Yesterday, Governor Green announced the members of the Climate Advisory Team (CAT) led by Chris Benjamin, chair of Climate Hawai‘i and a special advisor to the Governor.

The CAT, which is comprised of unpaid volunteers who do not require Senate confirmation, is charged with developing policy recommendations to minimize the impacts of future climate-related natural disasters and to speed recovery from the physical and financial damage they cause.  Its goal is to propose a package of bills for the Governor’s review, to be submitted for consideration in the 2025 legislative session.

The CAT includes local experts in climate, environmental stewardship and finance and insurance, who are dedicated to finding solutions that emphasize justice, equity and aloha ʻāina.

Recovery strategies that the CAT pursues will seek to address the difficult insurance market facing the state, with a goal of creating a disaster relief fund or otherwise providing a financial safety net for those impacted by natural disasters.

Governor Green and Chair Benjamin have added the following members to the Climate Advisory Team:

 

Chris Benjamin, chair

Chris Benjamin, retired CEO of Alexander & Baldwin, now dedicates his time to climate-related initiatives. In addition to chairing the CAT, he founded and chairs Climate Hawai‘i, an initiative of the Hawai‘i Executive Collaborative, and serves as a special advisor to Governor Green.

 

 

Denise Antolini

Denise Antolini has more than 30 years of experience in the environmental law field in Hawai‘i. She retired in 2023 as Professor of Law Emerita from the William S. Richardson School of Law, University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa. She is active in North Shore community and environmental issues.

 

 

Robin Campaniano

Robin Campaniano served as the state Insurance Commissioner and is the retired president and CEO of AIG Hawai‘i Insurance Co. Campaniano chairs the Shidler College of Business Advisory Council and the Hawaiʻi Clean Energy Initiative Steering Committee.

 

 

Chip Fletcher

Charles “Chip” Fletcher, Ph.D., serves as the Governor’s special advisor for climate and resilience and as the interim dean of the School of Ocean and Earth Science and Technology at the University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa. He brings extensive expertise in climate change, coastal community resiliency and sea level rise impacts.

 

 

Kāwika Riley

Kāwika Riley, Ph.D., is the vice president of External Affairs at Kupu, a leading youth-focused sustainability nonprofit working throughout Hawaiʻi and the U.S. Affiliated Pacific. His background includes conservation and growing Hawaiʻi’s sustainability workforce.

 

 

Gwen Yamamoto Lau

Gwen Yamamoto Lau is the executive director of the Hawai‘i Green Infrastructure Authority and was also recently appointed by Governor Green to serve on a joint Executive-Legislative Property Insurance Task Force. In addition to a background in banking and extensive experience in financing resilience initiatives, Gwen was appointed by U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Michael Regan to serve on its Environmental Financial Advisory Board.

 

 

Photos courtesy of Hawaiʻi Governor’s Office