Protecting Hawaii’s Nature Through A Volunteer App
Donation protected
Donate. Unite. Preserve. These are the actions that are in urgent need to alleviate the grave situation of Hawaii’s beaches. I was born and raised in Hawaii, and my goal is to develop an app that helps individuals, organizations, and the government cooperate effectively to coordinate volunteering and clean-up events.
I am a Hawaii-raised student working with local organizations to save the Hawaiian bays, and I am developing an app that unites members of different demographics to help Hawaii preserve its natural beauty.
When people imagine or see images of Hawaiian beaches, they envision something like this:
Courtesy of Travel + Leisure
However, this is a picture of the past. Hawaii’s beaches no longer look like this. Now, local residents of Hawaii face a different reality:
Courtesy of Alchetron
Pictured above is Kamilo Beach, which is located on the southeast coast of Oahu. Every year, 15 to 20 tons of trash wash up to the coastline of Kamilo Beach, which is just one of many beaches in Hawaii that face similar problems in regards to marine debris.
Although the residents of Hawaii are the victims in this situation, we must all take on the responsibility of keeping our local environments clean and address this crisis.
In addition to marine litter, there is another threat to Hawaii’s ecosystem: invasive algae.
Above is a photo taken in 2020 by an organization that I am currently working with that focuses specifically on the restoration and care of Maunalua Bay. This is just one of many photos where Hawaii’s beaches are enveloped by invasive algae.
Although Hawaii’s situation is not as severe as that of other parts in the world, it has the potential to worsen at an accelerating pace and poses a significant risk to residents and local businesses such as the tourism industry. We can no longer carelessly watch on as spectators. To prevent this, action must be taken immediately.
What we need is an organized effort among the residents of Hawaii to constantly keep our islands clean from the influx of marine trash and invasive algae. We need people to be aware of the problems and stay connected with other motivated individuals to constantly work on addressing these issues.
I am currently trying to develop an app that will be able to connect residents of Hawaii as well as visitors through organized events that address the environmental problems on the islands. This app will work with existing local organizations to coordinate volunteering efforts. Based on the user’s location, nearby opportunities will be listed for the user to participate in.
Many people truly want to help improve the situation, but they often do not know where to look or are not aware of the opportunities. In addition, Hawaii attracts millions of tourists every year, and many of these tourists desire to have unique Hawaiian experiences that they will remember even after their trips. Volunteering events, such as whale watching and protecting sea turtle hatchlings, can allow tourists to both have fun and help local efforts. With this app, the user will be able easily access many volunteering opportunities nearby and we will be able to coordinate efforts in a more organized manner for everyone to follow and help save Hawaii’s beautiful beaches.
The funding from the GoFundMe page will go into the development of the app. While I am determined to make a change, I don’t yet have the necessary skills to make a fully-functioning complex app that connects a large number of users and have to rely on other skilled individuals to create the app. Once the design for the app is complete; the funds will be used for the programming, testing, and piloting of the app in the future.
Thank you for your support.
Below is the current design for the app I have developed:
A team picture with the organization I am working with:
I am a Hawaii-raised student working with local organizations to save the Hawaiian bays, and I am developing an app that unites members of different demographics to help Hawaii preserve its natural beauty.
When people imagine or see images of Hawaiian beaches, they envision something like this:
Courtesy of Travel + Leisure
However, this is a picture of the past. Hawaii’s beaches no longer look like this. Now, local residents of Hawaii face a different reality:
Courtesy of Alchetron
Pictured above is Kamilo Beach, which is located on the southeast coast of Oahu. Every year, 15 to 20 tons of trash wash up to the coastline of Kamilo Beach, which is just one of many beaches in Hawaii that face similar problems in regards to marine debris.
Although the residents of Hawaii are the victims in this situation, we must all take on the responsibility of keeping our local environments clean and address this crisis.
In addition to marine litter, there is another threat to Hawaii’s ecosystem: invasive algae.
Above is a photo taken in 2020 by an organization that I am currently working with that focuses specifically on the restoration and care of Maunalua Bay. This is just one of many photos where Hawaii’s beaches are enveloped by invasive algae.
Although Hawaii’s situation is not as severe as that of other parts in the world, it has the potential to worsen at an accelerating pace and poses a significant risk to residents and local businesses such as the tourism industry. We can no longer carelessly watch on as spectators. To prevent this, action must be taken immediately.
What we need is an organized effort among the residents of Hawaii to constantly keep our islands clean from the influx of marine trash and invasive algae. We need people to be aware of the problems and stay connected with other motivated individuals to constantly work on addressing these issues.
I am currently trying to develop an app that will be able to connect residents of Hawaii as well as visitors through organized events that address the environmental problems on the islands. This app will work with existing local organizations to coordinate volunteering efforts. Based on the user’s location, nearby opportunities will be listed for the user to participate in.
Many people truly want to help improve the situation, but they often do not know where to look or are not aware of the opportunities. In addition, Hawaii attracts millions of tourists every year, and many of these tourists desire to have unique Hawaiian experiences that they will remember even after their trips. Volunteering events, such as whale watching and protecting sea turtle hatchlings, can allow tourists to both have fun and help local efforts. With this app, the user will be able easily access many volunteering opportunities nearby and we will be able to coordinate efforts in a more organized manner for everyone to follow and help save Hawaii’s beautiful beaches.
The funding from the GoFundMe page will go into the development of the app. While I am determined to make a change, I don’t yet have the necessary skills to make a fully-functioning complex app that connects a large number of users and have to rely on other skilled individuals to create the app. Once the design for the app is complete; the funds will be used for the programming, testing, and piloting of the app in the future.
Thank you for your support.
Below is the current design for the app I have developed:
A team picture with the organization I am working with:
Organizer and beneficiary
Yongjin Park
Organizer
Pepsi-Cola Sign, NY
Jeffery Ahn
Beneficiary