LAHAINA — The Lahaina Public Library will begin a new three-month series of Author Meets and Salutes with the authors of the book on Saturday, September 17 from 2 to 3:30 p.m “Water and electricity in West Maui.”
Meet authors Jonathan Scheuer and Bianca Isaki as they discuss their book. Their presentation will be followed by a Q&A session.
“Water and Electricity in West Maui” draws readers’ attention to the ways in which control of water resources in West Maui and throughout Hawaii was key to the creation and maintenance of political and economic power and privilege.
Written by two leading proponents of progressive change in Hawaii, the book highlights what was only touched upon in previous volumes on water rights or land tenure on the islands, with particular attention to the environment, history, and communities of West Maui.
Individual chapters on physical and legal infrastructure are invaluable stand-alone guides to key aspects of water management in the state and in the territory.
One chapter, for example, looks at the state’s recent efforts to restore power flow – a topic otherwise rarely addressed in the published literature.
The book also delves into the inherent flaws and unsustainability of the state of Hawaii’s groundwater management “sustainable yield”, which will have profound implications for the future of Hawaii’s water supply in a changing climate.
Overall, the authors show liberating ways forward with clear explanations of historical change and ongoing bureaucratic practice.
Instead of another discourse on how bad practices of the past have created a beleaguered present, they propose how water and energy can be better shared in West Maui and Hawaii to achieve lasting prosperity for the diverse people in those communities.
“Water and Electricity in West Maui” is of interest to scholars and historians and a must-read for practitioners of water management and control, and contemporary environmental and indigenous struggles in Hawaii and the Pacific.
Scheuer helps organizations deal with environmental conflicts and seeks sustainable prosperity for the people and resources involved.
Isaki is an author, independent attorney, community activist and director of the North Beach-West Maui Benefit Fund.
She received her PhD from the University of Hawaii at Manoa Department of Political Science for research on Asian settler colonialism and plantation worker organizing, completed a postdoctoral fellowship at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, returned to Hawaii to teach Women’s Studies, and then graduated summa cum laude from the William S. Richardson School of Law.
Isaki has contributed to the following West Maui-oriented books: “Tourism Affects West Maui” (2016), “Social Change in West Maui” (2019), “Civil Society in West Maui” (2021) and “Water and Electricity in West Maui” (2021).
The schedule also includes:
Sep 24 – Authors Dawn Hegger-Nordblom, Albert Perez and Mason Yamaki discuss chapters out “Thinking about traffic in West Maui;”
Oct. 1 – Authors Sydney Iaukea and Will Caron highlight chapters from “Civil Society in West Maui”;
Oct 8 – Author Kahala Johnson discusses a chapter “Civil Society in West Maui”;
Nov. 5 – Author Brian Richardson presents at the “Index to Lahaina News”;
Nov. 12 – Authors Ikaika Hussey and Jackie Palmer Lasky detail chapters out “Civil Society in West Maui”;
November 19 – Authors Benjamin and Victoria Trevino cover a chapter “Thinking about traffic in West Maui;”
November 26 – Author Ron Williams discusses a chapter “Civil Society in West Maui.”
The Lahaina Public Library is located at 680 Wharf St. near the Port of Lahaina.
For more information on the series, co-sponsored by the North Beach West Maui Benefit Fund, visit www.librarieshawaii.org/events.
If you require assistance/service or other accommodation due to a disability, please contact the library at least seven days prior to the program date. The library will endeavor to accommodate all requests for accommodation.
Comments are closed.