A&B’s Partners for Equality and Women’s Leadership Teams Host Fireside Chat with Krystal Ka’ai

April 9, 2022 in Education, Social

A&B’s Partners for Equality and the Women’s Leadership Initiative co-hosted a Fireside Chat with Krystal Ka’ai, the Executive Director of the White House Initiative for Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders (WHIAANHPI).

Ms. Ka’ai, who is a Kamehameha Schools graduate, is the first Native Hawaiian leader of WHIAANHPI.  Ms, Ka’ai shared her background, her path to WHIAANHPI, several issues they are tackling, as well as how we at A&B can help.

Kokua for Keiki 2021

January 4, 2022 in Education, Social

Alexander & Baldwin is excited to once again partner with local elementary schools for its Kokua for Keiki program. This year, the program has been expanded to 17 local schools near A&B-owned and operated centers – Aikahi Park Shopping Center, Gateway at Mililani Mauka and Gateway at Mililani Mauka South, Kunia Shopping Center, Lanihau Center, Manoa Marketplace, Queens’ Marketplace, Pearl Highlands Center and Waipio Shopping Center – were invited to participate as a means to replace annual fundraising activities canceled due to the pandemic.

From December 1, 2021 – January 31, 2022, Kokua for Keiki will raise up to $20,000 to support participating schools. A true community-driven effort, patrons of the shops, restaurants and service providers at the eight A&B shopping centers can register and designate the school of their choice online and then submit shopping receipts throughout the campaign.

Below is a list of participating A&B shopping centers and local elementary schools. Click on the shopping center name to be directed to each individual Kokua for Keiki webpage:

Aikahi Park Shopping Center
Aikahi Elementary School

Manoa Marketplace
Hokulani Elementary School
Lincoln Elementary School
Manoa Elementary School
Noelani Elementary School

Gateway at Mililani Mauka and Gateway at Mililani Mauka South
Mililani ‘Ike Elementary School
Mililani Mauka Elementary School

Kunia Shopping Center
Kaleiopuu Elementary School
Honowai Elementary School
Waipahu Elementary School

Lanihau Center
Kahakai Elementary School

Queens’ Marketplace
Waikoloa Elementary & Middle School

Pearl Highlands Center
Pearl City Elementary School
Manana Elementary School
Lehua Elementary School

Waipio Shopping Center
Kanoelani Elementary School

2020 Corporate Responsibility Report

September 3, 2021 in Education, Social, Sustainability

A&B is excited to share its 2020 Corporate Responsibility Report, which highlights our environmental, social and governance (ESG) efforts and progress made during the year. While we began 2020 with optimism to celebrate our 150th anniversary and to continue to advance our ESG program, we learned, along with everyone, that the arrival of COVID-19 would dampen our efforts. However, the pandemic provided an opportunity for us to demonstrate our long-time commitment to providing support to the communities we serve throughout Hawaii.

Alyson Nakamura, VP, Governance & Sustainability, shared “The year 2020 provided us a unique opportunity to demonstrate our core values and commitment as “Partners for Hawaii.”

Click here to see the full report.

Alexander & Baldwin’s 2020 Review of Giving

August 3, 2021 in Social

Alexander & Baldwin has a longstanding philanthropic tradition, which is as deeply rooted in our company culture as our 150 years of business in Hawaii.

In 2020, community investments by A&B’s Kokua Giving Program made a broad impact with $950,000 in contributions to 230 organizations across the state of Hawaii.

These investments in the community extended across Hawaii and fell into five main categories:

  1. Health, affordable housing and human services
  2. Education
  3. Community/civic
  4. Culture and the arts
  5. Environmental and land stewardship

The generosity of A&B’s employees bolstered monetary and in-kind support. They helped build vibrant communities with gifts of time, skills, leadership guidance and personal resources. A&B employees can be found picking up trash on beaches, organizing food drives, pitching in at community events, leading youth activities and walking miles for a variety of charitable causes.

To see the 2020 Review of Giving, click here.

 

Alexander & Baldwin Donated $950,000 To Support 230 Nonprofits during 2020

May 6, 2021 in Social

Article originally published on MauiNow.com

Alexander & Baldwin, a publicly traded real estate investment fund, donated $950,000 to support 230 nonprofit organizations across Hawaiʻi during its 2020 Kōkua Giving charitable program, according to the trust’s news release.

Nearly half of its donations were directed to housing and health & human service programs, many focused on addressing emergency food and housing needs created by COVID-19. In its 150th anniversary year, A&B said it was proud to navigate and respond to the changing needs of its communities, employees and long-standing non-profit partners, while working together to sustain healthy communities during this unprecedented year.

“This was a challenging year for all Hawai’i nonprofits, both those serving on the frontlines of COVID relief and those working to sustain the other safety nets in our communities,” said Meredith Ching, A&B executive vice president. “It was equally as challenging for funders as COVID restrictions made it difficult to remain connected with our communities and their needs.

