Respecting this constitutional structure is especially critical in matters of war and foreign policy. Our nation cannot call itself a democracy when Congress, the “people’s branch,” is abdicating its war-making authority to the president while lives are at stake and economies are faltering.
HONOLULU, HI— For seven months, the Center for Tomorrow's Leaders (CTL) asked people across the state about the pressures they face, what they fear Hawaiʻi could lose, and what needs to change to build a better future. Today, CTL released its findings as FACING OUR FEARS: Listening to Hawaiʻi, a youth-led effort built around a progression from fear, to listening, to understanding, to action.
“We were actually listening to the middle class,” said CTL Vanguard Janyah Momoe. “We’re not, you know, just sending them a form for an online survey. We actually wanted to hear their voices and have that in-person connection with each interviewee.”
The project was managed by CTL's Vanguard network, alumni of the organization's leadership programs.
Katie Chang, CTL Executive Director explained,"We wanted our young leaders to begin with something that sounds simple but is critical to leadership: listening. Before we talk about solutions for Hawaiʻi, we need to understand what people are experiencing and what they fear we could lose. Our young leaders heard those concerns directly, and now the challenge is how we turn that understanding into action."
From January through July 2026, 53 CTL student leaders conducted conversations with 405 residents in more than 60 communities across Kauaʻi, Oʻahu, Maui and Hawaiʻi Island.
Key Areas among the findings:
- The high cost of living is Hawaiʻi's most pressing concern, followed by transportation and infrastructure, and affordable housing.
- Residents of different ages expressed remarkably similar concerns about Hawaiʻi's direction and their ability to build a future here.
- Participants expressed concern about quality of life and whether strong families, community relationships and the aloha spirit are being strained.
- People still believe Hawaiʻi can change course. Despite their concerns, residents offered community-centered ideas for creating a more caring, connected and resilient Hawaiʻi.
Instead of a questionnaire, CTL youth leaders met people in homes, garages, coffee shops, workplaces and other gathering places for open-ended "talk story" conversations.
“As young leaders, our conception of leadership can be more flexible, experimental, probing, and so we don’t know what’s what or what’s right for Hawai’i yet,” said Damien Chang, CTL Vanguard. “We’ve just listened to our peers, our neighbors, our aunts and uncles’ talk story, and learned how they feel about Hawaiʻi.”
Those conversations also revealed that despite different backgrounds and experiences, residents shared a common desire for Hawaiʻi’s future.
“Even if we all come from different communities, we all have the same hope and dream to just have a better Hawaiʻi, not just for ourselves but for our family, friends, and our just greater Hawaiʻi community,” CTL Vanguard Hollie Radar said.
For CTL, the findings are not intended to be the end of the conversation.
FACING OUR FEARS is designed to move from fear → listening → understanding → action, using what residents shared to encourage broader conversations about Hawaiʻi's future and the choices necessary to shape it.
The full FACING OUR FEARS: Listening to Hawaiʻi report is available on this webpage.
CTL’s Vanguard is currently initiating projects to address key findings, which will also be shared on the website.
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