Focus Maui Nui finishes first step toward vision for county

The Maui News
Sunday, September 28, 2003

By Jeanne Skog

Viewpoint

Focus Maui Nui - the groundbreaking, community-based process to define a vision for Maui County - has recently concluded its first phase, giving our islands a critical first step toward a future where residents' dreams are realized and where concerns are addressed.

Focus Maui Nui is a public/private initiative that has brought nearly 1,700 residents, representing the islands' rich diversity, into a three-month conversation about the values that bind us and the priorities we face. The vision resulting from this input and the next phases of the process will soon be incorporated into the county's official plans.

Sponsored by the Maui Economic Development Board (MEDB), the County of Maui, the Maui Chamber of Commerce, and a collaboration of community-based organizations, Focus Maui Nui evolved out of local demand for a county vision. Simply put, residents believe that plans for
Maui County should reflect the real will of the people. Our islands are in need of a community-generated road map to the future to guide and improve decisions and to hold community leaders accountable. With the broadbased, grass-roots nature of Focus Maui Nui, we believe that our islands are well on their way to this goal.

In more than 165 group sessions, residents throughout the islands added their voices and shared ideas about the future of the county - all of its islands and all of its communities. Now, the comments and ideas of participants are being compiled and prepared in order to form a set of guiding values and priorities. Already, government, community and industry leaders have pledged to uphold this resident-driven vision and to heed the collective recommendations.

While the analysis is under way and findings are not yet available, there is one thing we know already: Those who participated in Focus Maui Nui sessions reflected the passion, commitment, and true diversity of our islands.

To reach a cross-section of the community, information about this project was disseminated in the media, on bulletin boards, with utility bills, at churches, shopping centers, and workplaces - even on the doorsteps of residents' homes. Because of that outreach, Focus Maui Nui benefited from the wisdom of residents in every district in the islands, representing a range of age groups and cultural backgrounds, as well as many perspectives about our shared future.

Among the participants were many residents whose families have lived in the islands for generations and others who have only recently made Maui County their home. Some residents who had never before attended a public forum or even voted in an election contributed their thoughts and experiences for the first time. Teenagers, seniors, new parents, business owners, artisans, farmers and many others brought unique perspectives to the table and worked together to hammer out recommendations for the key challenges we face.

Now that the first phase of Focus Maui Nui has drawn to a close, on behalf of the project, I'd like to extend my thanks and one last request.

First, the thanks: Focus Maui Nui is grateful to everyone who gave their time and shared their insights by participating in a group session. Residents who dream of a bright future on the islands, who grapple withthe pace and nature of change in Maui County, who have unique ideas about what this place should be for their children's and grandchildren's generations all came to the table for the benefit of the whole community. Focus Maui Nui thanks each of you who contributed to this vision.

And now the request: By the end of the year, when the analysis is complete, residents will have another opportunity to engage in Focus Maui Nui as the findings are publicly shared. Then we as a community will embark on the next phase of this important venture: moving ahead as a community to enact this vision, our collective belief about what's best for Maui County.

Everyone has a part to play in the realization of a better future on our islands. I hope you will join MEDB and its community partners in taking the next step, together.

__________________________________
Jeanne Skog is the president and chief executive officer of the Maui Economic Development Board, a nonprofit agency with the mission of providing leadership in the development of a strong, diversified economy. It has offices in Kihei.

------------------------------------------------------------------------