Our Mission
Youth Leadership - Global Education - Community Engagement
We seek to foster a “LŌKAHI generation” of young leaders that are committed to bringing balance to society. Building off of their appreciation of cultural practices and values, we aim to empower the development of the skills and mindsets essential to pono interactions between man and nature; abilities intrinsic to thriving in and contributing to a more cooperative, prosperous, and harmonious world.
Co-Chairs:
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Dr. Vince M. OKADA
Vince is an assistant professor of social work and BSW program chair at Hawaiʻi Pacific University School of Social Work. He completed his Ph.D. in social welfare from University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa. He also holds a master’s degree in international public policy and management from the University of Southern California, a bachelor’s degree in commercial recreation and planning from Montclair State University in New Jersey, and a certificate in social change from Brown University and Institute for Humane Studies. Vince was a fellow of the East-West Center’s Asia Pacific Leadership Program. He has a german shepherd dog, Hermes.
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Yukari TAKAI
Originally from Gunma, Japan, Yukari earned her bachelor's degree in Marketing, Business from the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa and associates degree from Seattle Central Community College. For the past 15 years, she has been working in the Hawaii & Japan music markets as a PR/Marketing Manager. She has also served as a committee member for The Change Academy since 2016. During her free time, she enjoys travel, discovering quality coffees, cuisines and wine. Yukari's dream is to assist with connecting her home country of Japan to her new home of Hawaiʻi, and strengthening relations.
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​Yoh KAWANAMI
Yoh Kawanami is a manager at Hawaiian Electric Company. He is responsible for the implementation of demand response programs to enhance grid reliability and integration of additional renewable energy. 
​Yoh holds a Master’s in Engineering Management from Duke University and a Bachelor of Science degree in Aeronautics and Astronautics Engineering from University of Washington. A certified Project Management Professional (PMP), Yoh serves on multiple boards and volunteers for various non-profit organizations mostly focused on education. Born in Guam, Yoh is a bilingual that has been supporting Change Academy since 2016.
Facilitators:
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​Yoshi TSURUMI
Yoshi has had over 20 years of academic and professional experiences in international education, leadership development, and business consulting. He earned his master’s degree in International Educational Development from Teachers College Columbia University and bachelor’s degree in International Studies and Chinese from University of Oregon. Yoshi is a founder of Hawaiʻi Innovative Knowledge Institute (HIKI) and a former program coordinator of the United Nations’ CyberSchoolBus, the first online extracurricular program launched by the UN Global Teaching and Learning Program.
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Miku NARISAWA
Miku currently attends the Graduate School of Humanities at Meiji University in Tokyo, majoring in Peace and Environment. She is involved in the local development projects to support and promote agriculture and aquaculture in her hometown Miyagi prefecture. She earned her bachelor’s degree in Peace and Conflict Resolution from the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa in 2020. During college, Miku interned at the Pearl Harbor National Memorial, where she developed the global peace education program for youth. After experiencing the Great East Japan Earthquake at the age of 12, creating peace in her community and for the people around her became her passion. She was a member of cohort 1 of The Change Academy in 2016 and has continued to serve as a facilitator since then.