Age: 19
Hometown: Kona, Hawai‘i
Seed is a regenerative farmer committed to local food production, reforestation, and the preservation of Hawaiʻi’s genetic plant diversity. In addition to working on increasing soil health to support its carbon sequestration capacity, Seed is actively working to reforest native forests to mitigate climate change by curating native seeds, which are foundational to Hawai‘i’s food, life, culture, and genetic diversity, and essential to Hawai‘i’s resilience to changing climate conditions. Seed is also working to establish a carrot and beet farm on the Big Island.
Increased temperatures, extreme precipitation events, and extended drought conditions are impeding Seed’s ability to garden, grow, and restore the native plants that they rely upon for food and to nurture their wellbeing and connection to the Hawaiian environment. Seed knows that a central piece of their life as a farmer is endangered, and fears that many people will face hunger and starvation in the future.
Additionally, tropical storms, including hurricanes, which are becoming more severe, have impacted Seed and their family, causing them to board up their home and seek shelter on higher ground. In July 2020, when Seed previously lived on Oʻahu they saw the eye of Hurricane Douglas 30 miles offshore, the closest a hurricane had come to O‘ahu in recorded history.