About
Who We Are
Hawaiʻi Green Growth is a statewide, trust-based network that brings together government, business, and community leaders to advance a more sustainable and resilient Hawaiʻi. As the backbone organization for the Aloha+ Challenge, we align partners around shared economic, social, and environmental priorities, so efforts are coordinated, not siloed, and progress is made together.
As a United Nations Local2030 Hub Center of Excellence, HGG also serves as a platform to share Hawaiʻi’s experience and leadership with other island and global communities, while learning from partners facing similar challenges.
Vision
A thriving, resilient, and regenerative future for Hawaiʻi that inspires and leads Island Earth towards aloha.
Mission
Hawaiʻi Green Growth is a trust-based network organization that drives collective impact through measurable
concrete action, inspiring local and global communities to advance regenerative economic, social, and
environmental goals.
Click to view HGG's full Charter, including our Vision statement, Mission statement, and Guiding Principles.
What We Do
As a statewide sustainability hub, Hawai‘i Green Growth public-private partners are collaborating to advance:
- Hawai‘i’s statewide Aloha+ Challenge sustainability and climate goals
- Open-data impact Dashboard with agreed indicators
- Joint policy priorities, innovative financing, and resilient infrastructure solutions
- Educational pathways for the next generation of leaders
- Scalable island models to achieve the UN SDGs and Paris Agreement
The Collective Impact Initiative
Collective impact is "the commitment of a group of important actors from different sectors to a common agenda for solving a specific social problem," as defined in 2011 by the Stanford Social Review. Hawai'i Green Growth exists today as the backbone organization stewarding the Aloha+ Goals and mobilizing the collective Network behind them for action and implementation. Our responsibility is to ensure that Aloha+ functions as a living, operating system for statewide collective action for a sustainable future, not just a framework.
Our Process
Today, Hawaiʻi Green Growth continues to be a vibrant hub of public-private partnerships that convenes regularly to identify shared priorities, determine indicators to measure our goals and collaborate to drive meaningful and concrete action. Our six working groups gather quarterly to focus on discussions around data, policy and legislation, local-global next generation leadership, energy equity, CEO-led Sustainable Business Forum, and the Ala Wai Watershed Collaboration.
Political Leadership & Local Goals
Public-Private Partnerships
Measurement
Concrete Action
Our Approach: Three Pillars for Action
Building on over a decade of partnership and progress, Hawaiʻi Green Growth’s work is guided by three interconnected pillars that define how we drive systems change and accelerate impact toward 2030.
Pillar 1: Leadership and Coordination as a Statewide Sustainability Hub
We serve as a connector and convener, bringing together partners across government, business, and community sectors to align efforts and drive coordinated action. By strengthening communication, facilitating collaboration, and ensuring the right stakeholders are at the table, we help transform shared priorities into collective progress.
Pillar 2: Sensemaking for Strategic Decision-Making
We translate data into clear, decision-ready insights that help partners understand where progress is needed and what actions will make the greatest impact. By shifting from reporting to strategic analysis, we support more informed, aligned, and effective decision-making across the Aloha+ Goals.
Pillar 3: Aligning Pathways for Action
We create clear and accessible ways for individuals and organizations to take action. Through programs, partnerships, funding pathways, and workforce development, we help turn knowledge and intent into tangible outcomes, ensuring that partners across Hawaiʻi can contribute to meaningful, measurable progress.
History of Hawaiʻi Green Growth
HGG emerged as a response to the 2011 Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Summit in Honolulu. It aimed to identify crucial green growth priorities and promote a sustainable economy, particularly within the context of an island. The UN acknowledged HGG's exceptional efforts and invited it to become one of the pioneering Local2030 sustainability hubs in November 2018. HGG's recognition as the first Island and Pacific hub underscores its collective accomplishments as a public-private partnership through the Aloha+ Challenge, a local framework that strives to achieve the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).