In the Fall 2019 edition of Pacific Resource Partnership’s survey known as Hawai’i Perspectives, a respondent shared that, “If you don’t like the way things are going, call your representative or submit [and] present testimony during public hearings. If there are enough people making the effort, our collective voices will be heard.”

Fast-forward to the present and it is unfortunate Hawaii has seen a decline in how the public perceives the current direction of our state and the many issues we must tackle, from affordable housing to homelessness and the high cost of living. Contained within this pessimism is a common complaint that it’s extremely difficult for the average resident to remain engaged and politically active.

After all, when people feel their voices and opinions are not being considered, they feel isolated and left behind. When this pattern is repeated over and over, these same individuals may eventually tune out and reject any engagement with our elected leaders.

In fact, in 2022 less than half of Hawaii’s registered voters cast a ballot. This troubling lack of voter participation continued a worrisome trend of Hawaii residents turning their backs on civic engagement. Moreover, the turnout for the 2022 election omits thousands of our neighbors, friends and family members who felt that registering to vote was not a priority or will not make a difference.

When less than half of Hawaii’s ohana make their voices heard, our representative democracy is unlikely to produce the results that takes all of us into account.

At our organization, we often repeat the mantra of “more voices, more choices,” which means the best solutions are only possible when more perspectives enter the public sphere. By allowing greater participation in how government functions, we believe the people of Hawaii will be better served. The formula is quite simple really: more reasonable and balanced voices lead to more choices and better outcomes.

In the past, it has been challenging for citizens who are busy raising their families and trying to make ends meet to make their positions known to elected officials. From limited parking options to in-person requirements for oral testimony, and inconveniently scheduled meetings, there are always hurdles for Hawaii residents to participate in the civic process.

Thankfully, innovative technology coupled with changes to rules and policies have helped break down some of the barriers to public participation. It is in this spirit of overcoming hurdles to civic engagement that Pacific Resource Partnership has produced the Hawaii Directory of Public Officials every year since 2018. The directory comes in the form of a pocketbook-sized publication that lists the names, office locations, official phone numbers, email addresses and other contact information for our elected officials at the federal, state, and county levels.

By making this information available to the public, the goal is to have as many Hawaii residents as possible participate in our legislative process and make their voices heard. To this end, our organization has printed more than 22,000 copies of this year’s directory and making them available for free at strategic locations across the state, such as state libraries, local schools, government agencies, county councils and the Hawaii State Capitol. For those who don’t obtain a hard copy of the directory, the Kakou app can be downloaded on Apple or Android smartphones.

As state House Speaker Scott Saiki and Senate President Ron Kouchi say in the opening pages of the directory, “We are all one ohana and it will take all of us to overcome the challenges facing Hawaii.”

Ian Terayama and Michelle Ane are program manager and associate program manager, respectively, of Pacific Resource Partnership (PRP), which represents the Hawaii Regional Council of Carpenters and 240-plus contractors in Hawaii.