Kaʻū Youth Are Leading the Zero Waste Movement—Help Them Keep Going!

Aloha ʻOhana

We have incredible news: after months of uncertainty, tireless advocacy, and countless phone calls, our funding has been restored!

Thanks to the powerful voices of our community and our unwavering commitment to environmental justice, the federal freeze on our program has been lifted—and our students are back at work building a future where nothing is wasted, and every resource is respected.

With the return of the EPA Recycling Education & Outreach grant, our youth-led Clean Stream Campaign and Waste-to-Wealth Initiative in Kaʻū are once again in motion. Over the past 12 months, the students of Kaʻū High School have become certified Zero Waste Advocates, formed their own company—Mālama ʻĀina Compostables—and fundamentally changed the way their community thinks about waste.

Together, they have:

• Diverted over 11,000 lbs of cafeteria waste from landfill

• Rescued 665 lbs of edible food and redirected it to local food banks

• Launched the Mālama ʻĀina Funday Zero Waste education series

• Swapped out 60 outdated refrigerators and freezers for energy-efficient models to reduce climate impact that were recycled and diverted from the landfill

• Installed an in-vessel composting system and built a waste-to-soil program

• Presented at the National Recycling Congress in Cooperstown, New York

• Laid the foundation for a statewide network of youth Zero Waste leaders

• Gained part-time employment and professional development experience through Recycle Hawaiʻi

Now, these inspiring students are taking their next big step—and they need your help to get there.

We're fundraising for a learning exchange trip to Kamikatsu, Japan, the world's first Zero-Waste municipality.

This is more than just a youth trip. It’s a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to bring global wisdom back home to Kaʻū. In Kamikatsu, waste is meticulously sorted into 45+ categories. Nothing is landfilled. Nothing is burned. The students will learn firsthand how an entire community came together to eliminate waste—and bring that knowledge back to implement real change on the Big Island.

Your donation supports:

• Travel and accommodations for students and staff

• Educational exchanges with Kamikatsu’s leaders and zero-waste experts

• The continuation of our Zero Waste services and youth leadership programming while preparing for the trip

• Ongoing planning for statewide and national youth zero-waste conferences outlined in our grant

Why give now?Although our grant is currently reinstated, the program remains vulnerable under a federal administration actively seeking to defund Inflation Reduction Act programs like ours. Your support ensures we don’t lose momentum—even if another funding freeze occurs.

And if everything continues as planned? Your donation will help us grow the impact of Recycle Hawaiʻi’s Zero Waste youth programs across the state.

These students have already done the impossible. Let’s help them take their mission global—and bring Kamikatsu’s vision home.

Mahalo for standing with us. Together, we can redefine what’s possible for Hawaiʻi’s future.