agricultural issues across the state. You
will make life long friends and gain an invaluable resource of
support!" Kylie Matsuda, Class XII |
Seminar I - Class XII
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