Hawaii's Motivation To Grow Up On Big Island

I believe a lack of drive and motivation for people growing up on Big Island is really hurting our community. So many smart and excited kids graduate from high school, go to college on the mainland, and end up getting a job there and barely come back to see family here. This reduces the amount of talent we have on the island to start innovative projects or fix critical issues.

Keeping Hawaii's best and brightest working with the community is dificult, it's not like we can just tie a rope to them and pull them back when we need them. What we need is for Hawaii's youth to want to stay in the islands and be a positive impact. This means showing the children of Hawaii the possibilities and oppourtunities this island has to offer before they leave
for college on the mainland. Many kids leave after high school believing the only oppourtunities here are working at a hotel or in construction. In honesty, I used to believe that too. However (especially in my senior year), I've realized how amazing our community is, and all the great things that can be done in it. From telescopes on Mauna Kea, to startups in Kona town, to research at UH Hilo, there's really no limit to what our community can achieve; we just need the pioneers to get there.