Leah Bremer

UHERO’s Leah Bremer promoted to Specialist

June 12, 2025

UHERO congratulates Leah Bremer on her promotion to Specialist in the College of Social Sciences. Leah Bremer is the Associate Director for the Institute for Sustainability and Resilience and a Faculty Specialist with the University of Hawaiʻi Economic Research Organization (UHERO) and Water Resources Research Center (WRRC).

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Return on investment for watershed protection on Kaua‘i

March 20, 2025

Native forests provide many societal benefits, including protecting freshwater resources that provide drinking water and sustain culturally, economically, and ecologically valuable springs, streams, and groundwater dependent ecosystems. The objectives of this report are to: (1) model future management scenarios for Kaua‘i’s native forests that are co-developed with The Nature Conservancy (TNC) to quantify the impact […]

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Watershed Protection Provides Strong Return on Investment on Kaua‘i

By Conrad Newfield, Nathan DeMaagd, Christopher Wada, Kimberly Burnett, and Leah Bremer Read the full report. Kaua‘i’s native forests play a vital role in sustaining the island’s freshwater resources. These biodiverse ecosystems capture rainfall and fog, allowing water to seep into underground aquifers, which serve as the primary source of drinking water. However, the expansion […]

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Scaling biocultural initiatives can support nature, food, and culture from summit to sea

March 18, 2025

Biocultural nature-based solutions provide many social, cultural, and ecological benefits. Yet, there has been little research on related land-sea societal benefits, hindering our ability to finance and scale these solutions. To help fill this gap, we evaluate the land-sea benefits of scaling biocultural restoration initiatives in Hawaiʻi, including multi-strata agroforestry and high-elevation silvopasture combined with […]

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New UHERO Environment contribution in Ocean Nature Sustainability. Scaling biocultural initiatives can support nature, food, and culture from summit to sea. 

Biocultural nature-based solutions provide many social, cultural, and ecological benefits. Yet, there has been little research on related land-sea societal benefits, hindering our ability to finance and scale these solutions. To help fill this gap, we evaluate the land-sea benefits of scaling biocultural restoration initiatives in Hawaiʻi, including multi-strata agroforestry and high-elevation silvopasture combined with […]

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Carbon Benefits of Agroforestry Transitions on Fallow Agricultural Lands – New UHERO Environment publication in Scientific Reports

February 13, 2025

New UHERO Environment publication in Scientific Reports demonstrates important carbon benefits of transitioning fallow agricultural lands into varying agroforestry systems across Hawaiʻi. https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-025-87891-y

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Carbon benefits through agroforestry transitions on unmanaged fallow agricultural land in Hawaiʻi

February 12, 2025

There are growing efforts to incorporate agroforestry into ecosystem service incentive programs. Indigenous and other place-based multi-strata agroforestry systems are important conservation and agricultural strategies, yet their ecosystem services, including carbon sequestration benefits, have received little research attention. To fill this gap, we draw on interviews with agroforestry practitioners and ecosystem service modeling in Hawaiʻi […]

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News: Co-Production of Knowledge at Sumida Farm Trains a New Generation of Community-Engaged Scientists

May 13, 2024

A collaboration between the University of Hawai‘i (UH), Hawai‘i Sea Grant, and the fourth generation of Sumida farmers focuses on training a new generation of locally engaged scientists. A key partner is UHERO, an interdisciplinary research group that informs public policy across Hawai‘i. The overarching goal is to build a healthy, resilient, and sustainable agricultural […]

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Co-Production of Knowledge at Sumida Farm Trains a New Generation of Community-Engaged Scientists

A collaboration between the University of Hawai‘i (UH), Hawai‘i Sea Grant, and the fourth generation of Sumida farmers focuses on training a new generation of locally engaged scientists. A key partner is UHERO, an interdisciplinary research group that informs public policy across Hawai‘i. The overarching goal is to build a healthy, resilient, and sustainable agricultural […]

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