Day 1: KEYNOTE: Opening Remarks with Richard Bissen, Mayor of Maui
“Nothing else mattered more than helping our people… Together, we have the chance to not only rebuild, but to do so in a way that honors our past, supports our present, and secures a resilient future.” —Honorable Richard Bissen
2024 WILDFIRE LEADERSHIP SUMMIT
The August 2023 Maui wildfire is considered the deadliest wildfire incident in the U.S. in over a century. It ravaged over 10 square miles, destroying 2,200 structures and severely impacting the island’s native forests, grasslands, and historic sites. This catastrophic event has left the community grappling with immense challenges, from rebuilding infrastructure to preserving their rich cultural heritage.
Maui Mayor Richard Bissen has been a steadfast leader in Maui’s recovery efforts, drawing upon his extensive experience in disaster management and community engagement. Under his guidance, the island is exploring innovative strategies to address the unique cultural, economic, and environmental complexities that have arisen in the wake of the wildfire.
Tune in as Mayor Bissen offers a glimpse into the extraordinary challenges faced by the Maui community, their unwavering commitment to rebuilding with respect for their cultural heritage, and the visionary approaches they are employing to create a more sustainable and resilient future for the island.
Highlights:
- 02:28 Goal: Return the People to Their Lands
- 06:53 Challenges in Recovery
- 10:10 Balancing Economy and Mourning: A Bench Mark to Healing
Tweets:
The inspiring story of Maui’s resilience after the devastating 2023 wildfire is a heartwarming example of disaster recovery guided by values and respect for the land. Hear how the community is honoring its deep cultural roots and rebuilding for a better future with Maui Mayor Richard Bissen. #Recover #Rebuild #Reimagine #podcast #wildfire #DisasterRecovery #AfterTheFire #2024WildfireLeadershipSummit #MayorRichardBissen #MauiStrong #2023MauiWildFire #CulturalPreservation #SustainableFuture #ClimateResilience #HawaiianValues #AlohaSpiritLives #CommunityRebuilding #HonoringHeritage #NatureProtection
Quotes:
02:52 “As a community thrust into tragedy, we began the long and arduous road to recovery in an instant, our purpose sharpened, focused solely on one goal: to do everything in our power to return our people home to their lands.” —Honorable Richard Bissen
03:48 “Nothing else mattered more than helping our people.” —Honorable Richard Bissen
06:05 “Recovery in Lahaina and Kula requires more than just rebuilding infrastructure. It calls for a sensitive and respectful approach that honors the rich traditions and historical narratives of our Hawaiian people.” —Honorable Richard Bissen
06:24 “Our intention is not only rebuilding homes and businesses, our priority has always been to return the heart and soul of our community, which is our people.” —Honorable Richard Bissen
10:55 “This is a time to find solace among our friends and neighbors and provide hope. This was a benchmark in healing that needed to be respected before inviting guests back to our home.” —Honorable Richard Bissen
11:43 “This is not just about recovering from a disaster, it’s about preparing for our future and doing everything we can to prevent something like this from ever happening again. Moving forward, we look to the future with hope and a sense of opportunity.” —Honorable Richard Bissen
12:41 “Together, we have the chance to not only rebuild, but to do so in a way that honors our past, supports our present, and secures a resilient future.” —Honorable Richard Bisse
Meet Honorable Richard T. Bissen Jr.
Honorable Richard T. Bissen Jr. is the current Mayor of Maui County, having assumed office in January 2023. Prior to his mayoral role, he served as a judge in the Second Circuit Court of Hawaii from 2005 to 2021. Appointed by Governor Linda Lingle and later reappointed by Governor David Ige, Judge Bissen held a distinguished legal career before entering public service.
Born on February 28, 1962, Mayor Bissen holds a Juris Doctor degree from the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa. His career also includes roles as the interim director for the State of Hawaii Department of Public Safety and as the first deputy attorney general for the state.
