The Maui Nō Ka ‘Oi Podcast Presented By SilverShark Media

Diane Woodburn of Maui No Ka Oi Magazine speaks with Karen Christenson of Mama’s Fish House.  In this podcast Karen talks about her parents living on a boat in the South Pacific for a few years before settling down on Maui, what it was like growing up in Lahaina during the 1960’s, how Mama’s Fish House was opened, how the restaurant supports sustainable fishing, their decision to launch meal kits this past month, how they will reopen on November 6th, adaptations they’ve made to deal with new dining rules, and how the Inn at Mama’s Fish House reopens this month. 

Diane Woodburn of Maui No Ka Oi Magazine speaks with Jeff Tarpey, the Hawaii regional manager for United Airlines.  In this podcast Jeff talks about the safety adaptations United has made during the pandemic, how the airline went from 12 flights a day down to 1 for the past few months, how they will slowly begin to increase daily flights in and out of Maui, how United offered valid Covid tests at the airport for passengers traveling to Maui, the emphasis the airline has put on the United CleanPlus initiative, the decision to alert travelers ahead of time if their flight is 70% full (giving them the option to change if they want to), what the near future looks like for travel to Maui, advice for travelers before they fly, and how United is leading the way in sustainability by creating bio-fuel for part of their fleet.

Diane Woodburn of Maui No Ka Oi Magazine speaks with Maui County Mayor Michael Victorino.  In this podcast Mayor Victorino talks about slowly reopening higher risk businesses and activities, allowing commercial events to resume in outdoor settings, why Halloween will be different on Maui this year, the upcoming October 15th reopening to trans-pacific travel, why he supports having visitors take a 2nd test after they arrive into Maui County, the importance of enforcement for guests who have to quarantine, how the county would deal with a spike in cases, the status of inter-island travel, the economic benefit the island will go through as tourism slowly rebuilds, and the importance of small business support programs the county has made available. 

Jason Evans of SilverShark Media speaks with Matias Besasso, CEO and co-founder of Rising Sun Solar.  In this podcast Matias talks about how Rising Sun Solar started in 2003, the early challenges the business faced, how tax credits and subsidies have improved to allow more people to afford solar installations, how the efficiency of the technology has advanced over the last 15 years, the benefits a new installation at Maui Ocean Center will have, how the pandemic has affected Rising Sun Solar, why more people have been switching to solar in 2020 as electric bills have risen with so much time at home, and where he sees solor technology advancing over the next 10 years.  

Jason Evans of SilverShark Media speaks with wildlife biologist and science communicator Che Frausto, the founder of Advance Wildlife Education.  In this podcast Che explains why he started Advance Wildlife Education, the importance of science communicators, his background in biology, why he decided to make his books accessible in multiple languages, how the pandemic has impacted his ability to be at in-person cultural events, why he decided to launch an app for Advance Wildlife Education, and how the local Maui community can help seabirds in distress. 

Diane Woodburn of Maui No Ka Oi Magazine speaks with Kelly King of Pacific Biodiesel.  In this podcast Kelly talks about the influence of her parents growing up, how she got into volunteering and community service, the inspiration to start Pacific Biodiesel, the early breakthroughs that gave Pacific Biodiesel long term potential, how the pandemic has affected business operations, the importance of diversified agriculture on Maui, and her advice to young women pursuing their goals.   

Diane Woodburn of Maui No Ka Oi Magazine talks to Andrienne Schatz of Book Trust - a non profit that delivers books to students who may otherwise not be able to afford them.  In this podcast Adrienne explains what the Book Trust non profit organization is, how the idea started, the results they have seen in classrooms across the country, how the organization has grown from three classrooms to twenty-one states (including Hawaii), how they’ve adapted in 2020 during the Covid-19 pandemic, and how people can support students and teachers through the Book Trust organization.    

Jason Evans of SilverShark Media speaks with Chef/Restaurateur Peter Merriman.  In this podcast Peter talks about how the past 5 months have been for the restaurant industry, what has (and has not) worked in terms of financial support from government programs, the challenge with some of the restrictions that have been put in place for restaurants that reopen, the benefits of having an outdoor or open air location, the decision that went into reopening Merriman’s Kapalua, where he thinks government guidance for restaurants could be improved, the concept of resort bubbles, what will go into the decision to eventually reopen Monkeypod Kitchen, and his outlook on the industry for the next 6-12 months. 

Diane Woodburn of Maui No Ka Oi Magazine talks to Michael Pye, the General Manager of the Fairmont Kea Lani.  In this podcast Michael talks about growing up in Canada, his passion to care for the environment, the importance of sharing culture for the property, working with Chef Tylun Pang, what it was to have to close the resort in March, how the property stayed helped the community over the past 6 months, the attention to mental health for employees during a challenging time, the importance of testing in order to slowly reopen tourism, the safety protocols the resort will put into place, how the tourism industry will have to be a managed recovery, the responsibilities guests will have while traveling in the Covid era, and how much notice the property needs in order to properly re-open for guests in 2020.   

** Disclaimer: this interview was recorded just prior to Governor Ige announcing October 15th as the new date for the pre-travel testing program to begin

Jason Evans of SilverShark Media speaks with MiJin Kang Toride of Lineage.  In this podcast MiJin talks about her early culinary influences in Guam and South Korea, how she went to college to be an accountant but then changed career paths, her first jobs in the culinary industry, joining Lineage in August 2019, what it’s like transitioning into leading a well known restaurant, how the pandemic affected Lineage early on, adaptations the restaurant made to reopen, her advice to aspiring chefs, the importance of learning the economics of food costs if you want to run a restaurant, and her favorite item on the Lineage menu.