Dr. Kaipo Perez III,
Board Chair

Craig Takamine,
Board Secretary

Craig Takamine, Board Secretary, is the President of Takamine Construction, Inc. which is based on the Big Island of Hawaii. Craig and his wife Audrey started the company in 2003. Takamine Construction specializes in commercial and industrial repair and maintenance, tenant improvements, commercial restoration and renovation, and new commercial and industrial construction. The company continues to focus on high quality, reliable performance, and project completion for its many repeat customers no matter what size the job.

Along with being a husband and father of two active children, Craig enjoys volunteering and giving back to the community which has given him and his family so much. Current and past involvement includes the Hawaii County Water Board, Hawaii Island Contractors Association, Kanoelehua Industrial Area Association, Hawaii Island Chamber of Commerce, State of Hawaii Contractors License Board, Chamber of Commerce of Hawaii, Malama ‘Aina Foundation, Goodwill Industries, and the Hawaii Small Business Regulatory Review Board. Awards and accomplishments include the Pacific Century Fellows Program, Pacific Business News 40 Under Forty, SBA Small Business Advocate for Minorities recipient, and the Partners in Development- Ulu Hana Pewa Awardee.

Current affiliations: Director/Government Affairs Chair of the Kanoelehua Industrial Area Association; Board Member of the Chamber of Commerce of Hawai‘i; Hawai‘i Island Advisory Board Member for Easter Seals Hawai‘i; Advisory Board Member for Hawai‘i Community College’s Career & Technical Education Program; Member of the Hawai‘i Island Chamber of Commerce; Member of the Japanese Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Hawai‘i; Member of the Portuguese Chamber of Commerce; County of Hawai‘i Banyan Drive Task Force.

Noelani Kalipi,
Board Director

Noelani Kalipi, Board Director leads the development of utility-scale renewable energy projects as Executive Vice-President of Progression Energy, specializing in floating offshore wind in Hawaiʻi, the Pacific region, and Asia. Progression Energy utilizes a relationship-based business model focused on inclusion and reciprocity with the communities it serves. Noelani also consults with organizations and businesses. She assists with project development and management, strategic planning, and meaningful community engagement. Noelani specializes in the areas of systems planning, food security, energy security, community empowerment, and helping communities to create and implement “courageous space” for difficult and emotionally charged discussions related to land use, ancestral knowledge, indigenous rights, economic development, and access to capital. She gained extensive federal policy experience working for US Senator Daniel Akaka in Washington, DC., and served on active duty in the United States Army Judge Advocate General’s Corps. Noelani has a bachelor’s degree from George Mason University and a law degree from George Washington University. She is married to Gaylen Kalipi and has two daughters, Hauʻoli and Kuʻuipo. Ms. Kalipi coaches fast-pitch softball and volunteers for various nonprofit organizations during her free time.

Current affiliations: Executive Vice-President for Progression Energy, Civilian Aide to the Secretary of the Arm (CASA) for Hawaiʻi, Member of the Hawaiʻi Leadership Forum, Member of the First Nations Futures Program, Executive Director for Kohala Institute, Board Member of PBS Hawaii, Board Member of Natural Energy Laboratory of Hawaii Authority, Board Member of The Daniel Kahikina Akaka Family Foundation, Board Member of Blue Planet Foundation

Jim Gomez,
Board Treasurer

Current affiliations: Owner and operator of own CPA firm for the past 44 years; family business Marujyu Market, operating in Aiea for the past 20 years selling/catering Hawaiian food; President and Chairman of the Board for the Independent Grocers of Hawai‘i, a co-op of independent supermarkets. 

William (Billy) K. Richards, Jr.,
Board Director

William (Billy) K. Richards, Jr., Board Director, has served as director on several public service, Native Hawaiian and educational boards. He has held management positions in both the public and private sector, primarily in the field of aquaculture. He spent close to two decades at the Oceanic Institute, a private non-profit research organization. Currently, Billy is the Hui Nohona Manager for Administration for Partners in Development Foundation, a public not-for-profit company that serves the Native Hawaiian community through social and educational programs. He has been involved with Hawaiʻi’s voyaging community since 1975 and has voyaged aboard Hōkūleʻa, Hawaiʻiloa, Makaliʻi, Hokualakaʻi, and Hikianalia throughout the Pacific and around the world. He serves as a delegate to ʻOhana Waʻa, a round-table non-profit collaborative of voyaging organizations from all of the Hawaiian Islands. Billy is married and has a daughter who sailed with him aboard the voyaging canoe Hōkūleʻa, and who took part in the Mālama Honua Worldwide Voyage.

Current affiliations: Board and Council Member with the ʻAha Kāne/Native Hawaiian Men’s Health Program; Member of Bishop Museum Board of Directors; Member of Bishop Museum Association Council; President of Friends of Hōkūleʻa and Hawaiʻiloa; Kānehūnāmoku Voyaging Academy; Maiden Voyaging Productions