“A&B’s charitable investments in 2020 reflect a year of intensified outreach and efforts to stay in lockstep and ahead of unanticipated and evolving needs. Partnerships are the cornerstone of our charitable giving and community programs, and we were happy to nurture long-standing relationships while building new ones, with first-time grants provided to nearly 50 local nonprofits, many ‘introduced’ to us through employees.”

In commemoration of A&B’s 150th anniversary in 2020, the company launched the “Kōkua150” program and invited employees to each identify a local nonprofit to receive a $150 grant funded by the company in the employee’s name. A&B employees directed a total of $25,500 to 86 Hawai’i nonprofits.

Nearly 40 percent of the “Kōkua150” designations were for COVID relief efforts such as food banks and safety net programs. The balance funded employees’ favored organizations and initiatives including public school PTAs, social justice programs, animal shelters and environmental causes across the islands.

“The Kōkua 150 program was a way to build and share A&B’s philanthropy with its employees as well as to follow their lead to the causes that mean the most to them,” Ching said.

Unprecedented challenges to the public education sector prompted an increased focus on the schools in A&B’s “neighborhoods”, where the company’s retail centers operate. A&B delivered $50,000 in unrestricted grants to 20 Hawai’i public schools across the state as the institutions incurred expenses related to new campus safety protocols and the shift to virtual learning due to COVID.

“We have long believed in supporting our neighbors, in good times and bad,” Ching said. “Our partner schools have exemplified a commitment to educating our keiki while providing critical socio-emotional learning tools during a time of financial and overall uncertainty.”

A&B Neighborhood Shopping Centers Host Program to Boost School Fundraising

April 6, 2021 in Education, Social

Alexander & Baldwin announced the results of its inaugural Kokua for Keiki program to raise funds for Oahu public elementary schools. Schools near A&B-owned and operated centers – Gateway at Mililani Mauka and Gateway at Mililani Mauka South, Kunia Shopping Center, Pearl Highlands Center and Waipio Shopping Center – were invited to participate as a means to replace annual fundraising activities cancelled due to the pandemic. The recently concluded program was a partnership between the A&B-owned centers, its patrons and nine neighboring public elementary schools.

Held over two months, Kokua for Keiki raised more than $11,000 to support participating schools. A true community-driven effort, patrons of the shops, restaurants and service providers at the five A&B shopping centers registered and designated the school of their choice online and then submitted shopping receipts throughout the campaign. Nearly 900 Kokua for Keiki receipts were tallied and converted into monetary grants for the schools.

“We extend our warmest mahalo to our customers for their support of our neighboring schools,” said A&B Executive Vice President and Chief Real Estate Officer Lance Parker. “This partnership is another example of how Hawaii comes together to support each other during challenging times. A&B looks forward to expanding Kokua for Keiki to other neighborhood schools and communities we serve across the state.”

Unrestricted grants were distributed to the following schools:

Gateway at Mililani Mauka and Gateway at Mililani Mauka South
Mililani Ike Elementary School – $1,800
Mililani Mauka Elementary School – $1,200

Kunia Shopping Center
Kaleiopuu Elementary School – $1,500
Honowai Elementary School – $1,000
Waipahu Elementary School – $750

Pearl Highlands Center
Pearl City Elementary School – $2,000
Manana Elementary School – $1,500
Lehua Elementary School – $1,000

Waipio Shopping Center
Kanoelani Elementary School – $500

A&B’s “Kokua 150” Program 2020

January 11, 2021 in Social

To celebrate our 150th anniversary in 2020 we created the “Kokua 150” program that gave each employee $150 to designate to a local nonprofit of their choice. Little did we know how meaningful this program would become. Last year, 170 A&B employees participated in this program (over 90%), and together we donated $25,500 to Hawaii charities.

Employees, such as employee Charlie Loomis who designated his Kokua 150th donation to local organization HUGS as pictured above, designated their Kokua 150 grants to a wide range of organizations including food banks, schools, animal shelters, environmental groups, youth clubs, cultural organizations, and well-loved community programs.

Kosasa Academy Mural at Aikahi Park Shopping Center

December 3, 2020 in Social

We’re excited to share a new mural created by the Kosasa Academy at Aikahi Park Shopping Center. Mahalo to Cindy Janus, volunteer art director, and the Academy’s students for continuing to adorn the construction walls that surround the future Starbucks building at the center with their creative artwork. We’re thrilled to see their work recognized in MidWeek’s Windward Voice publication.

Link to MidWeek’s Windward Voice article

A&B Provides Grant Supporting Maui Food Bank’s Emergency Request

November 28, 2020 in Social

Since 1994, the Maui Food Bank has been on the frontlines providing hunger relief for the island of Maui. The impacts of COVID have increased demand for their services. Seeing the need in their own community, 20 Maui employees from Kahului Trucking & Storage and A&B’s Maui office designated $150 each through our Kokua 150 charitable giving program.

Through this program, each employee can designate $150 to a nonprofit of their choice as part of A&B’s 150th anniversary. A&B also continued its support of Maui Food Bank with a grant. Altogether, the support will provide about 13,000 meals on Maui.

Link to Maui Now Article