As mayor, Bissen has faced significant challenges, including leading the recovery efforts following the devastating wildfires in Maui in August 2023. He is committed to supporting the community and guiding the island through this difficult time.
Connect with the Government of Maui:
- Website: https://www.mauicounty.gov/
Transcription:
Richard Bissen: [Aloha Chant] Hello everyone for welcoming us today. I offer you the welcome chant, Aloha chant, to bring us into this space. You are hosting us, but on behalf of the people of Maui, I am welcoming all of us to this conference and this opening. I actually want to start with a very heartfelt Mahalo to Jen and her team from After the Fire for providing this opportunity for all of us to come together this week, also for the incredible support over the last year in helping us navigate the most devastating wildfire in Hawaii’s history. As many of you know, what makes After the Fire unique is their genuine approach of prioritizing the recovery and well being of people first. They have a comprehensive and humanistic approach to navigating complex recovery challenges, and their diverse resources and perspectives are derived from real life recovery experience.
Jennifer, my team and I are deeply grateful for you and the hope you and your team have provided in one of the most difficult experiences any of us have had to face, so Mahalo. As you look around this room, you may see friends of old and certainly new friends to be made. Over the next few days, we will discuss extraordinary challenges and share opportunities to best navigate wildfire recovery. In the morning of August 8, 2023 I awoke to a text message alerting me of a fire in our country Kula. There was a need to set up an evacuation center in Pukalani. In the 24 hours that followed that moment, our team’s lives and the lives of everyone in our community changed. We lost Lahaina that day. As a community thrust into tragedy, we began the long and arduous road to recovery, in an instant our purpose sharpened, focused solely on one goal, to do everything in our power to return our people home to their lands. The months that have followed presented many unique challenges, as our small and tight knit Island community experienced an influx of federal, state and private services. This essential help swept in like a rising current trickling into every aspect of our emergency. For many of us, it felt overwhelming, almost surreal. There was no time to hesitate, so we all pushed forward through heartbreak, fatigue, uncertainty and a relentless commitment to respond, all of us united around the understanding that nothing else mattered more than helping our people.
As the newest member of the growing fraternity of wildfire impacted communities, I know there are many themes and experiences that we all have in common. But let me share where I believe we may be different. In ʻŌlelo Hawaiʻi, our native Hawaiian language, I’m told there is no word for sustainability. The reason is because it is lived and understood like breathing air. It is grounded in the belief and practice that we are all in this together, and that also means ensuring that there is enough for everyone. In Hawaii, the meaning of sustainability is embedded in practices and philosophies that emphasize living in harmony with our environment. We refer to terms, as you heard, Paella refer to Malama, Aina to care for our land, and Pono, meaning righteousness or balance, both which reflect principles of stewardship, respect for resources and a necessary balance that are central to sustainability. Can everyone from Maui with the Hawaii delegation, please stand. Thank you. Please be seated.
In Hawaii while our people reflect a rich and nuanced diversification of culture, cultures and ethnicities, as you can plainly see in our delegation, our indigenous, Native Hawaiian culture is widely embraced with a deep connection to nature and its limited resources. And inherently, we embrace the values associated with sustainability through our customs, our practices and our beliefs, we must acknowledge the deep cultural and historical significance of Maui. This island is not just a destination, it is a living repository of native Hawaiian heritage. The wildfires ravaged areas of immense cultural importance, including sacred lands and historic sites. These are woven into the identity of our community. Recovery in Lahaina and Kula requires more than just rebuilding infrastructure. It calls for a sensitive and respectful approach that honors the rich traditions and historical narratives of our Hawaiian people. In the very beginning, these values and principles have led our recovery efforts.
