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Hawaii Public Safety Research
ISPI's research on public safety, emergency management and security policy in Hawaii: Lahaina recovery, hurricane readiness, police staffing, AI governance and youth justice.
Research hub
ISPI research on Hawaii
ISPI is headquartered in Honolulu, and Hawaii is the focus of its Hawaii Policy Research Series (HI-01 to HI-10) and of many of its papers and articles. This hub gathers that work in one place: the key issues ISPI's research identifies, where to start, and every related paper and analysis piece.
Key issues in ISPI's research
Emergency management
Lahaina: recovery is not reform
ISPI's HI-04 documents four framework failures on August 8, 2023 (mass notification, evacuation routes, mutual aid timelines and EOC communications) and argues that post-fire spending on equipment, staffing and mitigation has not addressed them.
Hurricanes
An Oahu strike would be a compound emergency
PB-11 notes that Hawaii has not had a major hurricane landfall since Iniki in 1992 and that simultaneous airport, port, grid and road failures on Oahu are a scenario current mutual aid and supply plans are not designed for.
Law enforcement
Police staffing is a retention problem
HI-03 finds a retention failure rather than a recruitment failure: the real compensation gap, salary adjusted for Hawaii's cost of living, drives lateral transfers more than any other documented factor. It recommends housing assistance, student loan forgiveness and a cost-of-living supplement.
Continuity
Agencies cannot relocate off-island
PB-10 argues that island agencies cannot meet federal continuity guidance by moving to a distant alternative site, so shelter-in-place and digital continuity must be their primary strategies.
Technology
AI tools need local validation
HI-10 notes that risk assessment instruments used in Hawaii Family Court, parole and pretrial detention were developed and validated mainly on continental populations, and calls for validation for Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander communities before AI tools are deployed.
Youth justice
Lessons from Youth ChalleNGe
CM-03 examines the Hawaii National Guard Youth ChalleNGe Academy and argues its structured, culturally grounded model should inform programs for youth already in the justice system.
Start here
PaperHI-04 — Maui Recovery and Emergency Management Reform: Three Years After Lahaina →PaperHI-03 — Law Enforcement Workforce Policy in Hawaii: HPD Staffing Crisis Analysis →AnalysisHurricane Lala Made a Direct Hit on Hawaiʻi. The Response Documents Every Gap ISPI Has Been Writing About. →All related papers and analysis
Hawaii Public Safety research (17)
- HI-01 — Housing Affordability and Public Safety in Hawaii: An Island Framework
- HI-02 — Homelessness and Public Safety in Honolulu: An Island Framework
- HI-03 — Law Enforcement Workforce Policy in Hawaii: HPD Staffing Crisis Analysis
- HI-04 — Maui Recovery and Emergency Management Reform: Three Years After Lahaina
- HI-05 — Federal Funding Uncertainty and Island Resilience in Hawaii
- HI-06 — Infrastructure Deficit and Island Resilience in Hawaii
- HI-07 — Native Hawaiian Rights and DHHL Policy: Public Safety Implications
- HI-08 — Climate Resilience and Emergency Response in Hawaii
- HI-09 — Aging Population and Healthcare Infrastructure in Hawaii: Emergency Preparedness Implications
- HI-10 — AI Governance and Public Safety Technology in Hawaii
- Hawaii Grid Vulnerability After Hurricane Lala: The Infrastructure Gap Behind the Power Outages
- Hurricane Lala Made a Direct Hit on Hawaiʻi. The Response Documents Every Gap ISPI Has Been Writing About.
- HPD Chief Lazar Announces Drone Program. The AI Governance Question He Hasn't Answered Yet.
- Waipiō Valley Road: The 24th Emergency Declaration in Four Years Is Not a Maintenance Problem. It Is a Policy Failure.
- Hawaii's June 14 FEMA Deadline Exposes the Island Disaster Recovery Gap That Lahaina Already Documented
- Honolulu Has a New Police Chief. He Has Never Lived in Hawaii.
- Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander Youth in the Justice System — Decades of Disparity, Decades Without Research
Pacific Security & Governance research (1)
Emergency Management & Resilience research (8)
- WP-03 — Island Emergency Management: A Practitioner Framework
- PB-11 — Hurricane Emergency Management in Pacific Island Communities
- PB-19 — Public Health Emergency Infrastructure in Island Communities
- CM-01 — Maui Wildfire Emergency Management Analysis
- CM-06 — Climate Security and Island Public Safety
- CM-09 — Tsunami Preparedness in Pacific Island Communities
- CM-10 — Island Wildfire Policy Beyond Maui — A Pacific Perspective
- What Is Island Emergency Management? Why Continental Frameworks Don't Apply
Insider Threat & Threat Assessment research (3)
- WP-02 — Insider Threat Assessment Framework for Island Organizations
- PB-01 — Insider Threat Programs for Small Island Organizations
- CM-07 — Insider Threat in the Island Hospitality Industry
Law Enforcement & Community Safety research (17)
- WP-04 — Campus Safety for Geographically Isolated Institutions
- WP-05 — Law Enforcement Workforce Policy in Island Communities
- WP-08 — Public Safety Workforce Development in Island Communities
- WP-09 — At-Risk Youth and Juvenile Justice in Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander Communities
- WP-11 — AI Governance and Public Safety Technology in Island Communities
- PB-02 — Campus Safety Policy Brief — Island Universities
- PB-04 — Human Trafficking and Exploitation Policy in Island Communities
- PB-12 — Hawaii Law Enforcement Recruitment Crisis — Policy Response
- PB-14 — K-12 School Safety in Island Communities
- PB-17 — Juvenile Justice Reform in Pacific Island Communities
- CM-02 — First Responder Mental Health in Island Communities
- CM-03 — Youth ChalleNGe Academy Policy Commentary
- CM-04 — AI and Public Safety in Island Communities
- CM-11 — Diversity and Representation in Island Law Enforcement
- CM-13 — Drug Trafficking Networks in the Pacific — 2026 Update
- Why Island Police Departments Face Structural Officer Shortages That Continental Solutions Cannot Fix
- The Island Law Enforcement Workforce Crisis Is Not a Hawaii Problem
Supply Chain & Infrastructure research (7)
- WP-06 — Supply Chain Security and Community Resilience in Island Communities
- WP-12 — Corporate Security and ESG Risk Policy for Island Operations
- PB-05 — Supply Chain Security Policy Brief — Island Communities
- CM-05 — Corporate Security and ESG in Island Operations
- CM-15 — ESG and Indigenous Community Relations in Hawaii
- Duty of Care for Island Resort Operators: What the Lahaina Litigation and Hurricane Lala Established
- What Is the Island Security Premium? Understanding ESG Risk in Pacific and Caribbean Island Operations
Commission Research (1)
Commission Research
Commission ISPI for location-specific research
Hawaii state and county agencies, the Legislature, foundations and island operators can commission Hawaii-specific research from ISPI.
Commissioned research from $4,500 · Policy briefs from $8,500 · Reduced rates for Pacific Island governments and small nonprofits
Commission Research →ISPI — Island Security Policy Institute, Honolulu
Headquartered in Honolulu, Hawaiʻi · Practitioner-led research · 56 published documents · Worldwide
