HomeMy WebLinkAboutPR_2021-09-14CountycontinueseffortsforfeministeconomicrecoveryplanDEREK S.K. KAWAKAMI, MAYOR MICHAEL A. DAHILIG, MANAGING DIRECTOR
News Release
For Immediate Release: September 14, 2021
COUNTY OF KAUA‘I
OFFICE OF BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS
ELLEN CHING, ADMINISTRATOR
(808) 241-4917
County continues efforts for feminist economic recovery plan
LĪHU‘E – The County of Kaua‘i continues to support a feminist economic recovery plan for
COVID-19, an initiative led by the Kaua‘i County Committee on the Status of Women (KCCSW) through a
Kaua‘i County Council resolution signed in December 2020.
“We recognize the vulnerability faced by women, children, and minorities, especially throughout
the extreme challenges of this pandemic,” said Mayor Derek S. K. Kawakami. “At the start of our
pandemic response, with the reality that women most often serve as providers and caregivers to their
children, we quickly implemented a flexible work schedule protocol. This gave our associates the ability
to telework from home and support their children’s needs, as most schools transitioned to distance
learning, while continuing to financially support their families.”
In a recent report to the KCCSW, the county describes its COVID-19 recovery efforts that support
last year’s Resolution 2021-04, “Supporting and Urging Equity, Inclusion, and Social and Economic
Justice Principle in COVID-19 Related Recovery Initiatives.” Such efforts include formulating the Kaua‘i
Economic Recovery Strategy Team (KERST) under the leadership of the Office of Economic Development
Director Nalani Brun, where ten teams were developed to address and guide the county in its recovery
and support plan and initiatives. The 90 members of these teams were comprised of 45 women and 45
men, and included a diverse range of ethnic backgrounds and expertise. Additionally, many of the
county’s Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act grantees were awarded funding for
programs that support women, children, our houseless community, and kupuna. These grants included
programs for food distribution to kupuna and houseless populations, non-profit economic loss support,
mental health and domestic violence prevention, educational support, employment assistance, and
housing assistance.
“As Kaua‘i’s representative to the Hawai‘i State Commission on the Status of Women, I was
pleased to receive this report which puts the words of Resolution 2021-04 into action,” said Edie Ignacio
Neumiller, Kaua‘i Commissioner on the Hawai‘i State Commission on the Status of Women. “As the first
county in the state to provide this information, I’m proud of Kaua‘i’s leadership and commitment to
addressing the long-standing issues surrounding equity, inclusion, and social and economic justice. The
County of Kaua‘i continues to take the lead in supporting and promoting COVID-19 recovery efforts for
women, children, the houseless and LGBTQ community and kupuna.”
Resolution 2021-04 which was unanimously passed by the Kaua‘i County Council in December,
recognizes that COVID-19 has magnified long-standing inequalities of women and LGBTQ people in
Hawai‘i. It urges policy makers to view the pandemic through a gendered lens and incorporate principles
of equity, inclusion, and social and economic justice into county programs centered on COVID-19
response and recovery efforts. The legislation is based on the Hawai‘i State Commission on the Status of
Women’s plan called “Building Bridges, Not Walking on Backs,” which is the nation’s first feminist
economic recovery plan for COVID-19.
To view the county’s report to the Kaua‘i County Commission on the Status of Women on
Resolution 2021-04, please visit www.kauai.gov/KCCSW.
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