Blue collar job fair March 2
Over 30 employers recruiting and willing to train will be on hand at the Lion’s Club of Kona Blue Collar Job Fair 8 a.m. to noon March 2 at the Old Kona Airport Pavilion. Working-class and manual labor jobs will be available as vendors in a range of trades, from commercial fishing to manufacturing and custodial work will be looking to hire workers.
Hawaii Workplace talk Wednesday
An entrepreneur meet-up is scheduled for Kailua-Kona.
On Wednesday, Mark Watson will talk about Hawaii Workplace at Pictures Plus, 75-1006 Henry Street.
Former WHT reporter heads HPR
Hawaii Public Radio, a statewide, community-supported radio network, announced that Sandee Oshiro joined its newsroom as the station’s first news editor.
Oshiro is an award-winning veteran journalist whose media experience spans multiple platforms, and who has managed teams and projects that have drawn national recognition. Raised on the island of Oahu, her career has included positions at West Hawaii Today, The Honolulu Advertiser, AOL’s Patch, the Poynter Institute, and, most recently, the leading National Public Radio affiliate in Southern California, KPCC.
In her position as HPR news editor, Oshiro will help shape story coverage and organize planning and news content. She’ll also be involved in special projects.
“We’re excited to welcome Sandee to the HPR newsroom as a veteran public radio journalist who has a deep understanding of our community,” HPR news director and vice president Bill Dorman said. “She immediately adds strength and depth to our news team and we look forward to her contributions.”
Oshiro grew up in the working class community of Kalihi. She received her bachelor’s degree from the University of Hawaii before attending Columbia University’s Graduate School of Journalism in New York.
Her journalism career began in Kona where she covered police, politics, and natural disasters for the daily West Hawaii Today. After a stint at the all-news radio station KHVH in Honolulu, she joined The Honolulu Advertiser as a general assignment reporter and later covered labor, business, and government. She was promoted to the newspaper’s business editor and tasked with the launch of the paper’s first website, HonoluluAdvertiser.com. The online news site, consistently ranked as the state’s largest, went on to win multiple journalism awards.
“I’m thrilled to be returning home and eager to help HPR as it takes ambitious steps to enhance its news coverage and raise its profile as a hub of civic discussion,” Oshiro said.
Hawaii Small Business registration available
HawaiiSmall Businesses can now register online with the State of Hawaii at: https://hands.ehawaii.gov/hands/smallbusiness.
The registration can be completed in three easy steps: First, verify that your business meets the size standards for a small business established by the Small Business Administration. Second, create an eHawaii.govaccount. Lastly, complete the small business registration form.
In July 2017, the Hawaii State Legislature mandated that the state “create, develop, and implement strategies to ensure that small businesses, including businesses owned by veterans, native Hawaiians, and women, are able to effectively participate in small business contracting opportunities within our state.” The state can use the database to identify small businesses for Hawaiibidding opportunities.
Applications for startup help available
Elemental Excelerator (Elemental), a funder of environment and infrastructure startups, announced the start of its 2019 application season. Elemental is seeking startups whose technologies improve the critical systems that impact people’s lives, including energy, mobility, agriculture, water and the circular economy.
For its eighth cohort, elemental seeks growth-stage startups from anywhere in the world that have secured seed-to-Series C funding, employ a minimum of two-full-time employees and have a working prototype or business model that:
1. Increases adoption of renewable energy and reduces energy sector greenhouse gas emissions.
2. Improves food resiliency and slows emissions associated with the agricultural sector.
3. Addresses water stress and scarcity and increases access to clean water.
4. Reduces emissions from air, ground, and sea transportation, and increases availability of mobility options.
5. Fosters a circular economy and reduces global constraints on natural resources.
Elemental is accepting applications for three tracks:
1. Demonstration — Up to $1 million for scalable project deployments in Hawaii and Asia-Pacific.
2. Equity and access — Up to $1 million for companies expanding access to clean innovations for disadvantaged communities in California.
3. Go-to-Market — Up to $100,000 for companies in search of product/market fit.
Info: visit elementalexcelerator.com.