Statewide community climate and health preparedness program

Establish a statewide Community Climate and Health Preparedness Program through the Department of Health (DOH) to help communities prepare for heat, wildfire smoke, and storms, which pose serious health risks in Hawaiʻi, especially for kūpuna, young children, outdoor workers, and families with limited resources.

Nurses, doctors, and community health workers would lead free workshops where residents learn how to protect their health and plan a project that addresses a local need. Each participating community would receive up to $12,500 to carry out its project.

How it works

Each workshop would have two parts. A nurse, doctor, or community health worker would explain how a particular hazard affects health, which warning signs to watch for, and how residents can protect themselves and the people they care for. Residents would then identify where their community is most exposed and develop a project to reduce the risk.

Each site would have up to $12,500 to put its plan into action. Participants would also receive take-home educational materials and preparedness kits.

Workshops would be held in familiar community spaces, with evening or weekend scheduling based on residents’ availability. Meals, childcare, and interpretation would help more people attend. A hybrid option could be offered where practical.

Starting with heat

Heat would be the first topic, building on workshops held across Hawaiʻi Island in 2026. The Hawaiʻi County Office of Sustainability, Climate, Equity & Resilience (OSCER), Hawaiʻi Public Health Institute (HIPHI), and Climate & Health Hawaiʻi organized those workshops with Vibrant Hawaiʻi Resilience Hubs and other local partners.

That work produced a curriculum, workbook, cooling kits, and a group of trained facilitators. These resources could be adapted for other communities, languages, and islands.

Community projects could include shade structures, tree planting, cooling supplies for resilience hubs, improvements to community facilities, or designated cooling spaces.

Additional workshop topics

The program could expand to cover other climate hazards affecting health in Hawaiʻi.

Wildfire smoke and air quality

Workshops would explain how wildfire smoke affects the lungs and heart, who faces the greatest risk, and how to use air quality alerts. Participants would learn when to stay indoors, how to improve indoor air quality, and how to protect kūpuna, keiki, and people with asthma or heart conditions.

Residents could use their project funds to establish a clean air room at a resilience hub or church, build box fan filters for kūpuna homes, create a phone tree for smoke alerts, or work with schools and senior centers on plans for poor air quality days.

Storms, flooding, and power outages

Health risks can continue long after a storm passes. Power outages can interrupt the use of medical equipment and refrigeration for medicine. Flooding can contaminate water, cleanup can cause injuries, and extended disruptions can leave residents without help.

Workshops would cover planning for medications and medical devices, keeping food and water safe, and checking on neighbors who may need assistance. Community projects could include a voluntary check-in network, a backup power and charging station at a resilience hub, or shared emergency supplies.

DOH could contract with community partners to offer workshops based on local needs, prioritizing smoke preparedness in areas with wildfire risk and flooding preparedness in low-lying communities.

Tracking results

Participants would complete a short survey before and after each workshop to measure what they learned and how prepared they feel. Community partners would follow up with each site after about three and six months to check whether its project was completed and how it is being used.

An annual report would summarize attendance, survey results, community projects, and follow-up findings. DOH and the counties could use those findings to improve the workshops and guide future funding. Reporting would build on the summaries already developed for the Hawaiʻi Island heat workshops.

Geographic reach

The program would serve about 20 communities statewide each year, roughly five per county. Sites would be selected based on hazard exposure and vulnerability, in coordination with county resilience offices and existing resilience hubs.

Potential partners

DOH would administer the program, working with county resilience and emergency management offices, Climate & Health Hawaiʻi, HIPHI, and local host organizations.

Estimated cost

The program would cost approximately $620,000 per year for two years, or $1.24 million total, with the intent to continue if results support ongoing funding.

Annual expense | Estimated cost

Workshops at 20 sites, including facilitator and host stipends, kits, materials, meals, childcare, and translation | $140,000

Community project funds, up to $12,500 per site | $250,000

Development of wildfire smoke and storm modules in year one; additional materials and language options in year two | $60,000

Statewide coordination, facilitator training, evaluation, and reporting | $140,000

DOH contract administration | $30,000

Annual total | $620,000

Expected results

The program would help residents recognize health risks, prepare for emergencies, and support their neighbors. It would also fund practical improvements chosen by the people who use them, such as shaded gathering places, clean air rooms, and shared emergency supplies.

Community plans and project results would give counties a clearer picture of local needs and priorities for hazard planning. Over time, the program could help establish ongoing community preparedness efforts, similar to the role Firewise has played in wildfire preparedness.