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PBCP Hauula resilience model village gains national attention

(L to R) Dr. Meridith Jaeger, UEDA President; Dr. Margo Fliss, UEDA Awards of Excellence Committee Chair, Papalii Dr. Tusi Avegalio PBCP Director, Mike Lurvey UH PBCP/MPBI scientist & inventor and Dr. Julia Potter, incoming UEDA President.
Source: UH-PBCP

Honolulu, HAWAII — Another pioneering project spawned at the University of Hawaii Pacific Business Center Program (PBCP) is gaining national attention.

The project — coastal ‘Hauula Resilience Model Village’ —  utilizing a Thermal Conversion of Organic Material (TCOM) waste management technology was selected as the 2019 Award of Excellence winner among outstanding national finalist under the Innovation Category, at the National University Economic Development Assn. (UEDA) awards dinner, Oct. 1 hosted at the Whitney Peak Hotel in Reno, Nevada.

The Hauula Resilience Model Village is a modular, scalable model that will feature a waste conversion technology designed into a retrofitted freight container for mobility and easy deployment by land, air and sea. The Thermal Energy Conversion of Organic Materials (TCOM) utilizes a unique process to produce high income commercial carbon, soil amendments for agriculture and food production, fuel, atmospherically harvested water, food dehydrator and carbon credits. It is designed for island and remote rural communities and can be integrated in their current economic development strategies, especially in the event of a disaster.

 “In today’s economic development environment, it is critically important for higher education institutions to be more engaged in their regional economies as partners with both government and business entities to lessen the impacts of economic disruptions and develop more resilience,” said Tim Hindes, UEDA Executive Director. “These finalists are the very top programs from across North America, generating impactful and sustainable results in the regions in which they are engaged.”

Pilot TCOM demonstrations are anticipated pending customized parts’ timely arrival and installation.  A demonstration is planned at the 2019 Fourth Annual Global Breadfruit Summit hosted by the Polynesian Cultural Center and jointly sponsored by the Marriott Courtyard, Oahu North Shore from October 14th – 17th. 

First international TCOM demonstration site is being planned for 2020 in Apia, Samoa for the Polynesian and Melanesian island jurisdictions of the South Pacific.  Assembly hubs are being considered in the State of Hawaii in Hilo, Hawaii and in the US Territories of American Samoa for the South Pacific, CNMI Saipan in the far west Pacific, Phonpei-FSM in the mid Pacific and Palau in the southwest Pacific. In in the Caribbean, the US Virgin Islands, St. Croix and Puerto Rico are being considered. Operational, assembly and maintenance training will be centered through the local vocational technical institutes and colleges at each location.