Our intention is not only rebuilding homes and businesses, our priority has always been to return the heart and soul of our community, which is our people, while our connection to culture and heritage pose significant challenges for FEMA and our federal partners. They adapted to our unique cultural and island community needs, including the effective use of cultural monitors and the flexibility to respond to emerging concerns. There are many other distinguishing challenges that Maui continues to face through our recovery. Perhaps the most obvious includes Maui’s isolated location, the significant challenges of our housing crisis, protection and preservation of cultural and natural resources, dependency on tourism, and future mitigation efforts. Geographic isolation poses logistical challenges that differ from those on the mainland. The need to import materials and coordinate aid are far more complex and expensive, and limits to lands, water resources and supplies have made every step of the recovery process a test of ingenuity and collaboration. We simply did not have the option of driving in temporary housing, and even with the opportunity to import temporary housing, the removal of housing also poses equal challenges.
FEMA and the state quickly pivoted to provide emergency housing to the partnership of our hotels, but this came at a hefty price, and this also posed difficult living circumstances as families endured uncertain living situations, with some families having to move multiple times. Temporary housing was equally daunting, facing the challenges of a pre existing housing crisis and a displacement of over 12,000 people identifying rentals within Lahaina so people could remain in their community was nearly impossible. Adding another layer of challenge was unintended consequences of FEMA’s Rental Assistance Program, which displaced other Maui residents unintentionally.
The preservation of cultural and natural resources is also distinctive. The fire spanned over five square miles, not only destroying 2200 structures, but severely burned and destroyed native forests, grasslands and other vegetation, also destroying numerous historic sites and landmarks. Lahaina, once renowned as the historical capital of our Hawaiian Kingdom was also known as the home of Moku’ula, which was once the site of our royal residence and sacred place for Hawaiian royalty prior to and during the reign of King Kamehameha the third. This site holds deep spiritual and historical importance for Native Hawaiians, as it was, a center of governance, cultural activities and ceremonies. Overall, the significance of Moku’ula lies in its role as a historical and ecological site where restoration efforts can enhance biodiversity, support traditional practices and contribute to broader environmental health and resilience.
The future of Moku’ula will be determined by our community, and we intend to work with local cultural practitioners and community organizations to identify a path forward for this unique place. Also notable is the devastating impact this disaster has had on our busy industry, which serves as Hawaii’s primary economic driver and accounts for 40% of Maui County’s economic output. The disaster brought Maui’s tourism to a trickling halt, and while the rest of Maui continued to welcome visitors, West Maui mourned the loss of 102 loved ones, two still unaccounted for and their beloved Lahaina town. With the loss of so much for so many, finding a time to invite visitors back to West Maui has been a delicate balance.
People have needed time to mourn process trauma and, most importantly, heal on the one year remembrance of the fires, we embraced our community through a series of nine events, which we called Kuhinia Maui. These events were intended to help support our community through a very difficult time to remember our loved ones. This is a time to find solace among our friends and neighbors and provide hope. This was a benchmark in healing that needed to be respected before inviting guests back to our home. A year later, we are slowly starting to recover, but impact has been devastating to working in families and businesses, specifically in hotel and service industries. As a result, we are working to address the urgent need to restore both the physical environment and the economic vitality that tourism brings. And lastly, the wildfire serves as a stark reminder of the broader issue of climate change. As we rebuild, we have an opportunity and indeed an obligation to incorporate strategies that will mitigate future risks and enhance resilience. This is not just about recovering from a disaster, it’s about preparing for our future and doing everything we can to prevent something like this from ever happening again.
Moving forward, we look to the future with hope and a sense of opportunity. Our policies for our recovery, future preparedness and mitigation efforts will always be driven by our values, which are deeply rooted in our unbreakable connection to our land, our culture and our heritage. Our recovery from what many, including FEMA, have called is the most complex mega fire in US history, which poses multifaceted challenges that are unique in its cultural, economic, environmental and logistical dimensions. It requires a recovery strategy that is innovative. Is as innovative as it is inclusive, as respectful as it is effective. Together, we have the chance to not only rebuild, but to do so in a way that honors our past, supports our present and secures a resilient future. Mahalo. Thank you.
